the new ‘do

[ the new, sportier 40s look! ]

I mentioned in passing last week that I had my hair cut, and several of commenters sweetly requested to see photos! So here they are… I got about 6 1/2″ chopped off the overall length (it was to the middle of my back!) and had it shaped into the classic Middy cut (a bit shorter than last year’s cut). I had an eye towards doing styles like Lauren Bacall and Gene Tierney sported in the 40s.

These photos show the results of my first pincurl set with the shorter length. I’m fairly happy with how it turned out (considering my hair had been too long to pincurl for well over a month!). Though I am having one problem with pincurls: my hair is super thick (I’m not kidding; every stylist I’ve ever gone to is always amazed at how much hair I have!), and so the back pincurls never seem to dry fully, despite being in the set for 12 hours. I think I need to start setting the back with sponge rollers instead, rather than just pincurls, and do pincurls on the sides and front. Maybe that will help? Does anyone else have really thick hair and have any wise words? I’m tired of my wet-set curls not turning out right in the back!

As a side note: I’ve started adding some vintage goodies to my Etsy shop. There’s loads more to come (vintage clothes and accessories besides the patterns), but I thought you all might like to take a peek!

Posted on February 10th, 2010 to beauty.
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67 lovely thoughts to “the new ‘do”

Stacey says:
February 10th, 2010 at 8:15 am

Gorgeous. I’d love to have my hair like this but I’m far too scared to have so much cut off.

jm says:
February 10th, 2010 at 8:18 am

Just beautiful! Your hair is such a beautiful color, too.

Thick hair here, too. As many pin curls as you can manage so there is less hair in each curl. But I’m sure you have thought of that. Hairdryers will damage hair if used often.

Larger rollers in the back should be fine, don’t you think? (Though sponge rollers hold the moisture, too.)

Erika says:
February 10th, 2010 at 8:37 am

So elegant! And cute at the same time, a great new ‘do =)
I also have quite thick hair that never really seems to dry, but last time I did a pin curl set even the back turned out great. I think it was a combination of wetting each section thouroghly just before rolling, plus making fairly small rolls, plus a very generous amount of setting lotion, plus letting it dry for over 18 hours. They were actually completly dry when I let the hair down! First time that has happened…

It took some time of course, both setting the hair and waiting for it to dry. However, I found it very much worth it since it kept the shape for three days (would’ve been longer if I’d been nicer to it). One thing I tried, to keep the curls, was laying quick, big pin curls before going to bed. No water, no setting lotion, no pattern, just random big, dry pincurls (maybe a total of 10-15). I had to put the scarf on pretty quick though, before the whole thing fell down =)

This is what it looked like after 1 h brushing and 3 h dance (without hairspray) http://swinginvintage.blogspot.com/2010/01/introducing-sailor-dress.html

Good luck! Hope you’ll find a working “recipe” =)

Ann says:
February 10th, 2010 at 8:41 am

Truly lovely, Casey! I know what you mean about the think hair thing – I’ve had similar trouble with sponge rollers. Wish I had some advice!

Erin says:
February 10th, 2010 at 8:43 am

Your hair looks absolutely stunning! Makes me want to cut about 5 inches off of my hair!

I have the same thick hair problem. Whenever I do wet sets, I don’t soak my hair–whenever I’ve tried this, nothing ever dries. I have a spray bottle full of a mixture of water and setting lotion and I just lightly spritz each section of hair before I set it, so that it’s damp but not wet. I still get the curl and it actually dries!

Paige says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:08 am

You look great! I’m due for a haircut and my husband keeps pushing for shorter hair, so maybe I’ll do something about that length.

My hair is naturally curly, so I don’t really have any advice for your pincurls except to use the cool air setting on your blow dryer in the morning. Good luck!

Victoria says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:10 am

I too have super thick hair. . half of my hair is short in the front and looks thicker than people’s whole head of hair (same with just the back long half that I have which is to the middle of my back too). I have the front short to do the retro hairstyles but it looks awful when my whole head of hair is down and I’ve been itching to cut it but I adore having long hair so it’s been tough to decide what to do. Seeing yours eases my mind a bit in cutting it but at the same time I still don’t know if I could go through with it. You really do look even more like Lauren bacall now!! haha. Very lovely even with the issues you have with pin-curls. I think some people have hair that is harder to curl than others. I have really wavy hair so it catches curls, but my mom had poker straight hair that never curls at all no matter how hard she tries to do it.

Quincy says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:11 am

oh Casey your hair looks wonderful! i can’t wait until my grows. can i have the 6 inches you cut off?! lol

Mrs. Jess says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:11 am

Gorgeous! I think that you and I have the same haircut now – I’ve been setting mine just like that since I got it cut, what a relief to have so much length gone. Isn’t it great?

Lauren says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:18 am

Your hair looks great! I love it. The style really suits you.

