Hi All!
Abby here with Episode 8 of Fashion History with American Duchess! This is Part 2 of our 18th Century Hair convo. Last week we talked about hygiene, hair care, and hair products of the 18th century, and now we've moved on to have a chat about different hair styles & their constant evolution through the century (especially the last quarter!)
Here's Our Talking Points:
- We have a pun filled giggle fest about One Direction and Ha(i)rry Styles (who is also Abby's current crush, btw...and she wants to steal some of his wardrobe, but that's beside the point...)
- Anglo & American women did not seem to use powder and pomade in the same way as the French women did (heavily powdered hair in the 1750s & 60s seemed to be predominately a French trend - but I am unsure about other European countries - Abby hasn't investigated it.)
- The really tall vertical hair that we've come to associate with the 1700s is more nuanced than what we think.
- Hair wasn't actually as tall as what we think too - here are some images that help visually explain what we mean with it comes to proportion and hair:
- "Poufs" are not the hair styles - they are the the gauzy, feathered, bedazzled, and be-shipped bits that women would wear on top of their hair that helped get it to "enormous" heights.
- Abby confuses the man-milliner who is credited with created the pouf, Leonard, for Louis during the talk - like a damn professional....(guess who's annoyed at herself. Ha!)
-Abby has a moan about the "ship in the hair" trope while Lauren ponders the idea of putting a race car in a new pouf. (Abby supports the race car idea because it is funny.)
- Abby raves about Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell's book Fashion Victims: Dress at the Court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette and her research on Leonard, poufs, etc. (buy the book - seriously - it's so good!)
- Abby talks about the different cushions, shapes, and rollers that were made and used in the 18th century to create the crazy hair designs.
- Lauren laments trying to hack the "donut" hair cushion with a plastic swim wing thing.
- We chat about the frizzy hairstyles of the 1780s and how in the beginning they were done by "crapeing" the hair.
- Abby probably butchers the name "Plocacosmos" which is the title of one of her favorite hair-dressing and care manuals.
- We talk about how the instructions for the 1780 style hair in Plocacosmos: The Whole Art of Hair Dressing (1782) describes the styles and tools seen in the 1780s Encyclopédie méthodique.
- We also talk about how what we call the "hedgehog" hairstyle is more wide than it is tall.
As always, I've probably missed a bullet point from the post, but this should give you a good general idea of what we chat about. Hope you enjoy!!!
Abby here with Episode 8 of Fashion History with American Duchess! This is Part 2 of our 18th Century Hair convo. Last week we talked about hygiene, hair care, and hair products of the 18th century, and now we've moved on to have a chat about different hair styles & their constant evolution through the century (especially the last quarter!)
 |
| Harry Styles...Hairy Styles...Get it? Get it?! :D (Apologies to Harry, you seem lovely and I adore your new album.) |
Here's Our Talking Points:
- We have a pun filled giggle fest about One Direction and Ha(i)rry Styles (who is also Abby's current crush, btw...and she wants to steal some of his wardrobe, but that's beside the point...)
- Anglo & American women did not seem to use powder and pomade in the same way as the French women did (heavily powdered hair in the 1750s & 60s seemed to be predominately a French trend - but I am unsure about other European countries - Abby hasn't investigated it.)
 |
| One of our favorite portraits and favorite gowns, with what appears to be unpowdered or lightly powdered hair. (Portrait of a Lady, Francis Cotes, 1768, Tate Museum) |
 |
| Madame Lalive de Jully, 1764, Joseph Ducreux (Here) |
- The really tall vertical hair that we've come to associate with the 1700s is more nuanced than what we think.
- Hair wasn't actually as tall as what we think too - here are some images that help visually explain what we mean with it comes to proportion and hair:
 | |
| Looks huge, but it's actually not like what you think...those feathers do a lot of the work. (Marie Antoinette, 1778, Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, Met Museum via Kunsthistorisches Museum |
 |
| Another of Marie Antoinette |
- "Poufs" are not the hair styles - they are the the gauzy, feathered, bedazzled, and be-shipped bits that women would wear on top of their hair that helped get it to "enormous" heights.
- Abby confuses the man-milliner who is credited with created the pouf, Leonard, for Louis during the talk - like a damn professional....(guess who's annoyed at herself. Ha!)
-Abby has a moan about the "ship in the hair" trope while Lauren ponders the idea of putting a race car in a new pouf. (Abby supports the race car idea because it is funny.)
- Abby raves about Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell's book Fashion Victims: Dress at the Court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette and her research on Leonard, poufs, etc. (buy the book - seriously - it's so good!)
- Abby talks about the different cushions, shapes, and rollers that were made and used in the 18th century to create the crazy hair designs.
 |
| The Village Barber, 1778, Library of Congress |
- Lauren laments trying to hack the "donut" hair cushion with a plastic swim wing thing.
- We chat about the frizzy hairstyles of the 1780s and how in the beginning they were done by "crapeing" the hair.
- Abby probably butchers the name "Plocacosmos" which is the title of one of her favorite hair-dressing and care manuals.
- We talk about how the instructions for the 1780 style hair in Plocacosmos: The Whole Art of Hair Dressing (1782) describes the styles and tools seen in the 1780s Encyclopédie méthodique.
 |
| This style, the combs, hair pieces, and cushions are all described in Plocacosmos - it was amazing! Plate is from a later Edition of Encyclopédie Méthodique (image) |
- We also talk about how what we call the "hedgehog" hairstyle is more wide than it is tall.
 |
| Circle of Johann Ernst HEINSIUS, Portrait of Young Lady with Yellow Bow, 1780s-90s, Here |
As always, I've probably missed a bullet point from the post, but this should give you a good general idea of what we chat about. Hope you enjoy!!!
