Blog – Brahman Bracelets®- Official Store – Unlock yourself, get connected

One of the things I noticed from being present at markets is that people are so used to the fast fashion industry nowadays. It is quickly forgotten how much work is put into one Cobra bracelet. It is truly handmade.

All in all, it can take up to 4 hours before the bracelet is ready to be sent. Yes, you read that right, 4 hours. Its look is deceiving. Although our bracelets are made from three main ingredients, waxed cords, a piece of leather, and a stainless steel lock with the inscription of Brahman, all those loose cords need to get braided in order to get the finishing touch of the stainless steel lock.

The cobra bracelet is made from 12 loose cords in total. They are all waxed with plant-based wax. This is the base to make our bracelets truly indestructible! The bracelets get braided in a special way, the braiding itself takes up most of the time.

And there’s another surprise. Unlike you would expect, we start braiding in the middle of the bracelet! This creates the loop that goes around the lock and requires extra care. Too small and the bracelet can not be (un)locked. Too big and you will lose the snake’s head that you can see when you wear the bracelet. It took Erik a lot of tries to get this right… I can still hear him curse! Hahaha

Come visit us at one of our upcoming markets or fairs, or check out our Bracelets at one of our shop partners to see the fine braiding done yourself. If none is available in your area, ordering one is an option as well. 😉 Let’s see if you can understand the fine art of braiding when having our masterpiece in your own hands.

And now starts the time-consuming part… This is what we call “the grind”. This part needs to be done at once, or else you will create bulbs due to loose braidings. And that is not the quality we want to go for. Imagine how much focus you need when you have multiple color ropes… You need to count every braid you make!

3 to 3.5 hours later (depending on the size) you have a whip-like string in your hand. And after a good cup of tea, coffee, or beer, it is time for a small secret. The lock needs to be secured with a special knot. This knot does not only secure the lock, it is also a finisher. Here we also decide what color rope will go around the lock.

And after all those steps, we have one thing left to do: finish the bracelet completely. After the lock has been secured and the leftover cords are cut and singed there is this small piece of leather to make sure the bracelet gets its finishing touch. It goes over the singed part as this is not the most beautiful part of the bracelet, sewed with one rope tight around the braided end.

And voila! Here you have it! The Cobra bracelet in black color. The bracelet will be hard in the beginning due to the layer of wax but it will soften up by wearing it as much as possible. Yes, you should even shower and swim with it! There more you wear it, the faster it will adjust to your wrist and become a smooth part of you. And for the impatient ones… You can also wash it with your clothes (don’t forget to put it in a laundry bag tho).

Quite impressive, right? So what do you think now of our masterpiece? Let us know in the comment section. And please, do not hesitate to reach out to us in case of any questions, wishes, or feedback.

December 2021, HR/My manager just told me that I will be working part time from 2022 on… Wow. WHAT A MOMENT! I did not realize it in the beginning, but – what a step! I am happy but scared at the same time. So many emotions running through my head, through my entire body.

Am I able to carry this responsibility?

Will I be able NOT to fail?

My dark inner voice takes over and bombards me with all these negative thoughts. Self-doubt rules over me for a couple of days. This is also the moment I realize how lucky I actually am with the people around me. My girlfriend Tatschi who is always a support in so many ways, I often call her the octopus. Erik, who can bring comfort and relieve me from the self-made pressure. And last but not least the quotes of oh_ey_sis… All of them might not even know how much they and their acts mean to me…

And then there they are again. Not even one minute of gratefulness is being granted before those dark thoughts come on over again… I always picture these negative thoughts as walking on a beach on a warm sunny day. I am enjoying the sun and the warm breeze of the air. But then, out of the blue, there comes this cold-ass wave against my leg. The more negative, the higher and colder the water gets. It disturbs my walk heavily, so I look down and see the negative text in the wave “You can’t do it!”… Ouch!

What I have learned is to let the thought(s) be there. The wave will go back into the sea, just like your thought. And I have news for you.. Another wave is awaiting to disturb your beach walk.. The waves will come for sure, that is out of your control. So better focus on the things you do have control of. And that is the action you decide to take. Nobody else but you decide what to do with this thought/wave. And if I can give you one advise from experience – Just let it be. Let the wave be there. Let the thought(s) be there. Just don’t give them too much attention. The sooner you can enjoy your walk again.

And so what if I “fail”?, is what I asked myself more often than I could even tell. And over the years – yes, that took some hard work, it did not fall to me out of the blue sky, neither have I seen the light in some sort of fancy way – I realized. What is failing? Like, honestly, take a moment and sit back. Take your time for this and think for yourself:

What – is – failing – ?

