Late Victorian hair

‘Women’s hair styles tended to reflect the lines of their gowns. As skirts were drawn back in the second half of the era, the hair was also drawn up and back to reveal the ears, for so long covered, but kept flat on top, with curls or a small twist at the back of the head reflecting the back interest on the dress. With the first bustles in the early 1870’s the hair was lifted higher, sloping upward from forehead to occiput, then cascading to the shoulders in lavish twisted plaits (braids) or curls, or both, or occasionally worn in a chignon.

During this period enormous quantities of false hair were used by the very fashionable, obtained, in Catholic countries, from novices entering convents, and everywhere from prisoners or paupers in workhouses. In 1876 The ‘Englishwoman's Domestic Magazine’ announced that the use of false hair was a thing of the past; the slim straight line of the cuirass body was enhanced by hair dressed to give a smaller, neat appearance, close and high on the head. A few curls might be arranged to fall from the back of the head to the shoulders in the evening, and the increasingly fashionable, closely-curled fringe favoured by the Princess of Wales might often be false; a false fringe would avoid cutting the front hair. These fringes were thick enough to support a diamond clip in the shape of a star or crescent for evening. The small neat hairstyle remained in fashion through the late 1870’s and into the 1880’s, when the hair was scraped up into a bun on top of the head. The curled fringe was reduced to small tendrils on the forehead. By the 1890’s it had disappeared altogether, and the hair was again dressed back from the forehead but fuller and softer, possibly over pads to give a more bouffant style, still with the twist or bun on top of the head.

Throughout the half century, bonnets and hats were lavishly trimmed, and hair was invariably decorated with flowers, jewels or feathers for evening. Indoor caps were gradually discontinued, by the 1870’s worn only; perhaps by elderly ladies, servants and country folk wore them well into the 20th century.

During the 1850’s bonnets became shallower and set further back on the head, developing in the early 1860’s into the spoon bonnet, which had a narrow brim close to the ears, rising vertically above the forehead in a spoon-shaped curve and sloping down behind to a very small crown. Bonnet ribbons were wide, and often not tied but held by a brooch or pin under the chin, occasionally with a tiny bunch of artificial flowers. A curious addition to the bonnet between 1848 and 1864, appropriately called an ugly, was an extra brim resembling the front of a calash, made of half hoops of cane covered with silk and worn round the front as a protection against the sun. The most romantic-looking hat of the 1850’s was a leghorn straw with a very wide brim dipping down at the back and slightly at the front and a high or low crown, trimmed with a lace or tulle veil, ribbons or flowers.

With the massive arrangement of hair at the back of the head in the late 1860’s and early 1870’s, bonnets had to be worn further forward, the front curving front just above the hair-line to behind the ears where the ribbons were attached, the back cut away to allow the hair to flow freely. At this time hats were also perched on the forehead; a pillbox shape is sometimes referred to as a casquette, The Lamballe bonnet or plateau was worn in the same way as the pill-box; it closely resembled it but was more oval in shape and tied on by strings under the back hair or chignon or, when curved down slightly at the sides, would have ribbons tied in a large bow under the chin.

Small-brimmed hats, slightly wider in summer, toques and tiny bonnets set on top of the head above the close, high-dressed hair and fringe, helped to increase height in the late 1870's and 1880's; crowns rose, with a flower-pot shape appearing in the late 1880's.

During the 1890’s, bonnets lost favour with the fashionable although still worn by some elderly ladies, even after 1900, and for mourning with a long crape veil. Hats became wider-brimmed, worn high on the head over the fuller hairstyle; even toques were often quite large, draped or ruched in velvet, silk or tulle. Trimmings, ribbons, flowers and feathers still emphasized a vertical line.’

Victorian women’s fashion, 1850-1900: Hairstyles (2001) Available at: http://www.victorianweb.org/art/costume/nunn10.html (Accessed: 28 February 2016).

Late Victorian hairstyles

TrendH (no date) Y~ 1870-1890 hats and hair. Available at:
https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/449656344019452368/ (Accessed: 28 February 2016).

‘Madame Patti, a famous Victorian opera soprano, beauty, socialite and international star, hennaed her dark hair through the late 1800's. She was credited with launching henna into the European fashion mainstream, as fashionable women admired her thick auburn hair, and emulated her. In 1900, she was the second most well-known woman in England, after Queen Victoria, and was the superstar diva of her day. 

Madame Patti was born in 1843, in Spain. She began singing on stage when she was seven, and was the undisputed diva soprano of the world for fifty years! At the peak of her fame, she would have been going grey, and hennaed to keep her hair fashionably youthful, thick, long, dark and reddish.

Women longed to be like her; wealthy, beautiful with a mane of hennaed hair. During the late Victorian era, women grew their hair very long, and showed it off in luxurious chignons, rolls, tosades and puffs, to a neck-challenging height. Many used henna to keep their hair sleek and thick, and to cover the grey as needed.

