The not-reading-tea

[robinsnest]

We were supposed to go the the reading airshow on Sunday, but the forecast was barely 60 and rainy and frankly a stern look at my bank account really kind of dissuaded me. Hard to feel excited about something when the main draw is shopping and your whole budget would be blown on the entry. So everyone kindly acquiesced to a tea at my local tea house instead.

I woke up on time, and took out the new style of rollers I had tried last night. They were very effective. I looked like weird Al.

 

And that was really the best my hair looked all day. this whole vintage "brush out your wet set" thing? LIES. BLOODY LIES. I looked like I love Lucy had sex with a sheep, in the rain, and got struck by lightening. Needless to say I was quite grumpy with that and plopped a hat on it. I had PLANNED a headband. OH WELL. I'm gonna say that the brush out is a concept straight haired people who aren't frizz prone can do, and having hair that touches your butt prooooobably doesn't help either. Then I smeared make up on, and was halfway through the "FUCK NUTS WHERE'D I LOSE MY GIRDLE" panic when I realized Amanda needed picking up. Sent Rob off to fetch her from the train and was completely dressed in my FANTASTIC new flamingo skirt and world's least functional rain poncho in time for her to walk in the door looking like a million bucks. It was the perfect illustration of our friendship. really she's quite annoying that way.



Shortly there after while we were admiring my newly collapsed steps Alice pulled in and we waited patiently for Adrienne...who was already at the tea house but we all somehow missed that memo. So just a few min late we tottled off to see if she might there..she was. Luckily I only live ten min away so we didn't leave them hanging tooooo long.



I took exactly one photo at tea to taunt Amanda's boyfriend with. Aren't I on top of things? Meredith and Adrienne were already there so the three of us filled out the gathering. Lots of laughter and delicious food, I do love a tea there. although we've gone so many time it doesn't feel new or exciting anymore. I wish the alternative tea house in Lansdale was open on Sundays as it would be nice to mix it up at least a LITTLE.

After tea we walked to the antique mall next door. We didn't find QUITE as much fantastic stuff as last time, but Alice got a picnic basket and Adrienne got the world's most fun novelty glasses. I stole them shamelessly for a selfie.




I told her if she didn't buy them we couldn't be friends anymore.



playing around in the kitchen set up.

Then we said farewell to Meredith who had to drive home and prepare for being an adult today and working her real job and went back to my house for a few outside pictures and sewing day. Look I picked the one where Amanda's eyes are closed as I'm vindictive and I don't have chins in this one.



Word of advice. Don't try to take cute photos with these nut jobs.

Comments

[ktlovely]

Don't hit me but...wow you really do look like Weird Al in that pic

[robinsnest]

can't hit you for speaking the truth :-p I really do.

[danabren]

LOL awesome.

I did wonder how the weekend went after the weather report.

[robinsnest]

I know Alice was disappointed we didn't go but with the cold wet weather it worked out I think.

[elizabeth_mn]

Wow! What rollers did you use?

Looks like you guys had fun!

[robinsnest]

a version of these I found at five and below

https://www.amazon.com/inkint-Silicone-Rollers-Curling-Harmless/dp/B018S7O8KE/ref=sr_1_9_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1528164730&sr=8-9&keywords=curling+rods

[mandie_rw]

I don't know what you're talking about; I think the picture of us photobombing you is simply CHARMING!

[mala_14]

Haha! These are some fantastic hijinks! (And really, that's what makes a great event.)

[totchipanda]

I just went to a Weird Al concert this weekend, and that is some excellent hair ;)

Agreed on "brush out your wet set". My hair is fine and thin and it just goes poof. Maybe i should try actual rollers but im skeptical.

Looks like a fun event despite the weather and y'all look fab <3

[nuranar]

1940s hair is hard, especially when you're trying to do it with longer hair than was typical in the 1940s. And typical hair was really short. I've been doing 1940s hair for a long time, from longer (just above the waist) progressively to short (brushing the shoulders) and now going back to long (currently bra strap length). The advice to keep brushing is true, but it's not the whole story. It works easiest for those with shorter hair. Poof and craziness IS what happens. The brushing has to continue past that, when the hair will calm down again. But here's what's going on.

