How do you think women used to get their hair to do this??
Because in the 1940’s, I can tell you for sure that not every woman had enough hair on her head to do this sort of hairstyle, without a little reinforcement.
Ladies, let’s talk about the Hair Rat.
Not that kind! gross!
A hair rat is a form made of a woman’s own hair that is used to beef up bigger hairstyles.
Historically, a woman would collect her own hair out of her brush over time and either put it in a hairnet or roll it into a sausage like shape and use it inside those fabulous victory rolls that we see in old photos and wonder ” how did they do that??”
The hair rat blends right into the hairstyle, adding serious structure and OOOMPH. If teasing is the high-heels of hair (love that quote Reagan of HDOFblog!) Then the hair rat is the highest platform boot you can find.
There are faux-hair rats on the market these days, but nothing quite blends like the real thing. That is a promise.
How delightfully creepy and wonderful. Let’s start our hair rats today because I’m quite sure that we will be using them in HTHG tutorials in the near future.
Go get your brush, and use a comb to get all the loose hair out of it. Roll it up and stash it somewhere where no one will see it and get creeped out;)
Keep adding hair to it until it is the size of a softball. I don’t roll mine too tight, because I like it to be able to conform to whichever shape I need it too.
I had to share this post because the other day, I was styling hair for a photo shoot and found myself desperate for a hair rat. So, I collected the hair that I had trimmed off the model, rolled it into a big ball, and stuck it inside the base of a braid to poof it up and it worked perfectly.
Here is an article that will tell you a bit more about the hair rat.
Here is another way to make your own.
Will you use this awesome, practical, historically proven stands-the-test-of-time vintage hair trick?
While you are here, let’s talk about great haircare to support the best natural textures for vintage hairstyling-
We never want the hair too clean….- My favorite 4 tools/products are Hairstory Studio New Wash and Balm for that not-too clean natural finish- I use New Wash about once every week to 2 weeks instead of Shampoo- It is creamy, non lather, smells great, and leaves nothing heavy behind. I love the Hairstory Balm for finishing my curls once they are dry- it adds a little soft texture and tames the wildness just enough.
Once a month, I LOVE Hui Hui Essentials Growth Oil for a scalp treatment to encourage growth, and I use my FREE YOUR HAIR Brush every day. And I especially use it with after I apply my Hui Hui Oil ( on the full moon!) and YES, my hair grows way freaking faster than before. With these rituals, ( you know I love my beauty rituals!) and a seasonal trim, my hair is in excellent shape.
Once a month, I grab all the hair out of my FYH Brush and add it to my Rat. xoxo
