Twisted, Beaded, Braided-Give Us A Head With Hair

From real laurel leaves in classical Greece to gold-encrusted replicas in Imperial Rome, hair ornaments have been used throughout the ages as objects of beauty and as social messages.

In ancient China, the ji ceremony awarded 15-year-old girls a hairpin that showed she was old enough to marry. Auspicious birds and beasts, such as the dragon, phoenix, duck, deer and the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, were also popular. The deer denoted success. The duck assured marital bliss. 
The five petals on a plum represented blessings, high-salary, longevity, luck and wealth. When Chinese lovers had to part, they often split a hairpin―both of them keeping a half until they were reunited.

Tibetans, women in some African tribes, and Native Americans, braided the hair and adorned it with silver, stones, bones, beads and feathers--while in the Middle East, Muslim women had to hide their hair under veils with their real hair shown only to their husbands. (Married Orthodox Jewish women still wear wigs to this day for that same reason and so as not to distract men from their prayers.) Indian women had no such restrictions. Their hair was often as decorated as their saris.

Renaissance women plucked their hairlines to give the coveted high forehead look and then covered their hair with nets of pearls or jeweled caps and the hardly-ever bathed ladies of Queen Elizabeth's court took to wearing velvet headbands (no doubt to keep their dirty hair away from their faces.)

The 18th century might take the cake when it comes to historical hair ornaments. Women hair was piled high―very high―over wire cages and held together with starch and horsehair. Atop the towering coiffures (requiring several hours and ladders to create) were fantastical models of birds' cages (with live birds,) war ships with flags flying, and entire bowls of fruit (long before Carmen Miranda brought the latter to Hollywood.) Not only were these hairstyles hard to sleep in (custom made to accommodates their necks, leaving their hairstyle in tact) but the material used to create the towering style proved a perfect nest for vermin.

Practicality came back in fashion after the excesses of the 18th century. First lady, Dolly Madison, introduced jeweled turbans and the flappers of the 20's fit headbands snugly over bobbed hair.

 In the '30's few women could afford anything more than “bobbie pin.” Hairnets used during a day's work in the factory for the Rosie the Riveters of World War II, gave way to fashionable nets called “snoods” for evening. “Lady Day”-- Billie Holiday-- became famous for the gardenia behind her ear and the fashion was taken up by film stars like Dorothy Lamour. The 1950's saw the helmet hair of Doris Day, which didn't allow for lots adornment, but the long and loose hair of the 60's more than made up for it.

Janis Joplin and the other hippies of the time braided beads, feathers, jewels, stones―anything at hand―into their wild manes and it's been anything goes pretty much ever since.

When Bo Derek rose from the water in the movie “10”, cornrows (for white women) interspersed with beads came into fashion. Hair sticks like those in ancient Japan made a comeback.



Sex In The City's Carrie Bradshaw put damn near anything in her hair―including a bright blue bird for her wedding to Mr. Big. Paris Hilton popularized extensions (a take on the African American weaves) and Believe is riding the wave of that popular trend by offering colored extensions (one or two in different colors make for a fun statement at a party or the beach) and we even have feathers to weave into your Summer 'do.

All too soon the cold winds of winter will make us cover our heads with hats and scarfs. Why not let your Hair fly--adorned-- in the breeze? Take a page from the lyrics for the namesake number of the musical “Hair”:

Give me a head with hair...

                                                                 Knotted, polka-dotted

                                                               Twisted, beaded, braided

                                                    Powdered, flowered, and confetti-ed

                                           Bangled, tangled, spangled, and spaghetti-ed

At Believe, we are all singing. Come in and let us decorate your Crowning Glory with fun extensions (and think about giving the one with feathers a try. C'mon, you only live once!)