Ouroboros teaches us that there is no failing, only learning. Life is an endless cycle of learning. Trying, learning, trying, learning, trying, learning, up until the moment where we have learnt enough to succeed. And at that point, when we have succeeded, we will be sure we deserve this success. Because nobody else but we ourselves worked hard for this. And then we move on to the next cycle of trying and learning, and so on and so forth. It is an endless game we play. And that’s where I want to thank oh-ey-sis. When I dove into Brahman she gave me one piece of her art.. It is a picture of a lady with a bandage on here face, stating “It’s okay to fail.“. And as mentioned before, you probably have no idea, oh_ey_sis, but wow, that piece of art from you actually helped me so much. 🙂

I never knew that the root of all this worrying, nagging and doubting yourself is a negative self image. Thanks to the book Verslaafd aan Liefde from Jan Geurtz and the podcast Omdenken, my eyes got opened! For everyone who is still struggling with self-doubts, overthinking and feel they are stuck in a spiral, I can highly recommend those two sources. They shine a light on this topic and make it an understandable thing. And when understanding it you can finally do something with it that will work.

Well, back to January 2022. My beginning of part time work. All happy and enthusiastic, I planned my first days where I would be spending whole days with Brahman. That’s what I expected at least. You know, like this last vacation you posted on Instagram. Yay, so much fun! In the sun! Whilst for real the sun only came out for a couple of minutes, and it all sucked quite a lot because your face got irritated by the constant wearing of the face mask, and you were scared of taking that COVID test for your flight back, and weren’t there supposed to be other people? Where did all those other tourists go? Well either way, you can probably already expect it. Here’s how my first days of part time work really went..

Covid struck and my girlfriend and I were forced into isolation. And not only that, this wouldn’t have been so bad after all, quality time focus on Brahman, but nope. Fever it was. Being tired all day long, five days long. What a time this was, being together for a week is pretty intense! But – always looking on the bright side – we made some good memories. I am glad that we both took care of each other and got better in the end.

So with some delay, I can finally announce that I will be working part time! YAAAAAY! Haha Three days as an employee and two days as the CEO and Co-Founder of Brahman Bracelets. I can still hear Erik scream from enjoyment! What a step to take in such a short period of time. Let’s do our best and I truly believe the outcome will be the best too.

Sunday, November 21st – Our first time at the Museum Market in Amsterdam. What an awesome feeling! Not only for joining the very first market in Amsterdam, but then also this market, being located directly at the Museumplein – a place where arts and culture meet. It’s another dream come true, and we are really proud having been a part of today’s market.

As mentioned, the area is known for its artsy surrounding, whether it’s museums, shopping, designer companies or cultural attractions. When you think about art in Amsterdam – this is the place to be.

During this time of the year the area tends to be even more magnificent. All the lights and not to forget the ice skating lane that is set up in the middle of Museumplein make it feel like a little Christmas market itself. No wonder it felt so festive today, and made us feel all warm inside.

The weather couldn’t have been any better in November. We had sun, rainbows above the Rijksmuseum every now and then, and not too much wind around us. Only later in the evening when the sun went down it started to get quite cold. But getting back to the warm feeling inside, we found our savior at the café Cobra! They sold really good Glühwein which kept us warm. And what a coincidence their name is Cobra too! Told you, the cycle always completes. ?

Looking back at today, we are grateful for all the people that stopped at our stand to take a look at the bracelets, listen to our story and took the time to understand the meaning of Brahman Bracelets. The faces people make when they finally see the snake in the bracelets – in case they struggled seeing it before – is priceless. I won’t lie, I always get a certain kick of it. This feeling is simply amazing!

Special thanks go also out to our followers and friends who took the time to come visit us at the market, spend some time with us and provide us with hot coffee, tea and Oliebollen. You are awesome, and your support is more than appreciated!! Sometimes I still can’t believe how many people there are supporting us on our way and celebrating every little success with us. Brahman Bracelets is really starting to feel like a community, even family sometimes. And it is exciting to see this circle slowly but surely growing more and more.

Talking about growth – we gained the most new subscribers to our Instagram page we ever received from a market today! In case you are one of our new followers – this thank you goes out to you!

What a day to look back at… Let’s enjoy the rest of the evening, and be prepared for our next markets already! Hope to see you soon again, next in Haarlem (Biomarkt Kweektuinen) on December 4th for their festive edition, and two weeks later in Baarn at the Trotsmarkt Christmas edition from December 17th to 19th.

