Essay On Hair In The 1940s

HAIR IN THE 1940s

What does one think of when you hear 1940s? Perhaps you think rockabilly, maybe you think World War II, maybe even of the unique hairstyles that took place during this era. Whatever it may be they all coincide and come together as one. As it is much known, WWII began in 1939 causing a lot of damage to this world, but yet helping create what may be one of the most beautiful hairstyles of this day.

When this outbreak happened women joined the armed forces, working in factories, making tanks and working in fields. Hair was required to be up and out of the way so it wouldn’t interfere with the tasks they had to perform on a daily basis. Long hair was very hazardous working in farms and factories, it was causing too

many accidents. It was very much encouraged for women to cut their hair during this time. An actress named Veronica Lake was even asked to cut her trademark “peek-a-boo” long locks off, she obliged.
This happened all throughout the war until it ended in 1945. After the war these hairstyles that were “part of the uniform” turned into something more new and luxurious. Christian Dior’s “New Look” in 1947 left the war time behind and embraced new fabrics and styles, encouraging women to do the same. Throughout the decade hair was generally shoulder length or shorter, it was very rare to see a woman with long locks. The hair would be cut in a rounded U-shape in the back curving up towards the ears, generally with a lot of layers which was needed to create the hairstyles.
Parting the hair was also always generally to the side, always making the hairstyles feminine, soft and worn off the face. This was always suited especially for those who were factory workers or farm workers. If they were to have longer hair it would be set in pin curls and wore under a head scarf or turban. For less dangerous work the back could be secured in a snood while the front was waved or pinned off the face. This would always help keep the hair protected and away from all the dangerous machinery when worked with. Although the hair would be up it was still easily let down for later in the night to be spruced up and dressed up.
An essential part of these hair styles were waves. These waves were not like the crested waves of the 1920s and 30s, they were more soft and elegant. Hair was always set with waves, it was never straight, for that was not part of the fashion. Curls, or waves, were meant to dress up a certain section of the hair to make it a complete style. Those with straighter hair who could not keep in a curl as easily used perms or put in a pin curl set.
If they did not put in a pin curl set they would use rags or rollers. Rolls were an essential part of defining the looks of the decade, it was a flexible element of a hair style. If the rolls were not big enough or felt like they needed more volume to them it would be helped by backcombing. If someone had medium to long hair the hair would be styled in a smooth roll going all around the sides and towards the back of the hair that was curled under which was called a pageboy.
Victory rolls were another type of roll that was used to dress up the hair during this era. A victory roll was like a tight sausage like roll that is rolled upward rather than turned under like a pageboy. It was never really a simple task to achieve the victory roll so the top of an old stocking was used to make the shape for this type of roll. All you would need to do was tie the top of an old stocking around the head like a headband and roll the hair over creating the victory roll. Nowadays any type of roll from the 1940s was considered a victory roll but in the 40s a victory roll was a specific shape.
Since hair was always meant to be kept off the face during this time it was rare to have a bang or type of fringe. If the hair did have a fringe (bang) than it was dressed to the hairstyle or pinned on one side. As well as pinning it to one side fringes could always be shaped into a roll or used to create a wave if they wanted to do something a little more out of the box than just pinning it. It was never just flopped onto the head, it always had a shape and a purpose on the head, it was always a creation of creativity. Pompadours always stood high up off from the forehead, letting the hair go back off the face and being able to smooth it or wave it as needed.
As oppose to white women of this time black women of the 1940s would straighten their hair rather than curl it. By doing so it was a way of being “accepted by society”. This was also looked at as a finished look looking more done. To achieve a straight hair look they would have to use protective pomades or oils and a heated metal comb. The straightened hair would then help them to dress up their hair into waves, rolls and pinned into typical 1940s hairstyles.
Women with straightened hair would do everything possible to avoid water, swimming, washing their hair, rain, anything that would have to do with water being involved. A scarf was worn a lot of times to cover the hair until it was able to be straightened again. Although they were pretty much doing the opposite of everyone else they were still achieving the styles of this era by making their hair easier to manage and style.
A lot of different hair accessories were used to dress up the hair and make it look more appealing. Hair grips, or bobby pins, were a very rare thing during the war so when they had it they held onto it. Although they were very shiny they were allowed to wear them visibly making them that much more wanted since they did not have to worry about having to cover them up or hide them. For extra decoration a bow could be made out of ribbon and put in the hair. Ribbons were used in many different ways that allowed the overall hair style to be tied together nicely. Mothers would often make a bow out of ribbon and attach to a hair grip to decorate their daughter’s hair.
Braids were also very popular throughout the decade and were also used as a way of decorating the hair. Pieces of contrasting colors would be used for dimension and texture in hair. Materials such as scarfs would be planted in the hair to create a colorful alternative, making it more fun and youthful. These decorative braids would be dressed into the hair and used in many various ways, including around the crown or to round the back of the head.
Rats were used to bulk out the rolls, keeping the structure more solid and stable on the head. These rats were made of old stockings stuffed with either hair taken from the women’s hairbrush or more old stockings. Nowadays rats are to be considered the squishy foam like doughnuts and sausages found in any hair suppliers and accessory stores. A 1940’s woman would roll her hair around the rat the same way a modern woman rolls her hair around a doughnut or sausage, and use hair pins to secure it n place.
Snoods were also used to keep hair back and neat and out of the way of the face, especially if you had a long length of hair.

