Elizabethan hairstyles...

The Elizabethan women cared greatly about how they were portrayed and how they were looked upon. By creating the extravagant and flamboyant hair styles that they did, they showed wealth, power and authority. There were so many techniques that the Elizabethan women used to achieve the styles of the era. They used wigs, they died there hair, they used jewels and ribbon, they used height to create power, they put their hair in to different shapes, they used hoods and coverings... there were so many techniques that women used to create what they thought the perfect hair to create the perfect image. Elizabeth set the trends and dictated the fashions and hair styles the whole time she reined. The upper class women worshipped the ground that the queen lived on, they tried there hardest to mimic her every move, but most of all her overall style. They did what ever they could to achieve the look they most desired. Even if this meant torturing their hair!!

WIGS

 

 

 



Wigs were extremely popular in the Elizabethan era, Elizabeth having around 80 in her personal collection!! From what I can gather after researching is that some women preferred to wear wigs to cover up the fact that their hair was thinning or going very sparse, some women wanted to wear different colours so they wore wigs as this was easier than the horrendous concoction they bizarrely put on their hair to change the colour!! What interested me the most was the fact that many women craved hair just like Queen Elizabeth's that they went to every length (pardon the pun) just so they could join in with the fashions, and by this I mean they shaved off all of their hair just so that they could wear the wigs!!! They were also very creative in that they used jewels and hair pieces to again portray a look of wealth.

Hair Dye

 



 

During this era it was very popular to have fair hair, to achieve this look the women would go as far as using bleach and or urine and sit in the sun for hours!! (Thank goodness we are far more educated in this day and age!) Elizabeth was naturally a red head, and when she was in power of course the women who could afford too would use cumin seeds, saffron, oil and celandine to try and match Elizabeth's hair colour!

 

 

Jewells

 

 

 

 

The Elizabethan women who were wealthy wore different kinds of jewels in their hair. Many wore them as it was a sign of being wealthy and in this particular era portraying yourself as a well off and upper class citizen was highly sort after. Many women actually wore the jewels to cover up bald patches and mistakes in the hair.. such as  patchy hair dye!! They would lace the hair with pearls, rings of gold, strings of pearls, feathers, and even glass ornaments!

 

 

 

 Hoods and coverings

 

 

 

 

The style of the head covering dictated the hairstyle. Many of the hats were adorned with feathers, pearls, glass jewels, spangles, gold thread, embroidery and lace.

• The Coif - The coif ( commonly referred to as the 'biggin' ) worn by all children. Material was plain white linen, a close fitting cap tied under the chin. Coifs were often worn as caps to keep hair in place under more elaborate hats
• The French hood - Introduced from the French court by Anne Boleyn, the mother of Queen Elizabeth I. A half moon, or crescent, style band or brim sloping away from the face. The edges were often adorned with pearls or glass jewels, called bilaments, and a veil covered the back of the hair
• The Atifet - Similar to the French hood style but with a heart shaped crescent - favoured in white by Mary Queen of Scots. Lace trimmnigs were added
• The Caul - Cauls were the Elizabethan hair net! A Caul covered the hair at the back of the head and was made of fabric, or fabric covered by netted cord which was sometimes adorned with spangles.
• The Pillbox style of hat - often had a veil attached to the back

 

 During the Elizabethan era pamphlets were printed and distributed commenting on life in Elizabethan England. A writer of one such pamphlet was a well travelled Londoner called Philip Stubbes. He was believed to have been born c1555 and died c1610. He was well educated and attended both Oxford and Cambridge University. He was also a strict Elizabethan Puritan and held firm views on any social practices which, in his view were, unfitting  true Christians. He named his work " The Anatomie of Abuses " in which he strongly criticised many of the fashions and clothing worn during the Elizabethan era. It was entered in the Stationers' Register on 1 March 1583. This pamphlet includes his view and some valuable information about Elizabethan Hats for Women

 

"Than, on toppes of these stately turrets ( I meane their goodly heads wherin is more vanitie than true Philosophie now and than) stand their other capitall ornaments, as french hood, hat, cappe, kercher, and such like; wherof some be of velvet, some of taffetie, some (but few) of woll, some of this fashion, some of that, and some of this color, some of that, according to the variable fantasies of their serpentine minds. And to such excesse it is grown, as every artificers wyfe (almost) wil not stick to go in her hat of Velvet everye day, every marchants wyfe and meane Gentlewomen in her french-hood, and everye poore Cottagers Daughter in her taffatie hat, or else of woll at least, wel lined with silk, velvet or taffatie. They have also other ornaments besydes these to furnish foorth their ingenious heads, which they call cawles, made Netwyse, to th' ende, as I thinke, that the clothe of gold, cloth of silver, or else tinsell (for that is the worst) wherwith their heads are covered and attyred withall underneath their cawles maye appeare, and shewe it selfe in the bravest maner. So that a man that seethe them would thinke them to have golden heads. And some weare Lattice cappes with three hornes, three corners I should saie, like the forked cappes of the Popishe Priestes, with their perriwincles, chitterlynges, and the like apishe toyes of infinite varietie." - Elizabethan Hats for Women. 2013. Elizabethan Hats for Women. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/elizabethan-hats-women.htm. [Accessed 28 October 2013].

 

 

 

 

Ribbon

 

 

 

http://www.ehow.co.uk/info_8613039_elizabethan-era-hairstyles.html

http://www.extremecostuming.com/articles/twoelizabethanhairstyles.html

http://elizabethancostume.net/jewelry/

http://www.rmg.co.uk/explore/sea-and-ships/in-depth/elizabeth/the-queen's-court/body-and-dress/*/viewPage/4

http://www.fashion-era.com/hats-hair/hair3-1485-1600-womens-hair-calthrop.htm