Turban tieing

[CQBer]

I have been developing my regalia, and being I am part Cherokee and live in the Cherokee region. I have all of my regalia together except my headdress, and I would like to wear a turban. I have all the material, but I have no idea how to tie a turban, Thank you for all the help in advance.

[Tibiki Kinew]

Go to nativetech.org they have a good description there.
Noc Bay has a lot too but I don't think that one shows up there!!

[CQBer]

umm where? I cant find anything about how to tie a turban, the only thing I could find was that they wore ostrich plumes, and I already knew that

[Flying_Raven]

i think this place which makes them might have page for it, you can email and ask then to how to tie it, or any other directions:

CHEROKEE TURBANS BY LIZ

i don't know if this will help much, i had been thru it once before but the ley out was different

[Tibiki Kinew]

So once again the influence of King George upon the savage that needed to be dressed proper by the white nobility! No wonder there are such mixups, having to wear the turban of India to make them look good in europe! Sad!

Thanks Flying_Raven for the neat tidbit of history, I didn't know that at all! I was curious too, now in shock!

[annie_griffin]

Tibiki,
Maybe or maybe they kept them because they liked the way they looked and all their friends wanted one. Turbans are pretty practical items.
Keeps your head out of the sun and you can use the cloth for anything you might need.
Not that I Wear one or anything.


annie

[legalstraight]

Now I shall wax philosophical on my ancestors I guess,.......

The southeastern tribes largely latched on to whatever trade good they could get their hands on- wool cloth, calicos, silver, beads, etc... So much so that a lot of the traditional arts virtually died out by the late 1700's. And to a certain extent the amount of trade goods you possessed indicated your overall wealth, so the more trade goods you could show off the better off ya are. The turban just provided another opportunity to show off some cloth, some silver, and so forth.

And, the turban is pretty comfy- just looks kinda weird now. And you gotta remember that in the old days we yanked out the hair and left a scalp lock, so sunburn of the brain was a concern.

[annie_griffin]

Ouch

Legal straight,
Very interesting. Too bad about the hair yanking but the turbans are cool from a visual and practical perspective.
Maybe I am just so used to seeing that painting of Sequoyah.



annie

[LaughingWaterWI]

Ok I just noticed that about 20 minutes ago watching the 1838 trail of tears documentry .....

was wondering what was up with the tubans cause they didn't go into that...I just thought it was done to protect them from the sun.... any how the traditional cherokee didn't wear them just the conformists is what they called them or the ones who accepted the civilization ....wow that really was a bad scene geesh I read stuff and watched this movie one time before along time ago but never watched the whole movie as I was babysitting and missed the good parts gave up and turned it to a kids flick .... I dont understand where the treaty comes in for the cherokee in this movie, they don't tell that story....But nither do a lot of documentarys I wonder why....?.... are the movie producers forbidden to include the truth or what?????

[annie_griffin]

Trail of Tears

Laughing Water,
I haven't seen that movie. I did read John Ehle's Book The Trail of Tears. I am not comfortable commenting on something like only conformist wore turbans.
You sound passionate about this Maybe there are other books people might recommend as well.
All I know is that it was a terrible time that ended up dividing people and killing people. Two of the major leaders being Ridge who lead people to Oklahoma before being forced because as a leader he seemed to realize the futility of fighting the US and Van a fearless leader who refused to go until forced. To me someone who was not there and can never really understand what it must have been like, they both followed their hearts and did what they thought best.

You might want to start a conversation about this in another spot where people with more knowledge than me can add to the discourse.

[LaughingWaterWI]

The turban thing? then how was this introduced to the Cherokees?
Because it seemed as tho the men wore their hair in a Mohawk style...
I guess what I am trying to ask is did everyone start wearing the turban or just some?....If the wrap is done similar to India's turban I can find out how they do it, I know a man from India. He told me once how it was done and it is just one long piece of material that you start at one end and pin then you start your wrap now I don’t know if the one end is sewn up like a cap and then you wrap cause I don’t really remember...Id have to ask him again.

Off topic a bit ....
Yes it was terrifying. It starts out in Tennessee and talks a lot about how it all happened there are Cherokees actually speaking the language telling the story and there is a Ross relative who also talks, What I got out of it was that the government wanted to assimilate and mix with the natives so that they would be white in blood and by missionaries converting them ...towards the end it mentions that many traditionalist did not want to leave their land...and did not dress up as the government wanted them too they remained nonconformists they did not conform to the ways of the government but what happened to them it did not say...I assume they escaped and joined another tribe...It was terrible you know for instance this happened up North too they wanted the all the land from all the tribes. I actually believe that they had this planned way before they even came over here...
Have you ever watched Kevin Costner’s documentary 500 nations that is a good example on the wide margin what happened. What really ticked me off is the Gov said they would have proper clothing and shoes and transportation for the Cherokees.. then on top of that move them in the fall and winter.. WTH ...people say get over it.. it's all in the past... hmmmm..how can you get over something like this.... are their hearts made of stone?

[ewoaf]

The turban was more practical than not. Early on, especially in the deep misquito infested south, the trade good in question was cheese cloth. This cheese cloth was valuble to the settlers, and later natives, as a form of misquito netting. A large piece of just a couple yards was enough for a guy to drape over himself while squatting silently on a hunt, or in war. Using whatever bags or load bearing grear to carry more important things, the cheese cloth was instead twisted and wrapped about the head as a turban. The cheese cloth was also dyed. Counter to more open terrain of the central or western states, the eastern part of our country is more densly packed with foliage, much of it close to the ground. Rather than opting for more stylish regalia like a roach or feathered hat, the turban allows one to plow through the American jungle while protecting the head and not having anything to grab or snag. Note the popularity of the triangular breachcloth in the southeast. This was based on the same principal. By eliminating the corners, there was a more dynamic shape eliminating some drag against high ground vegitation. This also aided in the speed to which the breachcloth dried after getting wet.

[annie_griffin]

very interesting

Very interesting though I don't believe the initial question has been answered. I guess as far as tying goes one would have to just get a couple yards of fabric and try it out.

It seems that you need to gather the hair if you haven't pulled it out already
and twist either in the front or back then wrap and tuck. Good Luck.


annie

[ewoaf]

NativeTech: 19th Century Seminole Men`s Clothing ~ Turbans
I know this isnt cherokee, but it's not really that far off.
there really arent any ancient chinese secrets ar far as turbans go. Do what works. Best thing that I have done, aside from my friend Rick O.'s advice, is to get a ball cap, cut off the bill, and pin or stitch the material over it. This way you dont have to waste time re-wrapping the dang thing every time you want to put it on.