thewraplife

[thewraplife]

Sweet Summer

People often choose to wait for the New Year or Spring to try new things or to get back on track with old goals. We hype up New Years resolutions and the benefits of spring cleaning as though there’s magic to those times of the year.

There's no such thing as the perfect time to start. It may feel good to give yourself a specific date or time based on some arbitrary notion of when it's best, but all you're really doing is delaying the rewards of your hard work. 

If you want to change, do it now. Summertime is just as good a time as any to renew. Don't put yourself in a box.

So far this Summer at The Wrap Life, we’ve launched two new products, Kiddie Wraps and Bandy Bandy, three collections, and much more on the way. A lot of work goes into every collection but we have no set days on when we launch. If we hesitated and put off our releases, always anticipating the elusive perfect opportunity, we would not be prolific as we are. (And y’all would have nothing to buy). 

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Sacred Space

Have you taken a peek at our Sacred Space? It’s a lovely little offering of sacred goods like incense and Sacred Starter Kits. Both are wonderful for clearing your space of negative energy. Our sage is sustainably sourced and our palo santo is only made from fallen trees or trees that have passed. We also offer smudge bowls and vegan soap. We’re here to help you ground yourself, meditate or simply chill out. Check it out. 

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What’s Going On?

It’s been a heavy couple of weeks in America. The deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, along with the anniversary of Sandra Bland’s death, have all reminded us that Black Americans are still under physical and emotional attack. (Not that we needed reminding.) Every time another one of us is erroneously murdered, leaving yet another name to remember and sometimes another video left burned into our memories, it’s very easy to feel hopeless. 

In the wake of these murders, we’re left with so much to process. We grapple with the high chance that the murderers will be left unpunished, after insufficient and questionable “investigating.” We listen as news commentators, politicians and idiots on our social media timelines, come up with every reason to blame the victim and not the perpetrator of the crime. We grit our teeth as we scream internally, if I have to explain what Black Lives Matter means one more damn time. 

We deal with all of this pain while still balancing the rest of lives. We still have to go to work, maintain relationships, and raise children. Whether we want to or not, life goes on and many of us cannot pause to deal with our emotions.

One thing we need to make clear is even though there are a number of forces working against us, we are NOT helpless. We have power in our voices and in our wallets and we must believe and magnify that power.

VOTE. Get involved in politics. It's easy to be disillusioned. But even the “smallest” elections are important. Those councilmen and councilwomen and other local officials are more accessible in their communities and are therefore in more of a position to directly implement change in their neighborhoods. Don’t underestimate the importance of our Congress. How can we expect change when we don’t even know who represents us?

If you're extremely fired up and simply voting isn't enough, ever consider joining a campaign staff or running for office? 🤔   

DONATE.  Donate money/time to local community organizations. Donate books and supplies to schools. We at The Wrap Life will be donating a portion of our Friday July 15-July 17th sales to Black Lives Matter. Our goal is to continue to donate to causes like this. Find a cause that you connect with and give what you can.

BUY BLACK. Not just during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday season but all the time. There is power in Black money. Like it or not, in this capitalistic society, our money can often speak louder than our words do. The point is to funnel that money into entities that build up our own people and communities. Unfortunately, some people view this as another form of segregation. Other races buy from their own racial community, without second thought, on a daily basis. If we don't buy from us, who will?

You may even feel prompted to switch your money to a Black-owned bank like Solange.

While it is not our burden to end racism, it’s our job to empower ourselves and each other. There are numerous ways that we can make progress. Please share, comment and discuss how we can move forward.

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Kiddie Wraps

We're so pleased to finally be able to give little girls something of their own. It’s especially exciting to see your posts showcasing happy young ladies rocking their headwraps.

We get emails all the time from women beaming about how wearing headwraps has boosted their confidence. We can’t help but to think of the impact that could have on the psyche of a little girl. The headwraps are no magical pill to rid the world of the pressures society puts on little girls. What we hope is that these headwraps will become a symbol of confidence and empowerment for all the girls who get to wear them.

Shop here for our limited edition kiddie wraps.

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Headwraps for...Everyone?

As a popular headwrap company, we’ve gotten many questions and comments about who is “allowed” to wear headwraps. As a Black owned business that deliberately celebrates the Black women through the images on our site, many people understandably assume that the products we make are primarily for other Black women and no one else. And sometimes people go as far as to suggest that only women directly from West Africa can rock an headwrap and only according to strict cultural rules. 

We believe the headwrap is for everyone, because it has always been for everyone. For many centuries, women (and men) around the world have worn headwraps in numerous styles, with various fabrics, for many different reasons. All across the world, people wear headwraps for religious, cultural and fashionable purposes. 

The word turban comes from Turkey where back in the 1200s, men would wear turbans to protect themselves from extreme weather. As Islam spread, they began to wear them for religious reasons as well. 

In Jamaica, the Nyabinghi Rastafarian women wear modest wraps to protect the power in their locs and to show respect for God. In some cultures, headwraps are worn as a sign of maturity. In India, the Sikhs wear their first headwrap known as a pagris after a coming-of-age ceremony. 

The Wrap Life was inspired by West African culture. Like in so many other countries, headwraps in many parts of this region began as a necessity for navigating the weather. By the 1400s, as cultures of differing tribes and countries intermingled throughout Africa, the religious and fashionable components grew as well. The gélé began when women would wear the leftover animal skins from hunts to make headbands. As fabric became more affordable, specifically wax fabric which was inspired by Indonesian batik and manufactured by the Dutch, the gélé began its transformation into what we know it as today. Many people in this culture do not wear their headwraps with western clothes, unless created with African fabric. Even still, on the fashion side of things, headwraps were seen as a means of expression. Women began to create all sorts of elaborate designs simply from pulling, wrapping and tucking until their experiments became a beautiful new creation atop their heads. Today there are stylists dedicated to keeping the women fashion forward with new, interesting wrap styles. 