These snoods were a crocheted bag usually homemade. If you did not own a snood hairnets were also used to keep the back of the hair nice and neat. Because they were less visible than a snood they were considered to be more sophisticated. Hair that was in the snood could be styled in a roll, left in soft curls or even be put in pin curls, ready to be dressed out later. A snood was generally positioned between the crown and the top of the head, leaving some pieces of hair towards the front out. It would either be swept under the snood or be left out and styled, rolled or waved. It all depended on where the snood would be worn, at home or out and about, or if it would be worn around machinery. Sometimes the snood would even be made out of the same material as a dress to create a matching

item.
Scarves would also be used as decorative pieces or to keep the hair out of the face, coming in a variety of materials sizes and patterns.

Scarves would be worn in a variety of different ways, as well as an accessory. They could be plaited into the hair just as if you were plaiting it into a braid, folded into a triangle and tied on top of the head like a turban, or simply worn around the head and knotted under the chin. Women often fashioned the scarf into something more than just a head wrap, influenced by stars like Carmen Miranda who made wearing a turban chic and in style.

A turban was a length of material made from soft wool or rayon crepe. It would be tied on top of the head with a knot and the extra length hanging out would be tucked under or tied again to make a U shape and then tucked under. These turbans would be left as is or would be decorated with things such as pompoms or flowers. Many things would be used to dress up the hair to always have some sense style and never leave the hair bland and

boring.
The times the hair was styled it had to use many things to help set it and make it pliable to work with. During the war many products were hard to come by and the women had to make it with whatever they could get their hands on. Beer and sugar were two main things that were used as setting lotions to substitute for the real thing. Waves were created with pipe cleaners, rags or pin curls, ends were met during this time. Wealthy woman that didn’t have the struggle of going to war could afford to go to their hairdresser and have their hair set for them or else it was a DIY job at home, which a lot of those woman would not have the patience of doing.
Older women still used the old hot irons to put waves in the hair although there were electrical irons to be used. After the war many more products became available to everyone now that they had the proper resources. With these resources perms rose in popularity allowing for tighter and small curls to be set. Many home perms were available making it easier to get a permed set and simply be able to snap it into shape without a worry. This was also easier than setting with rollers or rags because they lasted a very long time. Unlike rollers or pin curls that would only last a couple of days
So as we see there were a lot of magical things happening with the hair during this era. Many new and improved things arose and became things that are now historical to us. Nowadays everyday people, even celebrities, kill to get a style as a beautiful as they were back then. We spend a long time trying to achieve what was an everyday thing for them back then. We can say this amazing style started with disaster, but ended with something truly beautiful.