1980's Hairstyles
The 1980s saw an explosion of new products, styling techniques and experimental design in hair. Because the 1960s had blown apart hair convention two decades earlier, people in the '80s were able adapt the latest styles and wear them proudly every day. Does this Spark an idea?
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Shag and Mullet
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The shag and mullet were similar hairstyles developing from the 1970s, with hair cut short at the front and the back left much longer. In the '80s, this style became more refined and took on the other features of the day. Both men and women wore mullets, with volume at the top and loose layers falling down over the shoulders. In men's styling, a shorter version also emerged, where you would wear hair cropped short all over and leave a thin area at the back to grow long in a rat's tail style. By the mid to late '80s, most regular short hairstyles became voluminous on top with a slightly tapered back.
Perms
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In the 1980s hair product technology influenced new types of curling techniques. The Jheri Curl, as worn by Michael Jackson, was a two-part chemical procedure resulting in a defined wet-look curl. Curls were loosened with a relaxing cream, and then set on rods with perm solution to fix them. In-between maintenance included using curl activator spray and moisturizing cream. This left a saturated, wet and greasy look as part of the style. By the end of the '80s, girls everywhere were sporting corkscrew or spiral perms. They wore these with a wet look and plenty of pungent-smelling product to define tight, corkscrew ringlets all over long hair.
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Volume
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Throughout the '80s volume was the most important trend in hair styling. Curls were popular, or you could just have generally big hair. Common ways to style hair at home included crimping and using bendy rollers. Crimping irons were like flat irons, with traditional metal plates shaped in a zig-zag corrugated pattern. Pressing sections of dry hair into these produced a distinctive ridged effected down the hair shaft. Some crimping irons had changeable plates, including a larger deep-wave effect. Fancy styles were blow dried with rollers and a radial brush for maximum volume. Heavy, flicked-out bangs completed luxury down-dos, and up-dos focused on piling hair high up on the very top of the head.
Experimentation
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Freedom with experimentation in everyday looks led to an eclectic mix of styles and shapes in hair. Braids were popular and often worn scooped up to one side. Dressing long hair with a high side pony tail was common, and color became something everyone could choose to wear. Punk hairstyling moved away from its political '70s roots and into a grungy explosion of volume and color, with styles like the brightly colored mohawk. Those too conservative to experiment with neon brights could choose from bleached blonde to plum-mahogany.
Products and Fragrance
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The new products influencing '80s hair-styling fashions included gel, curl-sprays and mousse. This combined with advances in perm technology to mean that it was easy to maintain salon volume at home. Vidal Sassoon was the official hair stylist of the 1984 L.A. Olympics, but his slick cuts of the '60s did not influence '80s fashion. Rather, the Vidal Sassoon brand found success with shampoos that could remove styling product build-up, which secured a place alongside established classics such as Clairol Herbal Essences and Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific. As fashionable hairstyles involved looking obviously loaded with product, and smelling that way too, these high-tech shampoos allowed people to experiment with a different look every day. And the smell of your shampoo filtered through the smell of your styling products.
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References
Resources
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