Holding Hair.

[MissMaggie]

Hello Ladies,
When I put up my hair for events I usually use a plasic hair comb (the tortise shell looking ones) and a modern elasic hair binder. What is a period fix for the modern hair binder? Also, how evil is it to keep using that plasic hair comb? I have very very fine hair, and not a lot of it so, until now, I've always gone with what holds best. Now, I'd really like to concentrate on the actual period way of doing things.

Thanks in advance!

[Kate Vogel]

Maggie,

While I generally do not support the wearing of honest-to-God-antiques in any way shape or form, my exceptions to the rule are: belt buckles, jewelry, and combs (all used in controlled, preferably indoor, circumstances). During a recent antiquing excursion I came across a few tortoise shell hair combs in excellent condition that would be more than passable for our period and that were also rather reasonably priced. Unfortunately, I couldn't make use of them as I had just chopped off ten and a half inches of hair.

Maybe it's because I was a disciple of the bobby pin and of french braids, but what exactly do you mean by an elastic hair binder? A hair tie?

As far as your really fine hair is concerned, try using a little pomade to keep things in place. My little sister has very slippery hair and we generally get it to stay put by taming it with Pinaud.

Your current fix isn't necessarily evil, it just depends entirely on your view of accuracy and what you are willing to do to put your hair up correctly. If it is a "invisible" plastic comb (the rectangular sort that you can push all the way down into a bun and only see the top bit of it) that isn't seen because you are wearing a bonnet, it is probably ok for the time being, but an upgrade to a different hairstyle or to possibly using a real tortoise shell comb might be a good idea. Try looking at Alaina Zulli's site for some excellent hair fixes and ideas: http://geocities.com/motozulli/

[SparksBird]

A period hair style for a civilian reenactor be it a man or a woman is one of the easiest quick fixes you can make to your impression. To acheive the "look" you must first have a basic understanding of the differences between hair now and then and do what you can to bridge the gap between the two.

First take into consideration that hair was not treated in the 1860s as it is today. We wash our hair with chemicals that strip out moisture and our natural oils then use a seperate product that puts on a false luster. We bleach, perm, iron, spray, and basically torture our hair. The result is our modern hair that is dry, damaged, and prone to static and flyaways.

This is a sharp contrast to the much more holistic approach of the 1860s. Hair was not often washed (from a modern standpoint) and when it was it was treated to sweet oils and pomades when clean. In this way hair was much thicker, smoother, and more easily shaped into style. A quick study of period cdv's shows how smooth and glossy hair appears without the stragglers of hair that we reenacters constantly battle.

This certainly isn't to say that a period hair style is beyond us. The first and most important thing to do is to find a good pomade and learn to love it. If you want to make your own from a period receipt thats great. Many modern pomades (often called waxes) are actually close to a period equivalent. Look for products that contain period ingredients such as: beeswax, castor oil, emulsifying wax, and other oils, waxes, and proteins. A little pomade goes a long, long way but this will prevent the flyaways, help slick back bangs and layers, and give your hair weight that will help hold your style.

I would also suggest not washing your hair several days before an event but I know that this has a big ick effect on many.

The next thing to do is decide based on your age and impression what hair style you want. Go back to the cdv's and find someone of your age and status and who has a hairstyle you can realisticly achieve. Pick a simple hairstyle and stick to it until you perfect it then you can start to add embellishments. Braids are good but I haven't yet found documentation for french braids. I would avoid all plastic combs, ties, ect. because they are hard to keep hidden and I really don't have much luck with those darn plastic headache makers anyway. If you must use a tie go for as small and close to your natural hair color as possible (don't laugh, go to a tack shop and you can find ties in every horsey hair color).

Look for sturdy hair pins that are shaped like a long, wavy U or V. These are about as close to period as you can find. Avoid the long straight bobby pins as these slide and cause your style to go from nape to somewhere in the sad, droopy area.

Finally cover your style with a fine, light weight hairnet (not lunch lady and not a red knit ponytail tube) to futher hold and prevent the frizzies. Top with a bonnet or cap but remember that your hair was styled under, not the modern pull on a ball cap to hide the bed head. Mostly have fun and embrace that center part.

Anne Musselman

[Hank Trent]

Here's a source for sturdy straight hairpins. http://www.prayercoverings.com/ They're silver-colored, but Linda has me coat hers black with model paint. I believe it was Virginia Mescher who documented the crinkled kind to the period, but from what little I've read about it, the straight kind were more common. Anyone know? Linda uses them alone to hold her hair up, and they work quite well, especially when she uses hair oil.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[MissMaggie]

Thanks Everyone for your adivce. I'm battling genetics here (dad was mostly bald by the time he was 24) and my really horrible hair only comes to just past my shoulders and then it seems to stop growing altogether. I've looked and looked and looked for antique combs but the only ones I've found have teeth that are way too long for my meager amount of hair with the way I usually style it. Modern bobby pins are just short enough when I have my hair in a regular old bun. The one thing I can do with ease is get myself some pomade! Can anyone recomend some? Then we move on to the next question...how common were fake hair pieces in "middle" class ladies??