The United States, which credits its unique culture to the thousands of cultures that have gathered here since its inception, has its own headwrap history. Stemming from the traditions of the African slaves, Black Americans always wore head coverings, as slaves and indentured servants. In 1786 in Louisiana, a law known as the Tignon Law stated that all women with any African ancestry were required to wear headwraps in public. The law was made as a way to differentiate the Black and racially mixed women from the white ones, in a region where it was often difficult to tell the difference. Despite the law being meant as a way to stifle the Black woman’s beauty, those affected by the law used the headwrap to express their creativity and fashion sense. 

Seeing as entertainment is the U.S.’s largest export, it seems fitting that the various manifestations of the headwrap were sparked by celebrities and other well known artists. During the surge in Black pride of the 1960s and 70s, many wore turbans/headwraps as a marker of their history. 

  Even the paisley bandana, made popular in the United States in the 1980s and 90s, is considered to be a form of headwrap. 

At The Wrap Life, we wear headwraps because they’re fun, they allow creative expression and many find them to be very convenient. Our main goal is to have our customers use our products for whatever reason they feel fit, but overall to feel confident and beautiful. For centuries people around the world have created their own cultural meanings and intentions behind their headwraps and today we are free to do the same. Create your own history.

A video posted by The Wrap Life (@thewraplife) on May 15, 2016 at 1:08pm PDT

(All photos belong to their perspective owners and are used here strictly for educational and commentary purposes.)

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The Wrap Life at Broccoli City 2016

For the second year in a row, we traveled to Washington D.C. to take part in Broccoli City, a festival dedicated to healthy living, where you can listen to Future and purchase from some of your favorite brands, including The Wrap Life.

It was cold. Very cold. But once everyone started coming by our table, we quickly got into the spirit of Broccoli Fest. It was incredibly fun seeing so many of our D.C. customers, and you all really made the cold worthwhile.

Hope to see you all at many more festivals nationwide.

[thewraplife]

Classic Magic

The photoshoot for our recent black & white collection, Classic Magic was a particularly special one because it was the first photoshoot in our new studio. From the couch we sit on (and sometimes nap in) to the tower of wraps we pull your orders from everyday, so many elements of our day-to-day office life are featured as well. 

Inspired by the black & white prints, we went with vintage clothing for the styling. Once again we worked with one of our favorite photographers, Mirza Babic. 

In the last few months we have really taken a chance with our photoshoots, making them bigger and more imaginative than ever. Stay close. 

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NOLA Charm

New Orleans, LA, also known as NOLA, is one of the few places that feel like home no matter where you’re from. We had the pleasure of visiting for our NOLA Charm shoot and we had an amazing time. For anyone toying with the idea of visiting, book yourself a nice place to stay via Air BnB (no, this is not sponsored) and just go.

The people are beyond friendly, which is something we can all really appreciate. The architecture is beautiful and rich in color and history.

There’s the constant sound of live music playing as you walk through the streets. The food is some of the best in the world, as evidenced by the endless delicious pastries everywhere you go and the cheese grits we got at a restaurant aptly named, NOLA.

And just to share a dose of NOLA magic, read from our photographer, Mirza, how we got some of our favorite shots from the shoot.

A photo posted by Mirza Babic (@theprinceofpeace) on Apr 7, 2016 at 5:52pm PDT

“So we land in Nola, first stop food. As our food is coming out we notice this beautiful '72 red VW beetle. (Punch buggy red). In my mind " how cool would it be to use it for the shoot?" 🤔. As I'm saying this to myself the owner of the VW, Mike which I found out about 15 minutes later, walks over to it and grabs a book from the car. In my mind, "he looks like a cool guy I'm sure he'll let us use it." I eat my food and get the courage to walk over to Mike who was sitting down eating lunch with his boyfriend. So I introduced my self, asked him and he was totally cool. He told me he just got the car the day before and it's already being used in a shoot. How amazing? So Friday of our trip I call up Mike, who is from Liverpool btw and was wearing a bowtie, and he shows up with his totally cool boyfriend and this is the result, among many other amazing photos caught that day.”

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@nnennastella A couple weeks before i launched The Wrap Life. If you want to start, start with what you have. Beginnings aren't perfect and you'll always learn as you go. Don't believe your own excuses. Give yourself a date and start no matter what. And reward yourself along the way. ❤️

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J Fashion Girl is so gorgeous and always makes our head wraps look stunning. 

You can see more of her here. 

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Jessica, J Fashion Girl, created beautiful head wrap tutorials using our head wraps. They’re super easy and look gorgeous. 

www.thewrap.life 

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Most popular. Our Denim Demi head wrap and Half Sun Earrings. www.thewrap.life/products/denim-demi

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Big laughs. Photo: @sirnoahbility

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Favs for the babes.

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Yes to new head wraps for summa summa!

http://thewrap.life/collections/featured

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This denim wrap tho. Model: Wrap Life Creator @nnennastella Foto: @sirnoahbility Mua: @charmaine_e

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Ahhhh! So excited about the new wraps and Femi tops we've added to the site. Meet Kenya. She's a new favorite. (More Femi tops are coming throughout the week.)

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