BandanaRamaLLama

Style, comfort, and ridiculously cute? Yeah, we're on board with the bandana trend.

I'm generally not a big fan of the whole playing dress up with your dog idea, but bandanas are a notable exception. I think I only bought bandanas for my previous dogs for family photo shoots (of which there were exactly two because we messed up the first one) and they had a set that they shared for their birthdays.

For some reason, with Grimm I'm a little more apt to spoil him. I'd like to think it's because he's just so adorable that I can't resist, but I suspect it's a bit deeper than that. I look back and I have incredible memories with my grumpy old German Shepherd men, but I don't have great photos of them, especially when they were younger. It wasn't until I faced the impending realities of dog old age that I started making it a point to do more posed, and generally adorable photos. I've lost a lot of the evidence of my younger years with the old men, and with Grimm I'm determined not to do the same.

But there are SO. MANY. CHOICES. Seriously, it's bordering on being really overwhelming. Luckily, the pups I follow on Instagram partner with some great brands and we've tried some of them out.

With so many options to choose from, Grimm and I thought a quick post with some of our experiences with different dog bandanas might be helpful.

Wilderdog

https://www.wilderdog.com/

IG @wilderdog

Wilderdog is a California based outdoor dog gear company on a mission to help hungry pets. Wilderdog offers pet parents tons of options in outdoor gear for themselves and their pups. Their products range from leashes, collars, and harnesses to human apparel and outdoor dog gear to make traveling with your pup a breeze.

A huge reason I chose to try out a bandana from Wilderdog is that they donate one pound of dog food for each order placed. If that's not reason enough, I couldn't resist seeing Grimm in their functional and fashionable design. I've also been Insta-stalking them for years, so the time had come to finally make a purchase.

What makes the Wilderdog Bandana unique is that it's designed with getting wet in mind. There are five designs, each of which can stand up to your wet and wild adventures. The idea being that the wet material cools your dog without weighing them down. The one-size-fits-most design takes the guess work out of choosing the right size, especially when you're dealing with a growing good boy. This bandana leaves Grimm with plenty of room to grow, which I appreciate since dog accessories can get expensive when your pup grows like a weed.

Full disclosure: Grimm and I haven't tested the water part out just yet, because there's a distinct chance that I'm a slightly paranoid dog mom in Florida and find myself afraid Grimm would be a cute, fluffy snack for an alligator. We're planning to do it soon now that summer is coming and I have a strong feeling that the kiddie pool and the dog beach are going to be our summer hot spots.

Laura's Bandanas

https://laurasbandanas.com/

IG @lauras.bandanas.co

The discovery of Laura's Bandanas is all because of our Instagram friends, Teddy & Mochi (@thepombois). Teddy and Mochi are models for Laura's Bandanas, and even have their own discount code (POMBOIS15). I'm all for supporting fellow creators, so I started looking.

When I started looking, I saw that Laura had released the "I Love You A Latte" collection and as a coffee addict, I couldn't say no. I ended up ordering Grimm the Barkista pup bandana and the matching scrunchie for myself. That was also when I discovered that Laura offers more than just bandanas: treats, toys, portraits, and personalization options too.

This was a bit of an impulse buy for me, but I'm so glad I did it (I know, such a surprise that the millennial dog mom has a bit of a shopping problem). I loved the simple, minimalistic approach to packaging and the updates about my order, but what I really love is how easy it is to put the bandana on the pupper.

THE BANDANA HAS SNAPS. Like, enough said. No tying it around him and hoping it doesn't come undone. No worrying that he might play a bit too rough and end up stuck in a sticky, dangerous situation. We don't wear accessories to the dog park or when we are planning to play, but I love the peace of mind that IF something happened and Grimm needed to break out of the bandana for his own safety, he can. It gives my panicky-self a sense of relief.

I'm currently hoping for a "Back To School" themed collection so Grimm and I can do cute pictures for the upcoming school year, and while doubling back through the website for this post I remembered there's a Harry Potter collection... so that's going to have to be a thing.

Natural Danes Co

https://naturaldanesco.com/

IG @naturaldanesco

Natural Danes Co started in 2021 and is based our of Arkansas with a focus on sustainable bandanas and collars. I discovered Natural Danes Co because of their collaborations with The Aussie Bros Co, particularly the National Parks Collaboration, and it was the Glacier Tag from ABC and the Glacier bandana from NDC that captivated me. I mean, c'mon, they're this really gorgeous teal-y blue and that is SO Grimm's color.

A little known fact about me: my goal is to travel to, and run at least a mile in, all 50 states and to visit all of the national parks. I used to run, a lot, and at one point was planning to run a half marathon put on by Vacation Races through Glacier National Park in Montana. Things didn't turn out the way I planned, and I pulled out of the race, so that goal is still under construction. Ever since that plan was hatched, and then kicked out of the nest, Glacier National Park has held a special place in my heart, and now the plan is evolving. Now I envision traveling with Grimm and doing so many wonderful things with him across the country, so this pairing was something I ached to have.

So, that's how I ended up with both the Glacier bandana and the Glacier tag.

The Natural Danes Co is built on the idea of being sustainable and that's something I struggle to be but always love the idea of. Anything that makes me feel good about our environmental pawprint is a win in my book. The bonus being that their products are beautiful and functional because... SNAPS! I'm discovering I'm a big fan of snap on bandanas, and aside from the safety aspect, it's so functional. I can be a bit... persnickety about things, so the way things wrinkle when you tie them kind of annoys me, and snaps take that out of the equation, so another big thumbs up from me for Natural Danes Co.

Of course, there are tons of incredible small businesses out there creating quality dog accessories, these are just a few of the bandanas we've tried and loved so far.