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 y earliest memories of headdresses are tied to my mother. She would bend, twist, tie and tuck her gele repeatedly until she got it just right. She would always ask, "What do you think?" And, as a dutiful child observing from the floor by her vanity set, I would always say "You look like a queen, mommy!" And she always did.
Headdresses like my mother's gele are an integral part of fashion in Nigeria and other parts of West Africa. Although they come in a multitude of shapes, sizes, colors and even heights, they are but a fraction of the headdresses used across the continent. From north to south, east to west, Africans wear headscarves, headties, and other forms of headdress as an expression of their cultural, fashion and religious preferences. Muslim women drape their heads in hijaabs, some decorated with stunningly colorful beads and designs, just as their mothers have done long before them. Orthodox Christian women, and men, in Ethiopia and Eritrea, cover their heads as well in accordance with their religious belief.
And when it comes to ensuring that heads are as fashionable as the rest of an outfit, some African men are just as particular as their female gele or headscarf-wearing counterparts. A well dressed Kalabari man, from Nigeria's Niger Delta region, will not be seen in public without a grand bowler hat. Believe me, my grandfather was one of those men.
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Yet, Africans are not the only ones for whom headdresses are important. Across the globe, people have historically used headdresses of some form or another such as Native American chiefs who wore dramatic feather war bonnets or Sikh men who wrap their heads in turbans. Indonesians believe that the head is the entry point for the soul and as such, it must be covered. In Chechnya, women wear scarves to signify maturity. The public removal of a woman's scarf has forced fighting men to put down their arms out of respect. No matter where one looks, headdress is significant.
Headscarves and headties have also featured prominently on the fashion catwalks of the world. From the late Yves Saint Laurent to Christian Lacroix, headscarves have played a role in high fashion. Recently, Suno used headscarves in its 2009 and 2010 collections. And, Fati Asibuela of MOMO gave traditional geles a futuristic interpretation when she made them look like black liquid, while others were reminiscent of the Walt Disney Concert Hall located in downtown Los Angeles in her London Fashion Week Fall 2009 collection. Even Japan's Vogue featured turbans as a fashion trend in March 2009.
And, as African culture's influence on the world of fashion continues to increase, headscarves and headties will continue to grace the runway. From the use of geles on high fashion models, to the use of traditional African fabrics like those used in the Marc by Marc Jacobs Spring 2010 collection during New York's fashion Week.
No matter the fashion trends, headscarves and headties will remain a mainstay for African women and others the world over. So, I simple watch my mother teach my daughter how to bend, twist, tie and tuck her miniature gele. With my many years of practice, I know exactly what to say when my daughter asks, "What do you think?"
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