1950's Poodle: A Vintage Hair Tutorial

 During the 1940's and 50's women wore their hair up more because they went to work, mostly in factories. One of the popular hairstyles at the time was called "the poodle." This style was made famous by Betty Grable and Lucille Ball. This was often a pile of curls placed at the top of the head. The more famous you were the more elaborate the hair style was. The style got its name because well, it looks like a poodle's hair! This is a great style for when you do not feel like doing a brush out or for a hot day.


        In this video (attached through YouTube) I did an everyday version of this style. Its sped up so it wasn't 20 minutes long. Here are the steps...

1. Start with damp hair and spray on a setting lotion (mine is homemade)
2. Section off your hair into parts no bigger than 1 inch
3. Use pink sponge rollers (you can find these at any beauty supply and are fairly cheap) and begin to roll the roller under you hair. Since you'll be brushing your curls forward there is no specific pattern used  
4. Make sure your rollers are clipped tight against your head and that they aren't loose. Be sure your sections are all about the same size
5. Wrap head in a nylon scarf and sleep or let dry 
6. Take out all rollers carefully, do not pull, unwrap them
7. Separate the curls with your fingers lightly DO NOT BRUSH OUT CURLS 
8. Starting at the back of your head brush hair forward toward your face
9. Once smoothed in the back start pinning the curls around the top of your head/face
10. Once you have the pack pinned at the front you can start placing the curls. I start with a chunk at at time, sort of place them and pin where they look good or start to fall into place. 
11. When you have all the curls pinned how you like use pomade (I love Suavecita brand because of the smell and the hold.) This adds shine and will tame flyaways... basically hair glue. 

Spray with hairspray and your finished

These were adaptations of the poodle that used this technique. In the first photo I used a 3 day old poodle/wetset that I put Victory Rolls and a Gibson Roll with. The second photo is the result of this video. The last photo is a half poodle, half up half brushed out. Hope you enjoyed!
Song is Fujiyama Mama by Wanda Jackson

Man, we had a party! Wanda Jackson at The El Club

     As you may know I am a huge Wanda Jackson fan but until this last Sunday I have never seen her live. I finally did and she did not disappoint. This show was so hard to find something to wear to, I knew everyone was going to be dressed to the nines and I wanted to look my best. I searched high and low for something vintage or a repro vintage piece with fringe... no luck or way too expensive. I luckily came across a skirt at a local thrift store that would look perfect with some fringe added. It was perfect black and emerald green, my two favorite colors. This was perfect because I really wanted the opportunity to wear my Dita Von Teese Madame X wireless bra in emerald. found a sheer top from Forever 21 and it was a go! I had on a black and green purse with gold accents from Kohl's years ago and my green and black Bettie Page heels. It was a bit chilly so I added a faux leather jacket with Dita Von Teese, Vixen and Artetak enamel pins. I did not get any upclose photos of my makep but I kept it very classic with blush, liner, brows and a bold dark lip. For hair I did a half up half down 1940's half poodle, which is one of my favorite styles.

                    

some shots of my outfit, with friends from Jack and the Bear and (Brandon, Olivia, Libby and Adam) wearing @bettiepageshoes @ditavonteeselingerie @forever21 and @kohls 

      Now once I got to The El Club I was shocked I did not see more people in vintage or rockabilly clothing, there was maybe 3 or 4 at the most including me. Besides the 6 year old I befriended and a few of my friends  I seemed to be one of the youngest there. Most were in their late 40's-late 50's, and it certainly was a diverse group! You had the hipster, the rockabilly, the "dads", the gays and the very drunk obnoxious people who were beside me the whole show -_- Since Wanda's music is different than most (rock n' roll, country, some jazz and some blues) it really brought out everyone.She talked about Elvis and dating him and touring/writing with him. She is a true American icon. Wanda wore her iconic fringe and rhinestones and could not have looked better. She wore an all black pant suit that had matching black rhinestoned flats. Shes stayed true to herself and style in her 60+ years of her career.

     I could not have had a better night, I ended up with the set list and a signed ticket and I could not have been happier. She was not meeting fans that night but it was honestly just enough for me to be in her presence. She is so feisty and so funny, she was cracking so many jokes all night! If I wasn't dancing I was laughing. She took the time to tell us about each song before she played it and that just was so much better to me than just seeing her play. Lastly it was so good to meet Wanda's manager and granddaughter Jordan! She is so kind and you can just tell how much she loves Wanda. (I am a sucker for that because of how close I am with my grandparents) but we talked a bit about Wanda and her new album and Wanda's book. She is absolutely gorgeous and has a great sense of style! She wore black high waisted pants that criss-crossed on the side with a white cut off tank that said "Rock n' Roll made me do it" which I think is pretty fitting.  *photo found on Printrest all rights to the owner*


I honestly could not have had a better night, it was so incredible and it was a show I'll never forget. I mean we had a party and that party aint over! 

Photos by me of @wandajoffical and @jordanbsimpson