Beautiful Hair In the Early 1920s

From A Mulsified Shampoo Ad by Coles Phillips

In the early 1920s, fashions had not yet taken on most of the characteristics of what we think of as "Roaring 20's" styles. Skirts were relatively long and corsets were still required foundation garments. Although it was becoming highly fashionable for young women to cut their hair, many women still had long hair and had not adopted the short "bobbed" style that was being made famous by the Flappers. Hair was generally considered a woman's "crowning glory," and there were many intricate and glamorous ways of putting up long hair that were still popular. The following passages and images are adapted from magazine articles and advertisements that appeared in the early 1920s, and focus on beauty and hair care.

As Your Hair Is Arranged

by Elsie Waterbury Morris 

When a group of new York Society women opened their own Beauty Shop...Mrs. Gouverneur Morris was chosen to take charge. She is vitally interested in beauty...not a covering up of defects, but the gradual eradication of them. Beauty is not artificial, bizarre, the product of cosmetics, but rather a fine smooth skin, well-molded muscles, and healthy hair simply arranged. In this article Mrs. Morris reflects the taste of conservative New York society in the arrangement and care of the hair.

--The Editor

From The Delineator, June 1921

 

Some women were born to conform to fashion's favorite type. Others, with a very little coaxing,  might be made to approximate it sufficiently to come within the magic circle of acknowledged beauty. Such women bent all their energies toward conformity. But when the standard changed they slipped from sight, to give place to younger women who had caught a newer note.To-day we wonder where the sloping shoulders of the early Victorian age have gone. No one has them anymore. The regular-featured tailor-trim Gibson girl who flourished so severely twenty years ago cannot be found...What type has taken the place of this long line of traditional beauties...? 

Miss Camille Clifford "The Original Gibson Girl" (1905) (source)

No type in particular, I believe. Rather, we have reached one of those fortunate periods in which an increasing premium is placed on individuality. The less one conforms, provided one is not attempting to attract attention by the lack of conformity, the more distinction one possesses in the modern world. The secret to-day lies in being oneself. The successful first impression is not one which registers, "This is a pretty woman whose clothes come from Fifth Avenue," or, "Doesn't she remind you of Kitty Screenstar?" but rather, "This is Mary Smith. She is real, vital. She has personality. I shall never confuse her with any one else in the world."

Lorraine Hair Net Ad (1921)

Our clothes to-day are designed with this idea in mind. Mary wears narrow clinging frocks because she likes them. Jane adopts bouffant taffeta and crisp organdy. Mary has sleeves to her wrists. Jane's stop above the elbow. One wears high heels, the other, low. One has no perceptible waistline; the other favors a tight little basque. One--to get down to the subject of our discussion--leaves her black hair un-waved; the other has the most fascinating little undulations put in every six months. But both, to the intelligent critical eyes of their mutual world are cleverly dressed and smartly coiffed because they have not attempted to look alike, but have accented their distinguishing individualities....

Head and Shoulder Study of a Girl In Blue by Marjorie Mostyn (source)

Bobbed locks, adopted with distressing enthusiasm by all sorts of women, are appropriate for certain types, but should never have been tried by the feminine public at large. No one who is not young should attempt short hair. In general, it should be restricted to women with small features, women who are short enough and slim enough to suggest that piquant grown-up child for whom the coiffure seems to have been expressly made. 

Where There's Smoke There's Fire by Russell Patterson (1920s) (Courtesy of Library of Congress)

Foreheads and ears are a matter of principle with me. Unless one has deep wrinkles that cannot be eradicated, or too high a brow in proportion to the lower part of the face, it is a grave mistake to bring the hair down to the eyes in a hard line....One would think that nine women out of ten were ashamed of professing ears....Like a flock of sheep, women continue to cover their ears at the dictates of a vague idea that "ears are not being done this season."

Mulsified Shampoo Ad (1920) (source)

The permanent wave seems to have swept over the country like high tide up the Bay of Fundy. It has been responsible for a great deal of personality wreckage. In the first place, there are straight-haired types who should remain so. Wavy hair is easier to manage. But the satiny, closely coiffed straight hair is vastly becoming to some women. To sacrifice this for conformity to a generally accepted mode is a serious mistake. More women to-day ruin their faces by framing them in fuzzy, untidy, ill-made waves than ever suffered in grandmother's time from an inability to keep straight locks under the net. 

Photo by H.W. Cherry (1924) (Courtesy of Library of Congress)

The best hairdressers tell us that dark hair should always take a large loose wave. Blond hair may take a smaller curl. But unless you know the operator to be so skillful that he needs no direction, don't dream of trusting your hair to him. Consult someone whose clientele speaks for itself. 

Hairstyle-Madam Butterfly-Ad Prophylactic Brushes

The opinion of an expert is a very good investment. He can see good points at a glance and will make the most of them. If you have pretty ears, a lovely hair-line, a well shaped head or any other charm, he will arrange your hair to play it up. If you can't go to such a man, take the candid opinion of your most trusted and worldly wise friend. Mirrors are all very well, but they never show you the sides and the back of your head as they appear to the unprejudiced bystander.

A Maiden Fair by Marjorie Mostyn (source)

When you have realized these good points of yours, adopt a style of coiffure that makes the most of them. Except when one is very young, very beautiful, or unusually adaptable, conforming to every puff of the winds of fashion utterly destroys one's effectiveness. Of course, as with clothes, so with coiffures, the time of day and the use to which one intends to put the next few hours make a good deal of difference. For the evening, a loosely piled arrangement is suitable for a tall woman with a good deal of dignity, as well as for the younger woman capable of carrying it off. If the hair is not naturally curly, dress the smaller waves close to the head, as curly hair grows, to give an effect of naturalness.

