The Green Place
A managed Ward at Wasteland Weekend focused on Vuvalini, Bedouin, and nomadic aesthetic
Theme
We have a softer look than most of the rest of Wasteland Weekend’s tribes, and many of us focus on beauty rather than pure grunge. It’s still the apocalypse, though, so proper weathering is still important!
Ward-specific Theme Guidelines
We've put together a more clear set of guidelines for the look we are trying to foster in the ward to bring a more unique look to Wasteland Weekend and cohesion to our ward as a neighborhood. It is not mandatory that each tribe and initiate follow every one of these guidelines to a tee, but is instead is our ideal look and should serve to guide tribes and initiates in the right direction when building or improving their camps.- Soft-apocalypse with an emphasis on a temporary, nomadic look and beautiful things, inspired by Vuvalini aesthetic and Bedouin-like decorating.
- Aim for things that look very temporary - loose, drapey, curtainy fabrics instead of solid, straight-looking walls, even if those walls are technically cloth. Simple structures for tents instead of large, solid-looking ones. Imagine a camp that can be broken down into very easy to store and carry pieces.
- Pretty, mis-matched and/or patchworked fabrics, suitably weathered, but still showing some variation in color and texture. Cloth draped at different angles and techniques that avoid straight lines are good. Avoid simple white or grey sheets and materials, even if they are very dirty.
- Even themed tents in the back, if they are very plain, should preferably be draped with different things to break up the solid look of them.
- Detailed, pretty decorations like tassels, can or jar lanterns, (look great if strung on drapey strings) strings of scrappy flags, etc.
- Beautiful rugs as a floor covering, and pillows and low tables can be a good look.
- Temporary, non-solid looking fencing and signage.
- Have greenery! - it doesn’t have to be big, but a little garden of eked-out succulents or other plants, or some vines on tents or other structures will help us truly be the Green Place!
- Avoid anything that feels large, imposing, or solid-looking.
- Avoid military-esque elements and things like camo netting on main structures. Camo netting is good for things you want to disappear into the background, like non-themed vehicles, but does not vibe well in the ward as a prominent element of your main structures.
- Avoid structures or obvious decorations that include lots of wood or metal that looks solid and not like something that can be broken down easily.
- Avoid having a lot of road signs in your camp.
General Themeing Tips
Everything in the Theme Zone at Wasteland Weekend must be 100% in theme (and the Green Place is, in its entirety, in the Theme Zone - that includes the Initiates Zone!). Any items that are not themed or are difficult to theme must be hidden. There are lots of creative ways to hide everyday objects that are hard to theme, such as modern vehicles (if they need to stay in camp, but we recommend leaving them in the parking lot to the west of the Theme Zone) and coolers. Having a supply of dirtied canvas or heavy cloth pieces around can come in handy - drape one over something that’s out of place, and voila, it no longer sticks out like a sore thumb.Here are a few tips for theming, disguising, or stowing those modern-looking items that you might want in your camp, but don’t want to ruin the immersion:
Green Place tribes have come up with a few different ways to keep coolers out of sight. While a lot of things can be hit with a layer of spray paint to dull them down, make them look dirty, or completely change their color, modern coolers will always retain that shape and texture that just screams “cooler” and makes it continue to stand out. You can always keep a cooler inside a structure that’s not meant for the public to view (i.e. inside a private shade tent, or a sleeping tent that is disguised on the outside), but you might want your cooler to be more centrally located in your camp. There are two easy ways to keep coolers out of sight, but still accessible: put it in something, or put it under something. To get that cool Vuvalini, Green Place vibe, a couple tribes have put coolers inside steamer chests or crates, which is a very easy way to have some cool decor in your camp while keeping your cooler super easy to get to. Other camps have opted to put their cooler under something, such as a draped table, or a simple piece of cloth that drapes directly over the cooler. It’s okay if the cooler is visible for the few seconds you’re digging around in it, but make sure it’s covered and out of sight all other times!
If you need to have a non-themed car in your camp, it needs to be either covered by something, or painted to make it look a little more in-theme. Painting is definitely the more difficult method, but some people opt to use tempera paint as a way to completely cover their car’s normal color, but still be able to wash it off after the event. Matte black, dirty browns, or rust tones would be the best. Even a well-painted car can still look a little bit out of place if it’s a very modern style, though. The easier way to disguise a car in a theme camp is to cover it. Dark, dull, or painted tarps, large canvas tarps, and camo netting (make sure white or bright colors don’t show through the netting!) are all good ways to hide a car. Make sure whatever you’re bringing to cover the car is big enough to cover it from end to end and down to the ground, and that it has attachment points where you can tie or stake it down. We’ve also seen cars hidden by simply parking them under a shade structure that has textile walls all the way down to the ground.
If you’re cooking anything in camp, chances are you’re going to want some pots, pans, spatulas, tongs, plates, etc around. These are items that are easy to get in styles that don’t stand out too badly, but if you’ve brought things that look a little out of place (such as disposable plates), it’s easy to just bring a lidded crate or container that can be used as storage for these items. Also encourage everyone in your camp to bring their own themed plate, cup, and utensils, and just rinse or wash them after every meal. As far as stoves go, if you have one that you don’t mind weathering on the outside to keep it in theme while it’s out, that’s great! If the one you have stands out and you don’t want to modify it, keep it covered or stowed when not in use. Propane tanks, as well, can be covered in cloth to hide them.
Hand washing/dish cleaning stations can be pretty simple and aren’t hard to disguise. If you’re using a modern water jug (I’m looking at you, bright blue plastic jugs…) you can simply cover it with a cloth so that only the nozzle is sticking out. Use a metal bucket or a tub in an inconspicuous color to catch the water (grey water must be packed out, not dumped on the ground!), and if you have a soap and/or hand sanitizer dispenser, it’s easy to paint it or wrap it in something like cloth medical tape that can be made to look dirty with a bit of paint. Trash receptacles can be disguised in a number of ways - simply put a trash bag in a burlap or canvas bag to hang somewhere, or if you have a trash can that is not themed, wrap the can in cloth.
You are inevitably going to run into a litany of small items you may not have really thought of that get used, left around your shade tent, and ruin the post-apocalyptic feel of your space. Phones, electronics, snack bags, crafting supplies, you name it. While there are some ways to prevent some of these items from entering the public space in the first place - i.e. remove and toss snack wrappers immediately and put the food in a themed bowl - it is helpful to have a single place that these items can be stowed when not in use. Any themed container will do, and just make sure your campmates know, if they left something non-themed out and it disappears, it probably got put in that crate/box/basket.
The Backwoods Convoy camp
The Clan of the Boltcutters Camp lit at night - Photo by Kevin Coughlin
An initiate camper's camp
An initiate camper's camp
The Lost Toys camp
Vuvalini aesthetic photo - photo by Sanguine
The Ragweavers camp
Vuvalini bike from Mad Max: Fury Road