Curled hair is now formed into a spiral, which means ringlets. Halfhearted brushing means the hairs will just twist around each other again into looser ringlets. More brushing will open up the ringlets, but each hair still has a lot of spiral. Result: POOF AND FRIZZ. But with enough brushing, *each individual hair* is straightened out from its neighbor and *flattened* into a wave. That's how you get the beautiful smooth, even waves of 1940s hair.

That's the basic principle, and it holds pretty true for all lengths of hair. But I found that the *size* of the curl and the *length* of the hair had a direct relationship. If I set small curls in shorter hair, it was fine to brush out. But in longer hair, those spirals twist on each other and turn to knots and magnificent snarls when brushed. The spirals are just too long and too tight to effectively brush out. I was breaking hairs all over because of the knots.

If I gave up at that point, I had a fro. Like really. If I kept going, the force and length of time I had to spend really did pull out the curl. So I switched to doing larger curls for longer hair. If you look at longer hair ladies like Rita Hayworth, their waves are bigger and looser. It's just how hair works. (For what it's worth, true long hair ladies like Dorothy Lamour tended toward updos, especially with braids. I've seen a period beauty book that had some impressively complex braid arrangements for hair your length or longer.)

So here's my tips:

1. Use larger curlers (or pin curls). With my current length I'm rolling over a form that's about 1 1/8" in diameter, which is pretty big for 1940s hair. (This is for modern daily wear, not 1940s.) My reproduction pin curl tool has a diameter of 1/2", however. For your length, I would try 1" and see what happens.

2. Finger separate the ringlets into waves as much as possible before even picking up the brush. This goes a REALLY long way to preventing knots and snarls. (I tried a tight 1950s set in December and it wasn't too terrible to brush because of this; even then, I pinned up most of the length to a faux bob.)

3. Use a Denman brush. I saw this used in the model pictures from a vintage hairstyling book. Later I discovered that it's widely recommended among the vintage hair community. It is MAGIC! The "bristles" are super strong and will penetrate even the thickest hair, but are closer together and don't snag, unlike a wire brush.
https://www.sallybeauty.com/hair/brushes-and-combs/classic-styling-brush/DENMAN01.html?list=Home%7CBrands%7CDenman#start=1

4. I brush out half my hair at a time, starting at the bottom and working up. Even when it was short, it was way easier and less tangly to do it in sections.


I hope that helps a bit! I LOVE vintage hairstyling and I've worked on it a lot. All of this I have learned by trial and error. Just recently I found a Facebook group that has a huge number of people doing awesome hair.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/VintageUpdosForModernGirls/
This lady in particular has hair about your length and does a ton with it. I need to sit down and watch some more of the videos, because they look amazing and so hard to do with that much length.
https://www.instagram.com/nena_moreno/

[nuranar]

And regardless of the struggles, your hair looked great! Cute hat, and updos are still my favorites for rainy humid days anyway. Love the black seam and heel stockings, too. ;)

[blackcat452]

You look adorable! I love the flamingos. Glad you all had fun, it's a shame Reading didnt work out. Two years in a row it was cold and rainy.

[chocolatepot]

Aaaaaah, it looks so fun and you all look so cute! You're totally right, all of the hair tutorials are written for shiny, straight hair.

Also, I genuinely thought this was a post by my Weird Al fan friend and that that was a real picture of Weird Al for a moment.

[brickhousewench]

I love your Weird Al hair! <3 <3 <3

"FUCK NUTS WHERE'D I LOSE MY GIRDLE" panic

We’ve all been there.

we were admiring my newly collapsed steps

I feel like there’s a story here that I’m missing that needs to be told?

Your events always look like such fun!!!

[robinsnest]

nah not much of a story. Rob was coming in the night before with the dog and the back steps fell off the couch. Found him with the dog on the landing and hte stairs on the ground and him laying there. Ellie it turns out will not come tell me Daddy fell down a well.