For the afternoon, the hair should be arranged to suit the hat as well as the face, but the detail in back is of relatively little importance. The illustration (above) shows a jeune fille arrangement suitable for any time of the day and quite easy to do. The hairdresser proceeds as follows: first he makes a small round foundation by rolling a section of the hair taken from the center back below the crown of the head. He pins this securely. Then he arranges the front and the sides, turning the ends under and being careful to keep the flow of the line from front to back, rather than up and down, as so much home-made hairdressing goes. Lastly, he divides the back hair in two, slightly "roughs" each section, crosses them--left to right, right to left--and makes of each a big loose loop, turning the ends under....

Slimerine Advertisement (1921)

Many of us don't have our hair shampooed frequently enough. Healthy hair requires a shampoo every two weeks; oily hair every week or ten days; dry hair once a month. Shampoo powder is not only cleansing but stimulating to the scalp. If this is the case with the one you use, your hair will be noticeably brighter and its color will be intensified after the shampoo. If not, change your preparation. Don't trust to the shampoo to keep your hair clean. Nightly cleansing is a necessity. If your hair is oily, don't try to do this by brushing it, for you will just carry the oil from the scalp along the hair. Saturate a piece of absorbent cotton with a good hair tonic and rub it on the scalp. Then cover the brush and go over the hair lightly, strand by strand.

--Adapted from An Article by Elsie Waterbury Morris From The Delineator, July 1921

Palmolive Shampoo Ad (1921)

Excerpt From  A Crown Regained

By Mary E. Bayley, R.N.

Canthrox Shampoo Ad

First, let us say, there is no injury that can be done to the scalp by frequent shampooing, any more than one can injure the hands by repeated washing. The scalp, like the hands, must be kept clean. As a general rule, the frequency of the shampoo should be regulated by the amount of dirt and dust to which the hair is subjected....It is often remarked that frequent washing of the hair takes out the natural oil. And so it does. But this condition exists for a few hours only. It afterward stimulates the oil glands and increases the flow of oil. The requirements for a good shampoo are: Clear soft water and a bland, non-irritating soap, which will make a good lather. Cleanse the scalp as well as the hair and rinse out the soap thoroughly. The best way to dry the hair is to sit in a sunny open space out of doors and rub it with a towel. The hair should be brushed twice daily from five to ten minutes.

Mulsified Shampoo Ad by Coles Phillips

Adapted From An Article by Mary E. Bayley, R.N., The Delineator, March 1921 

The beauty of your hair depends upon the care you give it. Shampooing it properly is always the most important thing. It is the shampooing which brings out the real life and lustre, natural wave and color, and makes your hair feel soft, fresh and luxuriant. When your hair is dry, dull and heavy, lifeless, stiff and gummy, and the strands cling together, and it feels harsh and disagreeable to the touch, it is because your hair has not been shampooed properly. 

Hairstyle: French Twist--Ad For Prophylactic Brushes

When your hair has been shampooed properly, and is thoroughly clean,  it will be glossy, smooth and bright, delightfully fresh looking, soft and silky. While your hair must have frequent and regular washing to keep it beautiful, it cannot stand the harsh effect of ordinary soaps. The free alkali in ordinary soaps soon dries the scalp, makes the hair brittle and ruins it. This is why discriminating women use Mulsified Cocoanut Oil Shampoo. This clear, pure and entirely greaseless product cannot possibly injure and it does not dry the scalp or make the hair brittle, no matter how often you use it. If you want to see how really beautiful you can make your hair look, just follow this simple method: First, wet the hair and scalp in clear, warm water. Then apply a little Mulsified Cocoanut Oil Shampoo, rubbing it in thoroughly all over the scalp and throughout the entire length, down to the ends of the hair.

  

 

Packer's Tar Soap Ad Circa 1910-1920 (Courtesy of Library of Congress)

Rub the lather in thoroughly. Two or three teaspoonfuls will make an abundance of rich, creamy lather. This should be rubbed in thoroughly and briskly with the finger tips, so as to loosen dandruff and small particles of dust and dirt that stick to the scalp. When you have done this, rinse the hair and scalp thoroughly, using clear warm water. Then use another application of Mulsified. Two waters are usually sufficient for washing the hair, but sometimes a third is necessary. You can easily tell , for when the hair is perfectly clean, it will be soft and silky in the water. When thoroughly clean, wet hair fairly squeaks when you pull it through your fingers.

Rinse the hair thoroughly. This is very important.After the final washing the hair and scalp should be rinsed in at least two changes of good warm water and followed with a rinsing in cold water. After a Mulsified shampoo you will find the hair will dry quickly and evenly and have the appaearance of being much heavier and thicker than it is.

If you want always to be remembered for your beautiful, well-kept hair, make it a rule to set a certain day each week for a Mulsified Coconut Oil Shampoo. The regular weekly shampooing will keep the scalp soft and the hair fine and silky , bright, fresh looking and fluffy, wavy and easy to manage, and it will be noticed and admired by everyone.

Postcard Illustration By Helena Horwitz (source)

You can get Mulsified Cocoanut Oil Shampoo at any druug store or toilet goods counter. A 4-oz bottle should last for months. Splendid for the children--Fine for Men.

Adapted from An Ad for Mulsified Shampoo (1921)