I have very thick hair as well, and I simply cannot set mine wet. I have to get it pretty much bone dry and then mist it with Lottabody. If I set it wet or damp it will never dry. However, my dry hair takes curl very well, so it works for me. I hope you figure out something that works for you!

Any chance you’d like to post an un-styled Middy picture? I can only ever find pictures of it un-styled on girls with much thinner hair than mine. Yours seems to be much more similar to mine in thickness and texture. I keep considering getting one, but I want to know how it would be on days that I don’t curl my hair.

Betty Lou says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:22 am

You’re so beautiful! I thought i had thick hair! I haven’t done pin curls in ages but it did take long for it to dry, at least 24 hours. Now i use sponge rollers and it takes ages do dry, i have them in sometimes 2 days…

Peter says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:24 am

Gorgeous! If I had hair again, I’d want yours.

Gertie says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:36 am

Love lt! You look beautiful! I have very thick hair and so I have the same problem: I just cannot do completely wet sets. Like others have mentioned, I start with wet hair, and spray it with diluted LottaBody. I get it damp, but not soaked. I find this curl actually holds better for me than a completely wet set. Oh, and it helps to start with dry, dirty hair! I use a dry shampoo to get rid of any bang-area grease.

Kelly says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:37 am

oh, it’s so full of prettiness! i love it so much!

Kelley Anne says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:56 am

Oh Casey! You look so glamorous! I love the new do. Thanks for the diagram. I’ve saved it to my computer…I’ve been thinking about a Lauren Bacall cut for a while. Maybe I’ll bring the pic along the next time I visit the stylist.

Krisztina says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:15 am

It looks lovely! You’re choice in cuts/length was perfect.

I can relate to the issue of thick hair. Pin curls are difficult for me as well. It’s definitely a special occasion thing for me because i have to set them 12-15 hours before I need to take my hair down.

The only thing I’ve found that speeds them up is using a hair dryer on super hot. I’ll put a scarf on my head and then use the dryer for 5/10 minutes then switch to cold air for another 10. I alternate back and forth until they are dry. I don’t like doing that though, it’s just too damaging.

Alyce says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:16 am

Lovely!

m says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:20 am

No offense…but I really want to know more about the blouse! It’s adorable! Did you make it?

Amy says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:37 am

It looks so good, how very pretty! Your hair is so healthy and such a lovely color. Gee I wish I had thicker hair. That is a beautiful blouse. You look as sweet as sugar.

Inky says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:48 am

hi Casey – love the new do – it suits you very well and is also my favorite 40′s look. I have super thick hair, about the same length and I cannot do a true wet set either – it would never dry even in two or three days. I usually wash my hair one day, let it dry naturally. Then that night or the next day I set my hair using a spray bottle with a bit of water and/or lottabody, then I let it dry again for a full day. Lucky for me I work at home and no one cares what my hair looks like, but sometimes if I need to go out I just put a scarf on. I usually use pillow rag rollers, but of course it works with pin curls or sponge rollers too.

thevintageyear says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:55 am

Your hair is just breathtaking! I absolutely love it. I’ve been meaning to do some research on how to set my own hair although I highly doubt I could pull it off anywhere near as well as you!

Danielle says:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:13 am

I love it! So pretty

Marmielu says:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:13 am

Oh my golly, girl….you look so….(should I say it?)…CUTE! I love it!!! As your father is home today, I showed him, and he agrees. (Mark your calendar with that one!)
That little peek at the vintage family photos in the back is very nice. You did a nice job on those. I like!
Love,
Mom

Amanda says:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:27 am

Casey,

Are you using a setting lotion? I had problems setting my hair until I figured out that my needed to be almost dry before I could set it. I would wet it with just a dab of setting lotion (I use Proclaim, can be found at Sally’s) and roll it up. Then my sets would dry over about 8 hours.
What I would recommend is after you get out of the shower, let your hair get to the point that it is almost dry and before rolling your hair up, spray each section with just a little bit of setting lotion before rolling it up. If you think that the section is too wet after you’ve applied the setting lotion, then run a towel over that section.

I’ve been doing this for a few months now and all my sets are coming out with no problems.

Good luck! And I look forward to seeing more pictures of your hair!

Twila Jean says:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:41 am

You look fantastic. You are so stunning.. the hair is wonderful!!!

