My most recent books are set in the 1830s, just before Victoria ascended the throne. Nearly up until about the time she became queen, women’s hair styles were upward bound, wild and crazy and, in my and my heroes’ opinions, highly entertaining.
But about 1836-37 the wild exuberance disappears. Hair sinks from its lofty heights to cling to the scalp, and even the fanciful braids and loops hang rather than leap into the stratosphere.
Still, whether I love the style or not—and I do see the appeal of this as I do other fashions—I love discovering the method of creating it. This video is particularly interesting to us Nerdy History Girls, because it explains how to make the Victorian equivalent of hair spray.
My ladies (1820s-1830s) rely upon pomatums (or pomades), a rather thick concoction, described here and here. Ms Goodman offers quite a different product, called bandoline, of which I was unaware. Also, she’s a treat to watch.
BTW, though I’ve owned Ms. Goodman's How to Be a Victorian for some time, all I’ve had time to do so far is skim. This one is going on the plane with me to England, for sure!
Still and video from Ruth Goodman's Victorian Hairstyling 101 video on YouTube.
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One of us -- 
4 comments:
Ok, this is really cool!
And this book has been on my TBR list for quite some time. I think it's time to track it down!
I adore Ruth Goodman in all the various "Farm Vids" (Tudor Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm, etc.) which we are able to watch courtesy of TV Ontario and Youtube. She is down-to-earth, enthusiastic, and easy to relate to as she makes head cheese, rush hats, and copes with dirt, darkness, and petticoats. Must see viewing!
Winsor Newton brand liquid gum arabic has lavender oil in it as a preservative. It's a distinctive smelling product but pleasant. Thank you for this! Gum arabic is completely water soluble and I suspect it could be thinned with distilled water if necessary if you wanted to use a plunger sprayer in these modern times.
How to Be a Victorian is a great book, both full of information and very well-written and funny. You will not be disappointed.
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