Skull candy: Headwraps are back in style

Printed and colour-blocked, wrapped in a range of ways, they’re trendy, in and an easy way to cover up a bad hair day.

Ever since Deepika Padukone paired her tulle gown with a rose gold headwrap from Emily-London at the Cannes film festival in May, headwraps have been popping up at parties, college campuses, malls and movie theatres.

Headwraps have been popping up on Indian college campuses, in malls and on e-commerce websites, after Deepika Padukone wore a rose gold one by Emily-London on the Cannes red carpet in May. (HT File Photo)

Street markets in Delhi and Mumbai are selling scarves styled on mannequins’ noggins, and readymade head wraps, for as little as ₹250 a piece. There are also collections available online, at e-commerce stores like Amazon, Club Factory and The Wrap Life, at prices ranging from ₹400 to ₹1,100, they come in a range of prints and colour-blocked styles.

The headwrap was traditionally an aspect of African culture, styled from long, brightly coloured scarves that denoted heritage, lineage and marital status (much like India’s turbans, but for women).

In the West, they began to make a comeback around 2012, as a statement of identity driven by African-American celebrities like Beyonce and Tyra Banks, as well as Rihanna (above), a Briton of African descent.

Headwraps became an easy way to tame messy manes during hippie-bohemian-flower power 1960s. Then, around 2012, they began to make a comeback as a statement of identity driven by African-American celebrities like Beyonce and Tyra Banks, as well as Rihanna, a Briton of African descent. By 2017, the headwrap had gone mainstream, with stars from supermodel Chrissy Tiegen to singers Jennifer Lopez and Alicia Keys wearing them to red-carpet events and on Instagram.

Singer Alicia Keys made the front twist trendy after she flaunted it at the Black Entertainment Television Awards in 2016.

SIMPLE STYLES

The simplest way to style a headwrap is a knot at front-centre; or a large bow. Here’s a look at three other easy-to-do styles.

Spiral Rope: Fold the scarf in half, vertically. Wrap around head, starting at the nape, and tie a knot off-centre at your forehead. Then twist each remaining strand like a rope and tuck it in at the nape.

Twisted Turban: Cover your head with the wrap, cross it at the forehead, and twist each end spirally till you reach the nape. Tuck strands in for a tight fit.

Front Twist: Cover your head with the wrap, bring the ends to the front (as with a towel after a shower). Bring the ends together and twist to form a rope. Keep twisting till rope forms a large spiral atop your head, then tuck the ends into the wrap.