I want to carry a bandana large enough to use as a Shemagh. Or just buy a Shemagh. I would like one that I could fold up and put in my pocket, hence just a larger bandana.

Afluorescent color would be best, I think, for signaling purposes. Would that be the best color for keeping the sun off my neck or should I use the darker olive drab kind.

Congrats. for considering a shamagh. I own a OD coloured one. I found its a great piece of gear. Due to the size it really is a windstopper.

Testing demonstrates very little actual temperature difference in color, and indeed desert peoples from north african salt caravanseri to arabian bedu dress in dark blues,blacks and browns to the white of T.E. Lawrence. The cooling trick is multiple light layers to trap cooler air. Bandannas etc are usually in bright colors for signalling, but anything that stands out from the natural terrain will work. International orange does me precious little good when the California poppies are in full bloom <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> my largest silk bandanna is a full 42"x42", smaller than many shemaghs and still to big to slip into smaller pockets. Finally, remember this is a traditional piece of clothing. In California I buy my Gas from a Persian, lunch from a Gujarti Indian and hay from a Sikhe. I wear a shemagh and I get shown 6 traditional ways of draping the thing <img src="images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> I WILL NOT be buying Austrian Lederholsen for 3 years <img src="images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

What are the dimensions of a shemagh? I've been seeing them in the news and think they might be useful here in Texas. Is it just a big peice of cloth or is there more to it? My wife sews for a living, so she might actually stich one together for me if I begged, pleaded, and woo-ed her with chocolate. <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

-Blast

How I wish my wife liked chocolate. You guys have it easy, I have to buy expensive jewellery!

Andy

1 meter by 1 meter.

The cloth is a mixture of natural cotton and wool. The length is almost the lenght from one shoulder to finger tip on the opposing arm (held horizontal).

Burak

You can get the shemagh & instruction on how to use it from BQM. It's available in OD/black & sand/black.

Shemagh

How to tie a shemagh by Military Moron Username: mm Password: mm

I've got two british shemaghs from the first gulf war. They never had the tassles (great) and come in an orangey-sand colour (if that makes sense). They are excellent for a variety of uses. Just before the second gulf war my local surplus store had got a shed-load of them and knocked them out at £1 each ($1.50). This is where you all shoot me for not buying a gross of them for equipped members - because they're now £6.99 again ($10.50). On reflection, I'm going to monitor that situation and if they do 'sell-up' again I'll buy loads and you can all get them.

]Casual_Hero[

I've the British shemagh, the edges keeps fraying as it is not "overlock" or tassled.

The other thing is that it doesn't absorb sweat as I think that the material used is nyco instead of cotton/wool blend.