<wishes the hair fairey had blessed her as much as her sister>

[PackinPelican]

Hi! You'll have to excuse my login, the site won't seem to let my husband log out. :confused_

Anyway, I have read of many woman using hair pieces to make up for scarce hair. They would often save their combings from their brush to make hair pieces and rats. Rats were used to fill in thin hair on the sides and other places as well. The easiest way to make a rat is to save the hair from your brush and when you have enough to fill out one side of your hair bind it into a sausage shap within one of the "invisible" hair nets that are sold at most drug stores. These are the same nets that are very similar to a proper net of the period. Don't pull it over your head like a lunch lady, however, they often were worn just about at the ears or even further back. :)

Another option is getting a "hank" of hair and making a bun to pin to the back of your hair. Check the color in natural light to make sure it actually matches your hair color and shade. Nothing looks worse than a mis-matched hair peice.

As to pomade, look in walmart for "hair dressing" or pomade. A more natural option, that is really good for your hair and leaves it really soft when washed out, is olive oil. Now I doubt that olive oil was readily available in the blockaded South, but it has been used as a beauty product since ancient times, and is quite good for it. :wink_smil

I hope this helps!

Sincerely,
Anna Rose Ard

[Miche_Todd]

Here's a source for sturdy straight hairpins. [url]http://www.prayercoverings.com/[/


I am planning on ordering several of these hairpins, but now I need to know how to correctly use them. If I just stick them in my hair I imagine they will fall straight out, do you give them a small twist or anything???

My hair is so thick that it pushes regular hairpins straight out, so I thinnk the wider variety would work much better, even if accuracy wasn't a consideration, which it is!! :tounge_sm

[Kate Vogel]

Almond Oil worked very well for me, and I have also used Pinaud's Pomade (I believe Sally's Beauty Supply carries it still) and have been happy with it. Murrays Beeswax might come reccomended by some, but personally I found it incredibly difficult to wash out and it left my hair looking rather greasy several days after an event. It's a more than acceptable 19th century look, but it doesn't quite cut it for 21st century purposes.

[sask]

My hair is so thick that it pushes regular hairpins straight out, so I thinnk the wider variety would work much better, even if accuracy wasn't a consideration, which it is!! :tounge_sm[/QUOTE]

My hair is thick also ... I also thought the thicker pins would work better. They don't ... they fire out of my bun like weapons. People have to duck to avoid the missiles.
I have found if you use the hairpins pushed down with open end down ... gravity will keep them in. Around the rest of the bun is just bobby pins. LOTS of bobby pins that are securing narrow, twisted sections of my hair wrapped around the base of the low ponytail holder. Then I use a net to hold it down ... one the color of my hair. A place where they sell dance clothing will have hair pins and nets.
SueAnne Knowlton

[Linda_Trent]

they fire out of my bun like weapons

Yep, when I used bobby pins they either fired or were in firing mode prepared to launch. :p

FWIW, my hair is about waist length and so thick that I go to have it thinned, and I might add, it is about as straight as an arrow. I have always had trouble putting it up until I got my first package of the pins Hank recommended in an above post. I'm right handed, so below are instructions for basic fuller looking buns at the nape of the neck.

Because my hair is long enough, I pull it back and hold it, in a pony tail, with the left hand at the nape of the neck. The index finger of the left hand becomes the core of the bun.

With the right hand I begin to circle the hair around the index finger taking it up toward the center part.

At this point I cup the right hand over the half of the bun that has been started and then use the left hand to bring it on around, and keep changing hands. Technically speaking this can be done without switching hands, but it makes it a much tighter and therefore smaller looking bun.

I then tuck the ends under the massive donut of hair and then get ready to put in the pins. Despite the weight of my hair I can hold it at an event with just one of the hairpins that Hank mentioned. I lost two of them at WOTJ and had to depend on just one for the remainder of the event.

Now, take the prongs of the pin and point them up toward the crown of the head, and scoop several strands of hair from near the center of the donut and keep the prongs of the pin toward the crown of the head until you reach the side of the donut and tuck the prongs under the upper edge of the donut. This puts pressure upon the pin and keeps it securely in place.

Usually I will go ahead and use two more, one on either side. Again taking several strands of hair from the center of the donut only now depending upon which side you're doing keep the prongs pointed in that direction. And repeat the above steps.