No markets close to you, but you would like to meet us in person too? No worries! As mentioned on our feed, this blog is there for you! Tell us in the comments section – Where do you live, and on which markets would you like to see us? We love your feedback!

All the best & see you soon!

It was March 2020. Life had been difficult for me – Saqib – for quite some time.
Only in February, my friend Erik had suggested traveling through Thailand together. He saw my struggles and knew I needed some time off. Far away from the Netherlands. At a place I could be completely myself. Find myself, as it turned out later. Cause when I started this travel, I surely didn’t even know who I was, nor what I really wanted in life.

Erik had been at this stage of life years before. He had found his peace of mind in Thailand, and so he took me by the hand, and showed me what he had discovered.

I was terrified stepping into that plane. March, 7th, 2020, I still remember that day. It had been some time I travelled that far, and I didn’t know what to expect nor if I would like it or not.
Especially since my friends pretty much arranged that trip for me, and I had literally planned nothing. The control freak in me was stressed. But from the second I had stepped into the airplane, I felt the positive energy flowing.

We arrived in Bangkok first, and traveled further to Cha’am three days later. Cha’am is about two hours South from Bangkok, located directly at the beach. And this is where our journey started for real.

Days and nights of honest talks, sitting in the sun, driving through nature, it all appeared so easy. Far from home, it felt much easier talking about my struggles, and admitting mistakes I had made in the past. And it felt good hearing that Erik had gone through the same struggles I was facing at that time.

He told me how he had found his way through the struggles. How meditation and actively dealing with his problems was the key to survival; Was the key to happiness.

Now you have read about the Ouroboros, aKa Brahman Energy, in our first blog. But what does this have to do with bracelets? And what does inner peace have to do with fashion?

Erik used to be a Designer for Bracelets in the Netherlands for many years. The industry is driven by success and money. It is a cruel, superficial world to live in. And the constant urge to achieve more had finally become a curse.

Bracelets and fashion had always been his passion, but he realized soon that the lifestyle he had was anything but a sustainable one. So he strove towards finding inner peace and letting go of the need to earn more and more money. He traveled to Thailand frequently. Picked up meditation and surfing, and had deep conversations with Thai people.

That’s when he discovered the Brahman Energy. And only during our trip together, he told me that he had designed a Bracelet that should symbolize the Brahman Energy.
All of his personal achievements, the struggles, the pain, the growth and the realization that everything is temporary should be displayed in the Brahman Bracelet. To not only honor the Energy, but to also create a daily reminder of his personal achievements.

And that’s where I came into place…

Ever since I can remember, it had been my dream to start an own business. Ever since I can remember, it had been my dream to become happy.
I had arrived in Thailand on March 7th as a person full of fears and doubts. And thanks to Erik, I had left Thailand on March 17th, 2020 full of ambitions and motivated to accept myself and my life the way it is, simply by living by the Brahman Energy.

I returned to the Netherlands with the plan to tackle my problems and no longer hide from them. And I decided to bring out this bracelet to the Dutch market to share the Brahman Energy with the world, and to enable every person to wear a daily reminder of the achievements they have reached in life.

Welcome to the Brahman Bracelets Family.

“F*ck it! Let’s go!” – That’s what I told myself when I stepped into the car on November 14th.

My partner was sick, so I had to go to the Trots Markt in Baarn all by myself. The first market alone, and I felt terrified.
During my drive I decided to turn off everything. No music, no podcasts, no news. I used the time to breathe consciously and meditate. And as expected – it helped. I was glad to feel the fresh energy inside of me when I arrived. Setting up the stand was easier than expected, and it went quite fast as well. I was proud. Until I started to feel cold…

The first few hours were incredibly calm. I almost felt like giving up, thinking this will be the first market I won’t sell at all. But after a quick chat with my partner, who reassured me that the first hours in Baarn are usually that quiet, I got my positive vibe back, and soon after I got rewarded for that! I sold two bracelets to two gentlemen almost simultaneously. What a nice feeling that was!

By being myself again afterwards and sharing my positive energy with people passing by, I attracted more and more people to stop and have a chat, which did me really good and kept me warm after all. And the neighboring entrepreneurs made it a fun day as well. Seeing everyone being there with the same mindsets, having talks in between, laughing together and watching each others stand whenever needed made me feel part of a warm and great community!

