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Bodywear gets its respect. Tactical gear gets its respect. Shoes get their respect. It's time accessories get some damn respect! After all, nothing spices up an outfit quite like an accessory. Amongst our favorites; headbands! Lets give the headband some damn respect. Wearing a headband gives you extra clout no matter the occasion. Whether you’re a rec basketball legend or you’re crashing a black tie event, headbands are the perfect accessory. 
Just like the mullet, headbands date back to ancient Greece. Headbands were worn during special occasions or important events. Back then, the headbands were made for style rather than comfort. The headbands in ancient Greece were more like those flower headbands your yoga loving hippie friends would make. They were made of branches and leaves from different trees depending on what the occasion was. The most famous Greek headbands were the ones given to the winners of the Olympics. The winners would have chicks lined up down the block not because they were killer athletes but because they were struttin' around town with a dope headband made from olive branches. 
Years later, the leafy headbands went out of style. When the early 20th century came around, the cloth headband made its debut. Doctors began to use pieces of cloth to wrap around patients heads to treat headaches and head injuries. Say you had a long day at the factory listening to loud machinery non stop, then came home to your girlfriend screaming about a spider on the wall. You’re definitely going to the doctor to get your head wrapped up after a quick 12 drinks at the bar.
Headbands began to really pop off during the roaring ‘20s. Style in general was becoming more extravagant but headbands were a must have. Party queens in the ‘20s were total savages. They would walk around in exotic dresses with headbands covered in feathers and sparkles drinking liquor and smoking darts. These party queens were called “Flappers.” The Flapper movement was created by young women who liked to rebel against cultural norms. Flappers would go out and dance to jazz music all night long, then wake up the next day, retox, and start again. The girls seen in The Great Gatsby were accurate representations of flappers and their headbands were absolutely electric.
When Hollywood first became popular, it was mostly women rocking headbands. Early Hollywood stars such as Brigitte Bardot and Audrey Hepburn were both featured wearing headbands in their roles. It wasn’t very long before men started wearing them too. Badass characters like Rambo and Daniel LaRusso kickstarted the men's headband movement.
Around the time when Hollywood was first starting, tennis stars started wearing headbands too. Suzanne Lenglen was the first documented athlete to wear a headband during an event. In 1914, she wore a headband during a tennis match and continued to wear one in every match from then on.
After Lenglen first started the headband movement in sports, many people followed. Fred Perry was an early tennis stud who paved the way for modern headbands. Fred used to wear gauze around his wrist to wipe the sweat off of his head. A few years later, he invented the first sports sweatband. His sweatband template was used by icons across many sports.
Andre Agassi was a god amongst men in the sports world. Andre was an American tennis legend who was the first male player to win all four grand slam tourneys on three different surfaces. Many people think that his power came from the mean mullet/sweatband combo he rocked which in a way is true. Andre started balding at 19 and would wear a wig because he was embarrassed. As he continued wearing a wig, his mullet spirit grew giving him the confidence to win three grand slams. In 1990, he lost in the final of the French Open because he was having trouble with his wig and couldn’t focus on the game.
Andre had deep conversation with the mullet spirit and learned that feeling good in your own skin is all that matters. He decided to shave his head accepting the fact that he was bald. His mullet spirit was still alive within the headband he rocked and in 1999, he redeemed himself by winning the French Open. With his new appreciation for his own baldness, he went on to win six more grand slam titles. He came full circle when he traded in his mullet spirit sweatband for a leafy headband made for the gods, when he won an Olympic gold medal in 1996.
Donald Earl Watts aka Slick Watts was one of the earliest NBA players to ball out with a headband. During the 70’s, having a full head of hair was something to be proud of but Slick said nah. He shaved his head and wore a headband gangsta style. He wore his headband with a tilt which gave him some extra swag on and off the court. This extra swag gave him the power to lead the league in steals and assists in 1976. Slick inspired the new generation to wear a headband and he’s very vocal about wearing it proudly. Players like Paul Pierce and Lebron James have both come out and said that Slick Watts inspired them to wear a headband because of the swagger he oozed on and off the court.
In the 1940’s the headband made a major style move. When the second world war started, more women started working in the factories. This women's empowerment movement was spearheaded with the classic “We Can Do It!” poster. The poster showed Rosie the Riveter ready to kick some ass with her red polka-dotted headband. Her headband was more than just a style, it served a functional purpose. Because of the heavy machinery in the factories, women needed a way to keep their hair out of the way. The headband was the perfect tool. It allowed them to work safely while giving them a way to express themselves too.
Headbands continued to grow in popularity after the war and boomed again in the 80’s. The workout craze in the 80’s gave the headband a huge boost. All those sexy workout instructors rocked neon headbands with their bright leggings and leg warmers. The workout craze was so influential, Time Magazine had people in bright workout gear and headbands on the cover. If you want to see an example of the 80’s workout style, look up “Call on Me,” on youtube. You won’t be disappointed ;)
Headbands today are wildly versatile. Sports stars like Lebron James, Rafa Nadal, and Roger Federer all wear headbands but they’re very fashionable as well (Beyonce and John Mayer love em’ too!) Headbands today are made from any material you can imagine and come in any color or design. They’re so customizable, it allows you to express yourself in whatever way you want. Headbands are the perfect mix of style and functionality.
Enough about the glory of headbands, lets discuss how you can wrap your head around one today! Since the world went into lockdown, everything has become DIY. We’re here to teach you our favorite way to create and style our own headbands.
Making a headband is easier than opening a beer at happy hour. All you need is an old t-shirt (preferably white or some cool pattern) and a pair of scissors. Take your scissors and cut a strip from the body of the shirt. Make sure it’s twice the width you want because we’re gonna fold it over. After you have the strip, fold it hot dog style so that it’s one long skinny rectangle. Tie that sum bitch in the back and you’ve got a ninja style headband perfect for the gym or rec league.
Now for the fun part, styling. Styling can be done at any point after you’ve cut the headband from the t-shirt. There are many different ways to style your headband but our favorite is tie dye. Tie dye can be done in a million different ways so it’s up to you to pick what colors you want. We suggest the brightest colors possible to make your headband really pop. After your headband dries, you can get creative and stencil something into the front like, “Beer Me!,” or “Get Lit Don’t Quit!” It’s totally personable!
There’s no right or wrong occasion to wear a hair holder so wear it proud. They say people are naturally drawn to whoever can ooze confidence while keeping a level head. Fuck That. Go wild with your sweat stopper and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Yeah you might end up hungover in a bush somewhere, but those pictures of you funneling with a dope headband will last forever.
We get it, you may not want to make your own headband but don’t worry. We got you. B Fresh Gear is coming out with our own signature headbands in the patterns you love! You wanna turn your rec league basketball team into the Harlem Globetrotters? Presidential Headband! Weekend hunting trip? Camo Headband! Backyard Wrestlemania? Smackdown Headband! Apres ski? Van Dope Headband! Lookin to meet a lady friend at a workout class? Don Johnson Headband! Early morning surf checks? Surfin Bird Headband! No matter what your plans are, we’ve got a headband for you. The next time you want to add a little extra drip to your fit, throw on one of our headbands and attack the day because ain’t nobody slowin you down.
Wrap your head around our headband release later this week!