I've slept with my hair this way and it never moves a hair. These hair pins are very similar to the vintage ones I got off eBay several years ago. I love them so much I use them for my modern everyday going to town, etc. I'll never go back to bobby pins again :tounge_sm

And if you're fortunate enough to have long enough hair, you don't even need a rubber band with the above method of putting up hair. I can have my hair up and ready to go within 1-2 minutes -- though I bumbled more when I knew Hank was actually timing me :wink_smil

Linda

[Miche_Todd]

Thanks Linda!! I think I see exactly what you are talking about. Although, I've never thought of my hair as a donut before! :tounge_sm

[annarose]

Here's a source for sturdy straight hairpins. http://www.prayercoverings.com/ They're silver-colored, but Linda has me coat hers black with model paint. I believe it was Virginia Mescher who documented the crinkled kind to the period, but from what little I've read about it, the straight kind were more common. Anyone know? Linda uses them alone to hold her hair up, and they work quite well, especially when she uses hair oil.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

Just wanted to let everyone know that I tried these hairpins, and I have never before had my hair stay put through an entire day. My hair is VERY thich and VERY slippery. regular bobby pins bend completely out of shape and even after using what seems like 100 of them, they don't hold. The hair pins that Mr. Trent recomended are terrific! I used 2 of the big ones and about 5 of the small ones for stray hairs. The "do" lasted for about 9 hrs, until I took it down. probably would have lasted longer if I had left it.

Just wanted to say "Thank you SO much for the recomondation"

Sincerely,

[mrgrzeskowiak]

I had a question to do with hair that I thought might fall under this kind of catagory. When you wear a net over your hair, if the net has tassels on the sides would the tassels be tucked into a bonnet when one was worn or left outside of the bonnet. I have looked in period photos and have not seen any on the outside of bonnets, but I cannot tell if they are being tucked or if I am only seeing pictures of women wearing snoods without tassels.

[Carolann Schmitt]

Mike -

The decorative hair nets ornamented with braided ribbons, ruching, tassels etc. are an indoor accessory and are more decorative than functional. They are worn over hair that has been styled and dressed that may also be controlled with an invisible net made from human hair or very fine thread. These decorative nets would be removed and replaced with a bonnet before the woman left the house; they would not be worn under a bonnet.

I'd be interested in seeing any photos or documentation for wearing a decorative net worn under a period bonnet. The bonnet shapes worn during the period would conceal most decorative nets, and I've not personally found any documentation for this practice. There are photos of women wearing hats over a decorative net, but hats and bonnets are two different 'species'.

As an aside, the term "snood" is not commonly used during this period.

Regards,

[Hank Trent]

I'd be interested in seeing any photos or documentation for wearing a decorative net worn under a period bonnet.

Not the same thing, but the closest that comes to mind is this bonnet from Sept 1864 Godey's, lower left, at http://www.accessible.com/Accessible/images/Godeys3/1864/5433.jpg

The caption reads "White silk bonnet, trimmed with violet ribbons and pink roses. A net formed of ribbons is attached to the bonnet."

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[Carolann Schmitt]

I've seen that illustration, Hank, and a similar illustration in another period publication (Harper's?). I've always wondered if they ever made it into common use. I think putting one on without disturbing your hair style could be interesting.

As you've mentioned, it's not the same net that Mike asked about, but it is interesting; and I'd love to know if anyone knows of an original bonnet with this feature.

[Chessa]

I have very thick wavy hair. When I go to an event, I usually put a little pomade it it and use these pins: http://tinyurl.com/2rosbq

Even though they are platic, they look like tortise shell. Carolann Schmitt mentioned on another forum that she has a box of originals that look exactly like them (but in real tortise shell of course ;) )

[motozulli]

The following quote suggests that a period solution to holding difficult hair was tying the ends with a piece of thread:

When they are about eleven or twelve, the hair should be twisted into a coil not too tight, nor tied at the end with thin thread, but with a piece of ribbon. Godey's Lady's Book Sept 1859 p. 270

full quote posted here: Hair of Children (http://www.gothampatterns.com/hair.html)

As for pomades, there are a bunch of recipes here. Pomatum (http://www.gothampatterns.com/hair.html#hairpomatum)

As you can see, many of the recipes there are not really feasible for reenactors because the ingredients are difficult to get. I did make the following recipe, and got mostly good reviews from the re-enactors who were kind enough to test it for me. (an article on this is in the works!)

To Make Soft Pomatum.-- Beat half a pound of unsalted fresh lard in common water; then soak and beat it in two rose-waters, drain it, and beat it with two spoonfuls of brandy; let it drain from this; add to it some essence of lemon, and keep it in small pots.- Petersons 1861, p. 314

[58th C]

Regarding the recommended hairpins- I became acquainted with these a number of years ago when an Amish grandmother I had met used them to pin up my daughter's very long hair. When she was done that child's hair was not moving. She poked them into the bun at the very edge going outwards, then turned them inwards into the rest of the hair. If you live near an Amish community you should easily find these pins available. I've found that when these pins get used a bit and the finish wears off it makes them a bit rough and then they hold much better. As Anne said, not washing your hair so often makes a big difference. Try to stretch out the number of days between washing and you will find that in time you won't need to wash as often. You can scrub your scalp with a bit of baking soda instead of using modern shampoo and your scalp will be clean. If you stimulate your scalp with daily washing, you produce more oil, which forces you to continue daily washing. There is a long hair forum online where there are other natural shampoo and conditioner recipes available.

Lauren Kaye

[xamier]

Hi:
This is a related thread having to do with hair and period hair styles. You might find it of interest.
http://www.authentic-campaigner.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10776

Betty Morgan