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Elona Pacolli Mrs. Dunbar Senior Project Paper 11/12/13

Hair Styling

Hair is very important. Not many people realize what hair can do, and the purpose it has. Hair has some interesting facts also, such as the history of it, and how hair coloring came to be, or how different hair types affect what women do to their hair. The history of hair styling has changed over time. There were many ways women wore their hair, different styles that were unique depending on the time period. Earlier in time they didn't use hair dye or any chemicals but organic things that did the same job. But as time passed hair coloring was introduced that was made to last longer and look better. There are many different hair types that women have, and because of that, certain things differ with those different types of hair and there are different tips and techniques that can help for those types of hair. Hairstyles are very different today than from earlier times. There are many different hairstyles women had earlier in time. Such as the bob/finger wave in the 1920s, a look very popular with the ladies during the Roaring 20s. It was part of an

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overall look known as The Flapper, where the girl would crop their hair between their chin to their ear level and work in uniform waves. This became immensely popular due to celebrity such as Zelda Fitzgerald and Colleen Moore [25 Hairstyles of the Last 100 Years." Listverse, 1]. The pixie in the 1950s, popularized by actress Audrey Hepburn, [was] a very short hairstyle with even shorter bangs (fringe). It resembled what pixies were drawn to have as a hairstyle [25 Hairstyles of the Last 100 Years." Listverse, 1]. Back then it was more feminine for women to have longer hair styles. So a woman that had a short haircut symbolized their own independence to be a rebel and do what they wanted with their own hair. The bouffant style in the 1960s [which was] generally any haircut thats piled high on top of the head. The aforementioned beehive hairstyle is a bouffant style. Actual types of bouffants can range from Tracey Turnblad from Hairspray to Kramer from Seinfeld [25 Hairstyles of the Last 100 Years." Listverse, 1]. The afro in the 1960s to 1970s, a hairstyle sported largely by African-Americans, but also by other ethnic groups and people with very curly hair. The style maintains that curly hair is grown and brushed out to create a perfect halo of hair surrounding the head. It was popularized by the Black is Beautiful movement and by icons such as Jimi Hendrix. [25 Hairstyles of the Last 100 Years." Listverse, 1]. The Feathered Flip (aka the Farah-do) in the 1970s, made popular by actress Farah Fawcett, [which] thousands of women copied [in] the 1970's. The hair would be parted and teased back, but still soft and flowing [25 Hairstyles of the Last 100 Years." Listverse, 1]. Last but not least, the famous Rachel hair style in the 1990s. A popular haircut with women, it was named after the character Rachel Green from Friends, who sported this haircut in the first few seasons. It is a layered, bouncy do with highlights and lowlights [25 Hairstyles of the Last 100 Years." Listverse, 1]. There were also different hairstyles throughout history all around the world such as in Egypt. Women would wear their hair with a natural-

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looking curl (when their hair was long) or plaited. Egyptians would also use Diadems (similar to tiaras) made from gold or garnet but the [less fortunate] people would decorate their hair with berries and petals. They would also wear headbands that circled the whole head and would serve to hold the hair in place as well as ivory and metal hairpins and beads [History of Hair the Ancient Civilizations, 1]. In Rome, simple hairstyles would consist for women wearing their hair down and confining it from the face by using a band circling the head. Young girls wore a simple bun at the base of the neck. However, in the reign of the Emperor Augustus simple hairstyles changed and detailed hairstyles came into fashion. In Ancient Rome hairstyles became an expression of a persons identity as much as it is today and again the style determined the persons wealth, status, gender and age. For women, their hair indicated how attractive and wealthy she was [History of Hair the Ancient Civilizations, 1]. In places such as China and Japan, hair also reflected status, age marriage and nobility. Chinese hairstyles vary depending on the age of the woman and her marital status and the reason for their hair being extremely long was because it was considered disrespectful to cut hair because it was inherited from their parents. Girls (and unmarried women) would usually wear their hair long and braided. For married women this is reversed as their hair is tied up, with the odd loose curl to show that she is already married. Many Chinese women used a hair piece called a Buyao. [The] Manchu regime of the time dictated that men must shave the front of the head and style the rest of their hair in braids, tied with black silk. This has been a tradition only recently broken by the last emperor as he trimmed his queue (ponytail) symbolizing changing habits, in 1922[History of Hair the Ancient Civilizations, 1]. In Japan, womens hairstyles [were] quite different from Chinese styles. In the 7th Century noble women wore their hair tight to their head with a sickle-shaped ponytail at the back (kepatsu).