Something I always notice at the Trots Markt in Baarn is the crazy amount of dogs there are. Not only from visitors passing by, but this time also from the other entrepreneurs next to me. Being surrounded by that many dogs is causing mixed feelings nowadays. As much as I enjoy being around them, it also reminds me of Maja – my partner’s dog, who passed away this February. I wish I could have had her with me that day. She used to be quite therapeutic for me, and I never thought I would ever say that about a dog. Having grown up in a family where pets were not common, I used to be scared of dogs. But Maja made me change my perspective, and helped me become more comfortable in my own skin when being outside. But that’s another story to tell. Either way, that’s what you get for standing in front of Studio Sif. I know for sure I had spoiled here with a new dog’s bed from them, and I am sure she had liked that.

But long story short – This day has been a good day after all! I have stepped out of my comfort zone, went through a short dip, but got up and – looking back – I don’t think I have ever spoken to that many people at a market, and therefore enjoyed the time a lot. Once again I realized – “Saqib, you can do it on your own! You are stronger than you think you are.”

And with that feeling in mind, I drove home. Just in time to spend time with my second favorite hobby – Formula 1.

Thanks for everyone who has taken the time that day to talk to me, share their stories with me, and especially to those who decided to get connected and bought a Brahman Bracelet. Looking forward to the Christmas Edition in Baarn from December 17th to 19th. Hope to see you there again!

For other upcoming markets, check our agenda here. Hope to see you soon! Best, Saqib.

A snake biting in its own tail. Now that’s something you don’t see every day – do you?

You’re probably thinking right now, what are these two men talking about? But no, we did not loose our minds. In fact, we probably had lost it a bit before we discovered Ouroboros. But let’s start with the snake before we get to Ouroboros. One step after the other, we surely got time.

If you live in the Western world now, chances are high you don’t see snakes that often anymore. At least not conscious.

When was the last time you were sick? You went to the pharmacy to get antibiotics, or cough syrup. Did you look up to the façade before entering the store? Probably not, cause why would you. You were probably in a rush. You didn’t feel like being outside, you didn’t like that area of the city very much, and there were way too many people inside. All you wanted to do is get your medicine and go back home as quickly as possible. And there you missed the snake.

The symbol of pharmacies is a snake climbing up a staff (WHO) or bowl. The snake represents the healing and wisdom, based on its ability to shed its old skin after growing into a new one. And this is where the link with Ouroboros is made.

Ouroboros represents infinity, rebirth and an overall cyclic nature, meaning that everything is temporary. The good and the bad. And every time you conquer difficulties or struggles you are having in life, this is exactly what happens. You grow into your new skin.

Quite impressive, right? So what do you think now of our masterpiece? Let us know in the comment section. And please, do not hesitate to reach out to us in case of any questions, wishes, or feedback.

After a short break of markets in October, we enjoyed being back at our home market – the Biomarkt at Haarlemmer Kweektuinen.

It was a rather cold day, but luckily without any rain. And even though the market was a little less visited than usual, it was still a success for us. Not only did we enjoy seeing the other business owners again, and meeting a couple of new ones – always a good thing to see new faces, and see the market grow! – but speaking to visitors of the market, explaining our bracelets and the story behind it and having met one of our Instagram followers in person, made it a day to remember.

I believe this is one of the things you feel as a small business owner. Bringing the message of your products into the world, and sharing it with new interested people is what brings you joy and makes you feel warm from the inside. Of course selling is a plus, and definitely needed if you want to survive, but it always makes me happy when I see that people do not only understand the philosophy behind the bracelets, but can relate to it, sometimes even share their personal stories of achievements or learnings. It is all about connection.

We are looking forward to the next Biomarkt in Haarlem on 4th of December! Hope to see you there.

And in case Haarlem is a bit too far for you, check out our agenda for all other upcoming markets we will be present at!

“The launch of Brahman – a proud moment. One day I will look back at this…”

This is what I thought when my companion Erik and I started with Brahman Bracelets. Determined to make a dream come trough with this moment in our lifes.

I remember talking to Erik and my best friend Rewie on a balcony in Cha-am, looking over the beach where we could hear the waves, laughing about the fact that this is a deep dive with an uncertain outcome. Nevertheless we promised each other to give it all.

“I’ll go all in!” is what I said, so did Erik, and we cheered with the half a liter of beers that Rewie just got for us.

A new goal and a new road to take. Let’s see where this will take us. Let’s get this dream started…

… & enjoy this adventure.

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100% handwoven.

Another step, going from full-time to part-time.

21/11 Museum Market Amsterdam

Our journey to Ouroboros.

14/11 Trots Markt Baarn – Stepping out of my comfort zone…

What is Ouroboros? Discover the roots of Brahman Bracelets.

100% handwoven.

6/11 Biomarkt Kweektuinen

A fresh start…

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