Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
girls at a festival waiting for the show begins.
girls at a festival waiting for the show begins.
Photo by Aranxa Esteve from Unsplash
Northwestern | Style > Fashion

Dillo Day Outfit Ideas

Joy Xiao Student Contributor, Northwestern University
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Northwestern chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.


May 16, 2026, will be Northwestern’s 54th annual Dillo Day, one of the largest student-run music festivals in the U.S. The festival features live music and themed decorations along the lakefront. This year’s theme is “Dillo Speedway.”

For fashion lovers, one of the most exciting parts of going to a music festival is the opportunity to plan and wear a cute outfit. While some people attend festivals for the music, others view them as a chance to showcase their style. 

For Dillo Day, students dress to match the theme and have the chance to be creative with their outfits. This year especially, there are many ways to interpret “Dillo Speedway” for outfit ideas. Think The Fast and the Furious, Cars, and Grand Prix. Here are four possible Dillo Day outfit routes you could go for, and linked pieces for inspiration.

Formula 1 Driver

When I think “Dillo Speedway,” I immediately think of racecars. So, what better way to dress up than as a professional racecar driver? To combine the festival nature of Dillo Day and the cool, sleek energy of a racecar driver, I think leather is the way to go. If not, you can also just wear a jacket and some black, white, and red pieces. To add some flair, you can add cute accessories like a belt, hat, or sunglasses.

Here are some possible pieces:

2. Cars

Instead of being the racecar driver, you could dress up as the car itself. A popular animated racing movie, Cars has many racecars to take inspiration from. You and a group of friends could dress up as Lightning McQueen, Sally Carrera, Doc Hudson, Tow Mater, and others, for example. This might look like wearing monochromatic outfits or just colored shirts and shorts. You can add a hat to make the Cars reference more obvious, too.

Here are some examples of pieces for Sally from Cars, but you could find some in any color for any character you want to dress as:

3. Suki

If you want to channel The Fast and the Furious, an on-theme outfit idea for Dillo Day would be to dress up as Suki. This might require some arts and crafts for those who love to DIY. Suki wears iconic tall pink leather pieces above her shoes. To recreate the look, you can cut a pair of pink jeans into a skirt and use the legs to mimic the leather. Suki also wears a purple tank top with some pink peeking out underneath. Here are some basic pieces you can cut and customize to your liking to get the look.

4. Racing numbers

Lastly, if you’re looking for a chill, easy outfit, you can simply lean into the racing number concept. All you have to do is find a shirt with any number on it, and you can pair it with jeans, a jean skirt, or even some matching striped shorts.

Of course, these are all just ideas for inspiration on what you could wear! You can find other similar pieces online or at other stores, or you could come up with a new idea entirely. The most important thing is to find an outfit you feel comfortable and confident in. I hope you found these suggestions helpful, and have a great time at Dillo Day!

Joy Xiao

Northwestern '29

Joy Xiao is a first-year undergraduate student at Northwestern University studying journalism. Additionally, Joy is interested in pursuing economics or marketing as other areas of study. She will be graduating from Northwestern in 2029.

Joy is originally from upstate New York. In her free time, she enjoys staying active and exploring nearby areas. She is often found doing yoga, going on walks, and studying at cafes near campus.