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However, after this period and up until 1345 fashion dictated that women should wear their hair long and unbound as a sign of beauty. In the Edo Period (1603-1868), women took on much more elaborate styles, in particular they would wear a variety of different buns, decorated with {hair sticks], ribbons, flowers and combs [History of Hair the Ancient Civilizations, 1]. As for places such as Africa and Native America, Mangbetu women [people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo] have a different kind of hairstyle, as they braid their hair into a coneshaped basket (creating a crown) which is held in place by bones shaped like needles. The Miango tribe [people of the Iroquoian group of Native Americans] had simple ponytails that were covered by headscarves. But these styles represented different meanings to each tribe. Dyed and stiffed hair which was achieved by applying dung were common hairstyles in ancient Africa [History of Hair the Ancient Civilizations, 1]. [Native Americans] were divided in hairstyles like many African tribes. Tribes close to the East Coasts would shave most of their hair apart from a ridge of hair along the crown. Many warriors shaved their heads except for a fringe of hair around the head (known as tonsure), a single lock of hair on the crown of their head (scalp lock), or a stiff crest of hair running down the middle of the head known as a roach or in todays world a Mohawk [History of Hair the Ancient Civilizations, 1]. Like the change in hairstyles, the history of hair color has also changed drastically throughout the years. From 3400 B.C.: Era in which ancient Egyptians began using henna to camouflage their gray hairs ["The History of Hair Color", 1] to 2100 A. D.: Century in which Roman doctor Galen described a recipe for black dye. Scientists re-created the formula in 2006 and found it actually works ["The History of Hair Color", 1]. In 1860, approximate year hydrogen peroxide was first used as hair bleach, kicking off decades of broken strands and burned scalps ["The History of Hair Color.", 1]. In 1907, the first synthetic hair dye was invented [The History of Hair Color.",

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1].1931 was the year platinum blonde was coined to describe Jean Harlow, star of the movie [Platinum Blonde] [The History of Hair Color.", 1]. 1968 was the last year Americans were asked to list hair color on their passports, people were dyeing their hair so often, and the information was worthless [The History of Hair Color. 1].People often wonder how hair dye really came to be. Since ages, people have been colouring their hair using extracts from plants and minerals. Some of these natural agents contain pigments like those of henna and black walnut shells, while others contained natural bleaching agents. It was later discovered that these agents caused reactions that changed the colour of the hair ["History & Future - Discovery of Hair Dye.", 1]. Natural pigments generally coat the hair shaft with colour. There were some other natural colorants that lasted through several hair washes, but they weren't safe or gentle on the hair. Also, it was getting difficult to get consistent results using natural colorants. Beside this, some people were also allergic to these ingredients ["History & Future - Discovery of Hair Dye. 1]. In the 1800s, chemists found a substance called as para-phenylenediamine (PPD) and discovered its use in the creation of a synthetic dye. At the same time, it was found that hydrogen peroxide was a gentler and safer chemical as compared to the other chemicals for hair bleaching ["History & Future - Discovery of Hair Dye.", 1]. Since then people have been colouring their hair and the demand for a good hair dye hasn't diminished. Today, we have a galore of hair colour options and different companies offering different products. Truly, today we are definitely spoiled for choice ["History & Future - Discovery of Hair Dye.", 1]. But very early back in the days when women didnt have chemicals and things that they do today, they used natural products that almost did the same job like henna. Henna, name for a reddish or black hair dye obtained from the powdered leaves and young shoots of the mignonette tree, or henna shrub (Lawsonia inermis), an Old World shrub of the loosestrife family [Columbia Electronic

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Encyclopedia, 6th Edition, 1]. Back to the hair dying. People bleach their hair either to lighten their hair or lighten it to make it a different color if they have darker hair. Bleaching, process of whitening by chemicals or by exposure to sun and air, commonly applied to textiles, paper pulp, wheat flour, petroleum products, oils and fats, straw, hair, feathers, and wood. Chemical methods include oxidation, as by hypochlorites, ozone, and the per-compounds; reduction, as with sulfur dioxide; and adsorption, as by bone charcoal used to decolorize sugar solutions. Textiles have long been whitened by grass bleaching, a method virtually monopolized by the Dutch from the time of the Crusades to the 18th cent [Bleaching Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition, 1]. They developed a technique in which goods were alternately soaked in alkaline solutions and grassed, or crofted, a procedure in which they are exposed to air and sunlight; the goods were then treated with sour milk to remove excess alkali. Later they substituted dilute sulfuric acid for the milk. In 1785 the French chemist Claude Berthollet suggested the commercial application of chlorine for bleaching, and in 1799 the Scottish chemist Charles Macintosh invented bleaching powder, or chloride of lime, the first of the modern chemical bleaches. Bleaching processes vary for different fibers [Bleaching Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition, 1]. Common bleaching agents used domestically are Javelle water, which is sodium hypochlorite in water, and other chlorine-based mixtures [Bleaching Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition, 1]. And as for the types of hair that women have, there are four different kinds. There is straight hair, wavy hair, curly hair and kinky hair. Straight hair reflects the most sheen. It is also the most resilient hair of all of the hair types. It is hard to damage and next to impossible to curl this hair texture. Because the sebum (natural oil produced in the sebaceous glands of the scalp) gently works its way from the scalp to the ends without the interference of curls or kinks, it is the most oily hair texture of all [Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS." Curly

