Not a Hair Out of Place!

I have long been in awe of elaborate hairdos, particularly those from the Victorian era. As a teen, with the aid of my trusty curling iron and a lot of bobby pins, I attempted to turn my baby fine hair into some semblance of a Victorian do. It never occurred to me a that these woman were using something other than a curling iron and pins to create their hairdos. I’d never heard of hair pads to increase fullness or  thought about waxes and pomades necessary to keep hair in place.  Had I thought about that, I would have been grossed out at the idea of having gunk in one’s hair.

Before the Victorian era, and probably well into it, depending on where one lived and the resources available, hair was treated with grease, waxes, sugar water, and/or sap products to keep things under control. In the 1850s and 60s, a product called bandoline became popular for maintaining hairdos. Bandoline is a clear liquid made of diluted tree gum, alcohol (such as rum) and fragrances. It made hair sticky, which in turn, helped it stay in place.

Bandoline was applied to the hair with a small sponge to set a completed hairdo, or it could be worked through the hair with fingers, and then ringlets could be formed.  Because of the gummy buildup from using the product,  woman were advised to wash their hair weekly.

My great-great grandmother–a possible bandoline user.

Commercially made bandoline was sometimes created using impure ingredients. This in turn, led to hair damage, and in some cases, a change of color. According to the 1900 book The Human Hair, Its Care and Preservation, bandoline could turn hair a “rusty gray”.  For these reasons, some women chose to make their own bandoline using quince seeds. The seeds would be soaked in boiling water, then strained. After this, a scent would be added to mask the odor of the gummy substance.

By the late 1870s, bandoline was going out of style, but hair fixatives have remained popular until current times. There are recipes for bandoline online, which combine gum substances, water and a scent. The concoction is said to work as well as a modern day hairspray.

Had I known about bandoline back when I was attempting to make corsets from pictures in costume books and fashioning hoop skirts out of baling wire, I would have definitely tried to whip up a batch in order to perfect an elaborate do–which I probably would have worn to have dinner with my family.

 

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Jeannie Watt raises cattle in Montana and loves all things western. When she's not writing, Jeannie enjoys sewing, making mosaic mirrors, riding her horses and buying hay. Lots and lots of hay.

38 thoughts on “Not a Hair Out of Place!”

  1. Fascinating. And here we thought it was odd the punk rockers used egg whites to stiffen their mohawks.

    I’m glad the products we use now are much gentler for our hair.

  2. I’ve never looked at what ingredients are used in modern hairspray. Probably better not to know. I hate using it, and never have used it on a regular basis. What people won’t go through to appear fashionable. Corsets, gunk in their hair, bustles; gee, I’m glad most of that has gone by the wayside!

  3. having been born with naturally curly hair, other than keeping it very short (an inch or less) and blow-dried in late 70’s – smooth has never been achieved!

  4. I can’t imagine putting a lot of junk in my hair. Although I used to use hair spray many years ago, now I keep it cut short and ware the natural look. Trust me with the grey hair coming in you can’t do much with it. I don’t have much grey but what I do have does its own thing. Most people in my family don’t have a lot of grey.

  5. welcome today. this is an interesting post. I always figured it was something I wouldn’t want to try, but never bothered to look it up. silly me. thanks for sharing today

  6. So interesting. My grandmother remembers her mom creating a concoction of honey and eggs to give her Shirley Temple curls. She hated it!

  7. I remember while growing up the men in my family (Italian) wore alot of oil in their hair to keep it slicked back. My dad always had a tube of Brylcreem in the medicine cabinet. Teens in the 50s did, too. Remember Elvis Presley and the way he’d comb his pompadour?

    My grandmother kept a doily on the backs of her living room chairs and sofa so if the men reclined, they’d keep their hair oil off of the upholstery.

    Fun post,Jeannie!

  8. Oh, boy, I wouldn’t want that in my hair! I like just washing, combing and going! I’ve never liked spending much time on my hair, and thankfully I have naturally curly hair that doesn’t require a lot.

  9. Love your post, Jeannie! I never knew what they used but suspected something because no hair would naturally stay in place like this. I found myself wondering how unromantic a man would feel about running his fingers through that hair. The picture of that made me laugh. Would be pretty gross.

  10. Wow, this is so very interesting , I am very thankful I was born at the times I was. The hair do’s are very pretty, but I don’t think I would want that at all in my hair, I think it would be pretty uncomfortable and oh my I wonder if bees were ever around them because of the honey and whatever else they put in it.. Thanks but no thanks. Thank you so much for this very informative post I enjoyed reading it and learning about this.

  11. Thank goodness for modern hair products, I wouldn’t have wanted to use the gunky, sticky, products that those ladies did.

  12. I really enjoyed the information you shared! I wear my hair short and don’t need to put anything in it but I think the ingredient lists are pretty extensive for products in use today.

  13. So interesting….made me think of Dippity Do, I think that was what the hair gel my sister used was called. I never liked that or hair spray.

  14. I just recently learned about the pads, etc. used to enhance hair styles. I have often wondered how women had enough hair to do some of those elaborate hairdos. I know some had very long hair, but likely not enough. It is hard to imagine the time it would take to create some of these. Looking at these hairdos, it would seem these ladies would need help arranging them. Once done, who would want to sleep on them and mess them up?
    I have never really had the ability to style my hair. It is naturally curly and pretty much does what it wants. The products on the market never helped much. I would likely have to go to the extremes they did to tame it. Ringlets were never a problem. To this day, they just form on their own when I comb out my wet hair.
    Thank you for the interesting post. I look forward to your next one.

  15. Fascinating post! Jeannie, Thank you for sharing. I’m so glad I’m low maintenance! A ball-cap works great for me.

  16. I’ve always sucked at keeping a hairdo in place so I just don’t do fancy do’s. I guess I’ve just never used enough product.

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