Do I have to curl my hair to be vintage accurate?

[KittyT]

Dye your hair blonde and the curls will hold like I don't know what without any product! (at least, thats what my hair does since it's highly damaged!)

Very true! The blond parts of my hair curl well, the the black parts definitely don't hold it as well.

 

[melbournian]

I ended up getting a perm last year...I have dead straight hair naturally, and it would never hold a curl for more than a couple of hours, no matter how much hairspray I used. My perm is only wavy (and needs redoing soon because it's growing out) but I've found that my hair now holds curls really easily and even if I can't be bothered doing anything it's at least wavy.

 

[Helen Troy]

Oh! And speaking of germany! Woman also had their hai braided! Like around the head, don't know how to call that. Or some other simple updos. But that was more for the girls from the countryside I guess.

Oh, yes! I think that actually is a very cute vintagey alternative, requiring no curls. You have to be able to braid your hair, though.

We are talking about something like this, right?

(This is Julia Timoshenko, ukrain politician today. She was the first I could think of with this hairstyle!)

 

[Naama]

Yes! That's just what I meant! Thank you Helen!


Naama

 

[roots66]

Leaette, I feel your pain, but it's not hopeless. Keep practicing--it's worth it, and doggone it, it's kinda fun too! Of all the many life-enhancing things I've learned through the Fedora Lounge, perhaps the most gratifying is that yes, even super-fine, stick-straight, flat-as-a-pancake hair like mine CAN achieve and hold a curl given the proper products, tools, and techniques.

Since childhood, I've assumed that wasn't the case. The few times my mother attempted to give me curls were quite futile. I can specifically recall the day of my first communion as being the last straw--an overnight wet set fell out immediately, and an emergency back-up hot roller set didn't improve matters, so from then on she and I kinda gave up. (I now realize that the crucial missing step was some kind of setting lotion...how Moms avoided this is beyond me as she was an experienced mistress of the pincurl, but then she also went for perms every three months like clockwork and thus probably didn't need setting lotion herself.)

The one body wave I've had in my life, when I was about 13 or so, simply did not take, so I figured that if a permanent couldn't change matters, nothing could. Which isn't so bad as it happens--I'm a '60s-type chick, straight hair is de rigueur among most garage rock go-go girls, and I could manage to achieve at least a pageboy under-curl or a slight outer flip. Still, I've always longed to have more options besides the two main looks between which I've vascillated for the past thirty years--long and straight, or bobbed and straight. (I'll conveniently sidestep the partly-shaved, partly-spiked-with-the-aid-of-7Up-and-Aquanet phase of 1984-85.) And now, thanks to all the tips I've picked up on FL, I do!

Of course, sets don't always turn out perfectly, and sometimes even when they do turn out well, 'do-destroying against like wind, rain, and snow conspire against them. But I find that even when my curls fall out, I'm left with fabulous, lasting body and volume--way more than I've ever been able to achieve with a blowdryer or hot air brush--and for me, that's well worth the time and effort of setting. Not to mention how the act of setting makes you feel like you're part of a certain time-honored tradition of beauty solidarity with your foresisters and all that...

Re: "wash and wear" hair...Vidal Sassoon certainly popularized it, but it was in some form of existence before him. I've seen ads in '50s-era issues of Vogue and Harper's Bazaar for an early form of the blow-out that involved a hand-held dryer and an unusual-looking waving tool. However, the ads were for services offered at beauty parlors, not for items to be sold for home use. By the way, I've seen Mr. Sassoon on a couple of TV programs recently (like that wacky Shear Genius), and he's probably the spryest and dare I say sexiest-looking octogenarian in the history of the world!

 

[ohairas]

Some of the rollers they used were incredilby TINY. Have you seen those skinny metal rollers? I would suggest getting some on the bay, esp. the ones that have a "curling iron type" thingie on them that clamp onto your hair, so you can pull your hair thru to the tips and then roll up without getting fish-hooked frizzy ends.

Many sets were not just unrolled and fingercombed or just simply brushed. You may have to do a set on this tiny rollers, end up with TINY curls, but when brushed and brushed and with a bit of VO5 or some sort of frizz tamer, I bet you'd get the desired look. One needs to master brushing sections of hair around your fingers and such too, if the set comes out too tight at first.

As others said, use a setting lotion. And for hot sets use something like Redken Hot Sets spray.

Other than that, the curls are not staying because they might be "over dry", too much static and not enough moisture will spoil curls just as much as taking the set out when it's not dry enough.
Nikki

 

[LolitaHaze]

No stick straight...

...but straight-er styles. Many images ahead. Most snaked from Amy Jeanne. Thank you, friend.

 

[LolitaHaze]

 

[LolitaHaze]

 

[ohairas]

Lo thanks for posting all the pics, (and Amy Jeanne, lol!)
These are great!
Nikki

 

[LolitaHaze]

Nikki... You are welcome.

On a sort of related note... I have my hair setting right now, but here is the funny part. My hair is so thick and naturally curly/wavy, I had to use a straightening iron on my hair FIRST, then I set my hair in rollers. This helps me tame the poof. Although I have to admit, I am still working on learning the perfect straightening/potion/setting/timing combo to get a great style. There are days were I long to have a pageboy, but can't because of my wavy hair.

 

[LolitaHaze]

More

Here are more photos of women without perfect hair. Look in the crowd. Most women have it wrapped up. These are from the early 40's by the way.

 

[Helen Troy]

Woaw, where are those photoes from? Amazing!

Interesting, therse photoes shows that women who are not well of, does not have that perfect movie-star hair, off course. But all of them seems to have tried to give their hair some curl or wawes, or else they have covered it up.

 

[ShrinkingViolet]

It also seems that the women took more care of curling their daughters' hair than their own

 

[Fleur De Guerre]

I think we become too fixated on movie-star hair, styles that never saw a breath of wind or an ounce of humidity! OK, women might have not left the house with a hair out of place, but I bet if they were caught in a gale it would look the same as ours does when it happens to us!

I have cultivated techniques to preserving my curls in bad weather (usually consisting of trying to shield it from wind/rain while I dash for cover! lol). I love the beach shot Lo posted - the girls are windswept, but still look great!

 

[Amy Jeanne]

I read somewhere that straight hair was seen as "old maid"-like whereas curly hair was seen as softer and more "fertile."

 

[ShrinkingViolet]

I you go watch "Rome, Open City" by Rossellini (1945) it has lots of totally un-glamorous shots of how Italian women did their hair during wartime.
It's also a very good movie

 

[Blondie]

Here are more photos of women without perfect hair. Look in the crowd. Most women have it wrapped up. These are from the early 40's by the way.

Where did you find these AMAZING photo's ????????????

 

[Tuppence B.]

Amazing photos!
And perfect colours and focus - are they recoloured or reenactments? Or did they really have coulor photos back then. They look gorgeous - the best I've seen !!

But to the topic. I have long straight hair with a quite short fringe, but am going to clever hairdresser who I know specializes on the 50's tomorrow. I hope for fabulous 40' advice and plan to post the result

Please cross fingers for me

 

[leaette]

i was recently talking to my dad's cousin. she said they were really poor when she was young. and they used the twist-ties off of coffee bags to curl their hair at night.

You know what I'm talking about...you roll the coffee bag down and there is a twisty-tie on top and you fold the sides in. she would cut them off.