Use Your Head

I went to see a dinner theater performance of "High School Musical" last night. (Yes, you read that right. And no, it's not really any good without Zac Efron. And yes, saying that makes me feel a little creepy.)

Anyway.

You know that song, "Get Your Head in the Game?" Well, it got me to thinking about heads, and what sort of game they should be in (stick with me, everyone) and that brings me to... headbands!

Voila!

Luckily, one of our totally fabu Shabby Apple interns, Kate, had her head in the same place (that place being the game. Is this getting old?) and put together this totally fabu article all about this year's hottest head-gear trends.

So, get your head in the game and read away! (That was the last one. I promise.)

It seemed the headband might be headed towards fashion extinction.

Headbands came in with a bang (or, shall we say, with bangs. Get it? Joke!) in the mid-2000s with outlets from high-end department stores and speciality boutiques to Target and Claire's carrying the favored hair accessory in wide patent leather, stripes, polka dots and everything in between. Soon, nearly every retail clothing store in the book was carrying headbands, and suddenly what was once hip and cutting edge became expected and overly familiar. Nothing but another headband.

Had this hair accessory reached its carrying capacity in the world of fashion? Would this item’s overabundance lead to the wiping out of the entire headband population?

Such a grim outlook on the headband’s future has been decisively refuted by recent innovations and alterations. In fact, spring 2009 has seen such a complete reworking of the headband’s basic makeup, the season seems to offer the gift of a totally new hair accessory rather than a slightly modified regurgitation of an old staple.

For starters, we have the “headwrap” variation. With one or two bands crossing from the back of the head across the forehead rather than over the scalp, this take on the headband expresses a casual hippie look. Some are thin elastic bands embellished with small stones or braiding. Shabby Apple has also taken up the trend. Our women's accessories include headwraps made of thick and colorful bands of fabric, adorned with whimsical flowers. (You can't say no to whimsy!)


{Like this look? Try Urban Outfitters.}
{Like this look? Try Shabby Apple.}

The “new headband” for spring also appears in ultra-feminine varieties, including skinny headbands garnished with soft petals or bows fluttering near the ear of the wearer and headbands in soft colors, such as pink, and covered in soft materials, sich as satin and chiffon.


{Like this look? Try J. Crew.}

Another innovative take on the headband for spring expresses a vintage, 1920s flair. Colorful feathers decorating headbands call to mind the retro style of the flapper, but you don't have to travel back in time to get them. In fact, you only have to travel as far back as the Shabby Apple Web site for a fantastic collection to get you started.


{Like this look? Try Urban Outfitters.}


{Like this look? Try Shabby Apple.}

So, whether in a hippie headwrap, a girly, flowered skinny band, or a feather-embellished flapper style, the new headbands of spring 2009 can make any look head and shoulders above the rest. (Can you stand the hilarity?)

Looks like headbands might be here to stay after all.