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Hair Types Chart | CURLS, 1]. Wavy hair lies somewhere between straight and curly hair. It also imparts sheen, more than curly hair, but less than straight hair. The further down the wavy spectrum you go the less sheen the hair will impart. Wavy hair is typically more prone to frizz. While type A [waves] can easily alternate between straight and curly styles, type B and C Wavy hair is resistant to styling [Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS." Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS, 1]. Curly hair, this hair type is full bodied, climate dependent (humidity = frizz), and damage prone. Lack of proper care renders dull curls [Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS." Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS, 1]. Kinky hair is the driest hair type, thus it is more prone to breakage and requires a gentle touch. A misconception exists that this hair type does not grow. Kinky hair grows at the same rate as other texture, however, if not treated properly it breaks more than other textures. Treat this hair type like a fine silk blouse cleanse gently, detangle softly, and avoid harsh chemicals [Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS." Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS, 1]. There are also types of hair that define the texture and way your hair work such as Normal hair, combination hair, oily hair, dry hair, coarse hair, fine hair, and last but not least chemically treated hair. If [the] hair is neither prone to oiliness or dryness, [women with this kind of hair] are one of the lucky few to have normal hair. Look after it well with products that keep it clean, conditioned and protected from environment damage. [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. If [a women] have combination hair, five to six hours after washing, hair begins to show signs of oiliness around the root area and yet the ends of the hair remain dry. Oiliness can be caused by overuse of conditioners and styling products as well as by humidity and pollution [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. If [a woman has] oily hair, the hair will look oily, dull and 'dirty' along the length of the hair shaft. If [suspecting to have] oily hair, make a parting and gently rub forefinger along [the] scalp, then rub thumb and

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forefinger together. If it feels slippery, [this means a woman has] an oily scalp and overactive sebum glands [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. Dry hair will look dull, lifeless and parched; at its worst, it may look fuzzy and straw-like. Look at the white flakes on your shoulders before brushing them away. Small, powdery flakes are often the result of stress, too much alcohol and tiredness. If they are larger, translucent and moist, then it is a case of dandruff, due to overproduction of sebum in the hair follicles, rather than a dry scalp [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. If [a woman has] coarse hair, this type of hair can look fuzzy and wiry after shampooing. Use a serum or leave-in conditioner to close and smooth the cuticle and do regular deep-conditioning treatments [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. If [a person has a] fine hair [type], [it] can look lank and lifeless soon after washing. Overconditioning will weigh the hair down, so only use it sparingly. Always use volumizing products especially formulated for fine hair [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. If a woman has chemically treated hair, although colouring processes are gentle than ever, some still change the makeup of [their] hair permanently. Give coloured hair extra support by using rehydrating shampoos and conditioners that have been specifically designed for this hair type. [Worthington, Charles. The Complete book of hairstyling, 16]. Many tips were given for each of types of hair that define the texture and way womens hair works. There are tips for three of the basic types of hair. For wavy, curly, and kinky hair. Because wavy hair is more prone to frizz, anti-frizz/humidity protective stylers are key for creating and keeping gorgeous waves. Keep fingers out of wavy hair, the more [tangles] the more frizz [Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS." Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS, 1]. Curly hair is the most temperamental hair type If [applying] too much styling product= weighed down/greasy looking curls, [applying] too little styling product = Diana Rosss 80s afro! The

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key to guaranteeing effortless, frizz free curls is proper styling product application. Always start with a fresh, clean palette on day #1. Cleanse, Condition, Moisturize, then apply your styling product of choice, following the recommended CURLS product application technique [Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS." Curly Hair Types Chart | CURLS, 1]. Because kinky hair is dry by nature, and therefore breaks easily, it needs added moisture, daily. Dry hair breakswell moisturized hair is supple and has elasticity. The key to keeping these natural locks healthy, shiny, and beautiful is to moisturize every step of the way. Start with a creamy, sulfate free, moisturizing cleanser, follow suit with a super hydrating conditioner, prep with a rich moisturizer and style with a rich cream, full of natural oils and rich butters. Look for moisturizing humectants, natural conditioning agents, and exotic extracts to add moisture to these locks. Avoid mineral, and petrolatum oil and heavy waxes. Without a doubt, the process of styling and coloring hair will continue to expand and continue to produce new styles for generations to come. As it has been stated, each generation has brought new and or recycled hair ideas throughout the world. Whether only getting a haircut or going drastic and bleaching the hair bright blond, the styling and coloring of hair will always remain important in society. Hair stylists have come a long way from the past and will continue to change in the coming years. Who knows, maybe everyone will have blue hair by 2020!