A Note From the Leningrad Tailor
I felt this post was needed to aid women portraying both Soviet Civilian and Military impressions. However, as I am ignorant of even the most basic women's hair styles, I felt like I could not do the topic justice. As a result, I asked for assistance from Jennie Devries, who runs the blog The Ugly Dame. Jennie is partially responsible for this venture, as she was the person who initially helped me navigate the world of 1940s women's fashion, and her blog helped create some of my first pieces. She also encouraged me to put this blog together, as a way of getting my research out there, and gave me the technical assistance for setting it up. So, to have her take the time away from her absolutely fantastic blog, and write for mine, is real honor. If you like my blog, then I would encourage you to take the time to go over to: https://theuglydame.blogspot.com/, and check out her amazing work, and research.
***********************
A long ways back I was approached about doing a guest post for the Leningrad Tailor and I jumped at the opportunity. For those who do not know me, I am Jennie from The Ugly Dame. My primary focus is WWII era German civilian attire but I wear and love all things vintage from hair to make up to clothes. This was a fun post to do because it let me compare and contrast Soviet hairstyling with German. I saw some similarities and I saw some differences. One of the similarities I saw was the air of practicality. It seems women, no matter where they come from, suit their hair to their occupation and yet still show some effort to care about their appearance. For here and now, it is all about Soviet women and their hair.
Hairstyling and hair as a whole is a struggle for reenactors and for good reason. One of the biggest reasons is because of techniques to achieve the styles, hair care, and attention to detail. Let's start with techniques. Hair styles of the 40s used a totally different set of skills to get the final result from pin curling to sculpting waves, and more. There are countless beauty books giving these details. Hair care. Hair care was much different then than today. Hair care in the 40s gave hair the texture it needed to be tamed into the styles we are trying to emulate today. Attention to detail. German, American, French, British, and even Soviet women all favored some hair styles and trends more than others and it is that attention to detail that can make a particular impression truly authentic.
Today I am guest writing for The Leningrad Tailor all about Soviet hairstyles for women. Similar to German women, Soviet women had their own taste for certain styles that were a by product of necessity and vanity combined that differed from their American sisters. Often American hairstyles are seen at reenactments and living history events on heads for all sorts of impressions but let us be frank and say that Soviet women had their own flair much like German, British, etc. Each country or area had its own trends when it came to hairstyling and today it is all about Soviet women and their hair.
When I started this project, I was given a great sampling of lots and lots of photos to study all sorts of Soviet women from civilian to military. There were all sorts of age groups, occupations, socio economic levels and more to study and I think I was given a very good cross section to which to study from. When I was going through the images, I asked myself what am I seeing more of? What age groups favor this or that. Do civilians favor one look over another? What about women in the military or in factory settings?
What I found was that Soviet women's hairstyles varied immensely based on photographic evidence. There was long hair and short; curly and straight; styled and left unruly. Side parts, center parts, swept back with no parts. At first glance it seemed like endless variety! After my initial survey I decided to break down my study into age groups and civilian v military.
In General
Before I get into the age groups, I think a quick look at general trends would be great to get the ball rolling. Overall, there are no obvious trends aside from practicality. Each woman seemed to have done what she had to do to suit her occupation. If it worked, it worked. Some of the more raw and candid shots show women with almost unruly and unkept hair. Natural really would be the best way to describe it. I would say that some of these women were not concerned about their hair but getting the job at hand accomplished instead. In the studio portraits or the more staged photos there is more effort with more styled hair dos typical of the 40s or else hair is more secured. For the secured looks, hair was focused to the back of the head, swept away from the face. No Veronica Lake peek a boo bangs here. Between age groups there were some trends that showed up more in some than in others and that is where we are going next.
Youth and Juveniles
For children and youths of a very young age, hair was kept at a blunt cut or in braids. This is kind of typical for the 1940s as these hair styles are easy to manage for both the child and parent. Braids were two braids, one on each side of the head ("pig tails") as the most common.
Teenagers (Age 13 to 20)
For the teenagers there is a transition between more adult styles and those looks of a more juvenile nature. I am sure some were growing out of their blunt cuts and others were trying to grow up as fast as they could. Here, girls were starting to wear their hair longer and either straight, curled or confined in a bun at the back of the head. Hair was both styles and left natural. Foy young women entering the military jaw length hair seemed to be quite common. There are still some blunt cuts, braids are more commonly one ling braid down the back of the head or else crown braids (sometimes called "milkmaid braids").
Adults (20 to 50)
Here is the most hair style variety! Long hair in a bun secured was seen among farm and factory workers. Among factory workers hair could be covered up somewhat. Long hair, or medium length hair could be left down plain or styles depending on the wearer. Hair could be at jaw length in a blunt cut or else styled, especially for military impressions but seen in civilian too here and there. Here we can see more styling and effort too if the wearer chose to do so. Center parts or side parts were common. I think for this age group, the biggest factor concerning hair style was not age but occupation. Suit your hair to fit what you are doing is the biggest trend I found.
Mature Adult (50+)
Here hair styles shift to head coverings and hair styles when visible are very plain. Scarves, of all kinds, cover the head quite a bit and I think are for protection more than style. Hair, when visible, is very plain and secured to the back of the head with a plain bun. Definitely more function over style here.
Military Vs. Civilian
For the women in the military, publicity and studio photos show styling with waves, pomps, rolls, etc. Hair styles that are more typical of the 40s. I am guessing the women in these images took the extra time needed or else had the photo studio do it for them. In addition to the styled looks, plain blunt cuts were seen in and out of the studio.
Civilian women show much the same as their military sisters except there are more longer hair styles as a whole that range from just past the shoulder to longer. Curled hair was popular for the more staged looks.
So how can we, today, achieve these looks? Well the simple looks are going to be very easy and require almost no special skill. There were plenty of photos that did not show perfection. For styling a blunt or short cut, photos reveal very little actual styling. For anyone who lacks talent in the hair department, you are in luck. You really do not need much skill. For other styles they will require more attention so stay tuned here for more hair goodness later on. Today was just the foundation.
No comments:
Post a Comment