Ten Commandments of Vintage Hair Setting

These 10 useful tips from Dell Styling Secrets, apply to every vintage hair style that requires hair curling and setting. I have published them here verbatim, couldn't have described it better myself!

1. Start with clean, healthy hair, freshly shampooed to gleam, glisten and glow. Towel-pat excess water, but don't dry.

    

2. After shampooing, remove tangles by brushing and comb hair in direction of desired finished style. If a part is in the picture, make sure it's neat and even.

    

3. If a setting lotion is used, choose one to suit the texture and condition of your hair. Apply evenly and use as directed.

    

4. Section hair into curl areas. Work on one section at a time, first pinning remaining hair out of way so that you aren't confused as you set one part.

    

5. Determine direction of curl. Before you start, study the hair-setting pattern. Each roller and curl is clearly marked.

    

6. Use the right tool for the job. Clips come in various sizes for small, medium or large curls. Rollers make bouffance, in sure smoothness and extra soft waves.

    

7. Remember that haste may mean wasted effort. Careful setting means a better looking hairdo – and longer lasting, too.

    

8. Use a rattail comb in setting and styling. A basic brush and comb are absolute essentials for finish, for maintenance.

    

9. Be sure hair is thoroughly dry before removing clips and rollers. Brush out set, first curl by curl, then cover all.

    

10. Comb in the final lines of the style and then use a light touch of hair spray for highlighting, controlling wayward crisps.

3 types of sculpture pin curls in vintage hair

There are 3 types of sculpture pin curls.

Forward sculpture curl and Reverse sculpture curl are just flat pin curls wound in opposite directions. The stand up curls, also known as barrel curls, are pin curls wound and clipped standing up on the head.

They are often combined to achieve all sorts of wonderful vintage hairstyles.

Forward Sculpture Curl

- Curl is wound toward face.

- Usually in clockwise direction.

- Commonly used in page boy hair styles, where hair is curled under and forward.

Reverse Sculpture Curl

- Curl is wound away from face.

- Usually in counter-clockwise direction.

- Common in used in up-do , victory roll hairstyles, where hair is curled away from face.

Stand up Curl/Barrel Curl

- This is often used to add height to a hairdo.

- Curl can be wound away from face to add height.

- Curl can be wound forward towards face to make a nice controlled forward bang.

Stand up curl is secured at the base with a clip or bobby pin.

You can add extra hold security by adding a light weight clip across top, as insurance against falling.

What vintage hairstyles to choose for long and short neck

Do you have neck so long that you are embarrassed by the tall “Giraffe neck” look? Is your neck so short that you are worried it looks as if you hardly have any neck?

SOLUTION: You can effectively correct/disguise neck length simply by choosing a suitable hairstyle!

Long Neck

In general, keep back hair long enough to disguise the long throat line.

-Those long bob pageboy, or fluffy curled hairstyles are very becoming.

-Low hair twist and chignons are also good if you want to keep hair tidy

-Avoid up-dos

-Avoid curls piled high on top.

-Avoid extremely short hairstyles such as those 1920s shingled bobs.

Short Neck

In general, back of head should be neat and above the hairline. Hair should be kept away from the neck as much as possible.

-Up-dos are very becoming.

-Short bobs look great too.

-Avoid long fluffy hairstyles.

-Avoid low hair buns/twists.

Necklines

You can also manipulate illusions of neck length by open or close clothing necklines.

Open necklines make neck look longer.

Closed necklines make neck look shorter.

How to look glamorous whilst setting vintage hair styles

To make vintage curls and waves, and keep them in shape, we often have to sleep in curlers/pin curls. Doesn't matter how good the initial setting is, some curls will go limp and lose bounciness during the day. Especially hair on the side of the face, and at the back. They therefore have to be reset at night.

Hair setting should be ideally done in private. Not only was it considered rude and very unattractive for a woman to be seen in public with her curlers or pin curls still in her hair. At home, they were also recommended to spare their husband and family members with this unsightly view! Yes I am looking at you Christina Aguilera.

So what do we do?

At night, you can still look lovely and cute by using a ruffled night cap or light turban to conceal those unsightly curlers and pins!

But what if curls aren't quite set and you need to go out in public during the day?

The solution is to conceal it with attractive covering. A light weight fabric is ideal as it allows for air to penetrate and dry hair. A chiffon scarf, or a turban will be lovely during the day. Also perfect for those bad hair days!

This 1940s video has some nice turban ideas. You can add brooches, flowers, ribbons and even feathers to add interest to the turbans!