Leopard x2 ( and headwraps as a fashion trend)

I love, love, love this outfit (or maybe only 2x the love… matches the theme of this post better right? haha) This is one of my favorite looks I created while in New York & it’s perfect for a night out on the town.

There are so many weird “tricks” about this outfit though – it’s one of my more “DIY” ones if I do say so myself *self congratulatory pat on the back*. Read on to learn some weird style tricks that you will love. And, because I can’t not talk about it, let’s unpack any concerns about headwraps and cultural appropriation…

leopard top // gold sequin skirt // belt // heels

One of the trends all over fashion runways, fashion blogs, and something you can try out for fall/winter is headwraps. They add a ton of style to any outfit and – let’s be real here – are an excellent way to hide a bad hair day (…I’m looking at you day 3 of dry shampoo. Yup.)

Before I go on though, let’s address any concern about headwraps being cultural appropriation.  Unlike culturally insensitive fashion moves like wearing headdresses to music festivals, wearing a headwrap is not cultural appropriation. Headwraps are okay as a fashion trend.

The reason being is that many cultures in many era’s have donned headwraps for a number of reasons ranging from modesty, to religion, to yes even just straight up fashion. If you’d like to read an article by a headwrap/headscarf company on this particular issue, check this out. Clearly, they are in the business of selling headwraps so have a bias; but their brief history of headwraps is sound.

By wearing a headwrap you are not taking something from a culture and misusing it. You are wearing something that many cultures have worn for many different reasons. As long as you are aware that for some headwraps aren’t just an accessory but rather a statement of faith or a commitment in that regard and that should be respected, there is nothing wrong with you wearing a headwrap for another purpose.

Since headwraps are okay as a fashion trend – let’s talk more about the trend. You can totally add a statement headwrap to any outfit- they are great to jazz up a plain black tee or a dress – but one of the more interesting and unique trends we are starting to see for this fall/winter is printed headwraps with identical matching printed tops. … Which by the way is a nod to East African culture where traditionally women would wear a headwrap made out of the same fabric as their dress… but again, I will leave my history nerd’ing out of this particular post (… can you tell how challenging that is for me?)

So back to the headwrap itself – did you notice that my headwrap and scarf are identical prints? Not an easy feat with leopard print that’s for sure, so here’s the trick on how I did it ….

My headwrap is just the exact same top that I am wearing.

Further explained: I bought two of this gorgeous (and by the way incredibly soft) leopard print top so that I could tie one and wear it as a head wrap. It’s actually really easy to do – you can make any longsleeve top into a head wrap -just fold the base of the shirt over your head and use the arms to tie and tuck everything in place. Knot in front making it as big or as small (or centre vs. off-centre) as you want. Voila!

My second “trick” of this outfit is my belt. I often find that I don’t like the look of pencil skirt’s without a belt because, at least on my very straight-waisted body, it looks too “square” – like I don’t have a waist. So, I almost always wear a belt to nip in my waist when I’m doing a pencil skirt with a tucked in top.

With this outfit making such a statement though, i didn’t want the added look of a bulk belt buckle I just wanted that slim black line. So, I wore my belt backwards.

Wearing a belt backwards is a trick I do often for this exact reason. You create a simple line to your outfit without adding the ‘busyness’ of a buckle. Plus the look of a buckle at the back can itself make a statement and create a really beautiful look (especially when done on a simple sheath dress!)

And that’s it! I packed in a discussion on why headwraps are okay as a fashion trend, and not one but two weird style tricks into this post so I should probably just stop talking (writing) now. I hope you all have an amazing Friday and a great weekend ahead. If you have any questions about this post (or on the idea that headwraps are okay as a fashion trend) feel free to let me know in the comments below.

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linking up with: fabulous friday // FFF // fashion friday // friday favorites // weekend wear