In 1900, the beauty editor for "Queen", London's newspaper for ladies, was surprised at the new fashion for white or pale hair, commenting that grey hair hadn't been seen on fashionable women in the previous decades. Women had auburn or bright blonde hair, (henna and cassia obovata with rhubarb root, often marketed as "blonde henna"). The editor also commented that though hairdressers in Paris and New York claimed they could bleach hair white, it was not done in London, and the process could not be done safely.’

Cartwright-Jones, C. (no date) Henna for hair. Available at: http://www.hennaforhair.com/history/patti.html (Accessed: 28 February 2016).

Madame Patti

(no date) Available at:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Adelina_Patti...jpg (Accessed: 28 February 2016).

The Gibson girl:

‘The Gibson Girl is widely considered to be the first ‘pin-up girl’. Created by illustrator Charles Dana Gibson in the 1890’s, the images encompassed the ideal feminine beauty of the Victorian times. Gibson based his Gibson Girls on a collective observation of thousands of American ladies. The corseted slim-waisted figures sported soft hair, which was piled upon the head in a soft bouffant/chignon style that exuded effortless beauty.’

journalist, artist, professional make-up, fan-girl, B. and bookworm, resolute (2013) Make up: A history - the Victorian era, Gibson girl style. Available at:
http://hellogiggles.com/make-up-a-history-the-victorian-era-gibson-girl-style/ (Accessed: 28 February 2016).

Charles Dana Gibson

Borri, L. (2015) ‘The Gibson girl’. I disegni di Charles Dana Gibson. Available at: http://www.edizioniriflessi.it/gibson-girl-disegni-di-charles-dana-gibson/ (Accessed: 28 February 2016).

In our second practical lesson with Helen, we did a late Victorian hairstyle. Below is a step by step guide on how to achieve this look:

Required equipment: Katy head, pin tail comb, roller set, grips, a tong, pins, paddle brush, hairband and sectioning clips.

 

Step-by-Step guide: 

1. Preheat the roller set before doing this hairstyle.

2. Brush the hair using a paddle brush to get rid of any knots.

3. Create a centre parting using a pin tail comb.

4. You will need to section the hair into three parts. The front section will be just up to the ears. The second section will be placed in the crown area. You’ll need to create a semi-circle in the crown of the head and tie it with a hairband. The third section will be just underneath the second one. Again, you’ll need to create another semi-circle shape (leave some hair out at the nape and sides) and tie it with a hairband.

5. With the front section you created earlier, roller set this using the WHITE rolls. Roll these away from the face. Preferably 4 on the top, and 2 on each side. It should look something like this:

6. Now with the second section you created (the mini crown ponytail), create a normal bun and secure it into place using grips.

7. Using a hot tong, curl the hair you left out at the nape and sides away from the face. Hold the tong downwards.

8. Curl the third section you created (the second ponytail under the bun), again similarly to how you did the above step. 

9. Once the rollers are cool, you may take them out. Pin up the two side bits you rolled into the bun. Make sure this is secure.

10. Now this is the tricky part. What you’ll need to do is build on that bun you created in the crown area. As you’ve already curled the hair, it has a natural wave to it. Follow the direction of the curl you created, taking small sections, and grip them into the bun. Ensure to let the ends go free. You don’t want to be too harsh with this hairstyle. 

11. With the front section you rolled, you can either pin it backwards into the bun or create an ‘S’ wave (away from the face). I pinned mine backwards into the back of the hair.

12. With the second ponytail you created, again you can pin it into the bun or just leave it out (curled).

Reflection:

Personally for me this hairstyle was very difficult to complete. It was very confusing and had many steps to follow. I filmed Helen whilst she was doing a demo as I knew by the time she'd finish I'd forget all of it. I was able to start off well, however when it got to the stage where I had to incorporate all the sections I rolled/curled into the bun, I struggled. Helen told me that I was being too harsh and I should just let the hair flow itself. She also said the bun I created is too stiff and should've been a looser one. I now know next time I produce a hairstyle similar to this, to be a lot gentler with the hair. 

Key notes (taken in class):

• Diamond pins were worn in the hair during the evenings. 
• Curls moved away from the face during the late Victorian era. 
• During the American civil war, hairstyles became a lot more practical. 
• Rick ragging technique was introduced; women often slept in this. 
• There was a lot of height in the hair. 
• Marcel (François) – marcel waving happened. 
• There was a development in technology. 
• Wealthy Victorians often had a collection of ready-made headpieces (handmade).
• Alice Lidl (Alice in wonderland). 
• Women weren’t taken seriously when writing novels therefore wrote under a man’s name. 
• English and French fought against Russians. 
• It was very cold therefore men were allowed to grow hair to keep them warm. 
• Charles Dickens had many quotes about facial hair. 
• First ever sideburns were tribute to a man.