Tipatshimuna 
Description:
Square hair wrappers (approximately 2.25 ) co struct d from red, blue and off-white beads woven through 16 rawhide threads which are broken or knotted at the bottom in a m-shaped design. Below this same coloured beads are strung on commercial threads to form a 15 strand fringe (approximately 2 ong) ending in a small circle of blue beads. Wrappers sewn to navy cloth backing which has two narrow doe skin thongs sewn to it and passed through it.
References:
James W. VanStone. 1985. Material Culture of the Davis Inlet and Barren Ground Naskapi: the William Duncan Strong Collection. Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History. Fieldiana, Anthropology New Series No.7. Lucien M. Turner. 1979[1894]. Indians and Eskimos in the Quebec-Labrador Peninsula. Quebec: Presses COMEDITEX.
Innu Narrative:
[Speaking to her daughter, Nympha Bryne] Your late grandmother (Matinueskueu, Munik (Gregoire) Rich) made shetshipituana (hair wraps) like that. She made your hair wraps like that, and she just wrapped it around your hair, and tied it together. You showed off your hair wraps. A man (tourist) was trying to buy your hair wraps but you don’t want to give them to him. I saw you standing by the dock when you were a little girl, and I saw you running away from the man (tourist from the boat at old Davis Inlet). These are the same kind of wraps – Sheshin (Rich) Rich.
Shetshiputuaia (hair wraps). My mother used to make them all the time. She gave them away most of the time to other people and children and to those who wear shetshiputuaia. She just made them as a hobby, and gave them away for free. She didn’t get paid for them [MacKenzie lists shetshipituakan and shetshipituan as “bun, roll of hair worn over the ear by women”] – Matinen (Rich) Katshinak.
The young girls had their pictures taken by the priest. When the priest arrived, he would take pictures of them wearing their ushetshiputanuaua (hair wraps). The girls would wear them. My sister in-law, Anishenish (Angela Rich) used to wear them too. Her mother used to be good at making them too. Your late grandmother, Anish (Alice Katshinak). We used to get our pictures taken when we had them on (shetshiputuaia) – Matinen (Rich) Katshinak.
Other Info:
The catalogue originally described this as a “charm.”
The Innu collection at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago contains 8 pairs of beaded hair wrappers collected by William Duncan Strong in the Davis Inlet-Voisey’s Bay area (see VanStone, 1985:30). VanStone notes that Frank Speck “illustrated almost identical specimens from the Barren Ground band but maintained that they were worn as garters by men for luck in hunting” (ibid.:30).
“In addition to these beaded hair wrappers, the collection contains a pair of boards for wrapping hair. They are rectangular pieces of wood, slightly concave at each end, wrapped with tanned caribou skin and tied with babiche” – VanStone (1985:30).
“Turner collected a small hair-wrap board at Fort Chimo (Kuujjuaq). “After a woman’s hair has been combed half of it is collected on each side of the head and rolled or wound up on small pieces of board…similar in shape to the ‘winders’ on which darning or knitting cord is wrapped. Strands of beads are now placed upon these to hold the hair place” – 1979[1894]:156).
Drapeau lists shetshipatuan as “toque de cheveux enroulés sur les oreilles.”