Lauren says:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:42 am

Oh my gosh, I ADORE this look on you! Absolutely perfect! You look very Bacall in the last shot
I also have thick hair (well, fine strands but A LOT of it) so I feel your pain for drying. I usually have to sit under a dryer to make sure mine are all dry. If you can pick up a hood dryer they’re seriously the best thing before sliced bread .
My first mistake was to set set my hair right after a shower and then add lottabody until it was sopping wet, then pincurl it. Never dried.
Then I tried rubbing lottabody thought my hair when it was halfway dry and pincuring it, but since I have so much blasted hair when I got around to the other side I’d have to rewet it since it had dried already.
Now I wait until my hair is almost dry then use a combination of water and lottabody in a spray thingy- not soaking it, but about the wetness of my hair half dried. If I do this and sit under the hood dryer for about an hour I’m good to go! My husband found me a vintage industrial one so I sit at the kitchen and leaf through old magazines and feel very “the women”. The one Roz Russel sits under at the beginning is almost identical. Hehe.
Also, if you can, pick up vintage metal hair curlers. Those things are freaking awesome! If you’re thinking of a 30s ‘do, they give you those nice tight little curls. What I’ve been doing lately is using those in the front and sides and pincurling the back and then pinning up the front
I LOVE your hairstyle! It looks absolutely perfect to me

Melissa says:
February 10th, 2010 at 11:45 am

Casey,

You’re hair is gorgeous and I adore your blouse! ^_^ I’ve just started experimenting with pincurls, and though our hair is about the same length, (I think mine is a wee bit shorter) I can never seem to get the back quite right. I don’t have an issue with it being wet, it just won’t set properly. I do them at night, put on a head scarf, and before I take the scarf off in the morning, I use the blow dryer to set the curls a bit more. That seems to help a little.

Anyway, gorgeous hair! Love it! ^_^

Melissa

cecili says:
February 10th, 2010 at 12:12 pm

Your hair is fantastic! I know you’re still in your twenties but that hairstyle makes you look even younger. Definitely a great look

jen says:
February 10th, 2010 at 12:18 pm

you look adorable, casey!!! i really love it, it’s exactly the kind of 40s do i would wear. i like that it’s very sporty and still feminine and even a little modern too. yay!

Solanah says:
February 10th, 2010 at 12:50 pm

Oh it suits you so well! Looks terrific, seems like a perfect new look for spring

I used to have trouble with pin curls drying too, and I found that letting the back dry a bit before pinning helped. It always seems the back takes the longest to dry in any situation

Trisha says:
February 10th, 2010 at 12:54 pm

Your hair looks great. And I LOVE the shirt you’re wearing! Did you make it yourself, or is it a great vintage find? If you did make it yourself, what pattern is it?

p.s. I would also appreciate seeing a picture of the un-styled Middy haircut– for reference.

Rebecca says:
February 10th, 2010 at 1:00 pm

BEAUTIFUL – it really suits you!

Melissa says:
February 10th, 2010 at 1:07 pm

Completely adorable!

Holly says:
February 10th, 2010 at 1:57 pm

I love the 40s styles on you. You have the perfect look for them!

Jennifer says:
February 10th, 2010 at 1:58 pm

Oh it’s just adorable!!!

Ashley says:
February 10th, 2010 at 2:05 pm

Oh I love it! I have the same problem with my hair because it’s so thick! Usually I let mine air dry about half way before setting it, but they still come out a bit damp. Maybe try blowdrying just the back section so it’s almost completely dry? Good luck!

Sam says:
February 10th, 2010 at 2:12 pm

your haircut is super cute! I also have very thick hair and have trouble whenever I want to curl it (pin curls take forever!), so let me know if you get any good tips!

Mel says:
February 10th, 2010 at 2:37 pm

Wow it looks amazing! Great job! I wish I could style my hair…

Catherine says:
February 10th, 2010 at 2:46 pm

I love your new haircut! It suits you very well!

I, too, have lots of hair. Unfortunately about the only things I’ve found to help in the pin curl department are a) mostly drying it before setting it the night before (though I don’t have naturally straight hair, so my own curl may be helping the holding for this) and b) a billion curls with less hair in each of them (airflow? not sure why this works).

My hair is too long to manage pin curls right now, though, by about 3 weeks. I find I get a good set with some tightly wound sponge rollers at my current length.

Jesslyn says:
February 10th, 2010 at 3:09 pm

I have really thick hair as well and I found a “shower set” works well with my pincurls. Start with perfectly dry hair (as in washed the day or night before). Pin up the curls and then hop in the shower. Even though I’m just doing a body scrub (not washing & conditioning hair) there’s still enough steam and humidity in the shower to set the curls. I let them set for however long I can (usually a few hours) and when I pull them out they’re perfect and last a long time. It’s a little harder to pin the curls with dry hair, but you get the hang of it. Good luck!

Eunice says:
February 10th, 2010 at 3:22 pm

I love your new hair cut it looks so pretty! I have thick hair too and I try not to damage it as much so I avoid using the curling iron and i dont know how to do pin cruls yet but I always use foam rollers they work really nice but your hair has to be dry.

Harp Lounge says:
February 10th, 2010 at 3:39 pm

I also have really thick hair and it takes for-ev-er for my hair to dry when in pincurls.

The solution for me was to get a bonnet hairdryer! I found a lovely 1960s one at a secondhand shop for $10. Keeping it on for an hour or so alternating between the ‘cool’ and ‘medium-hot’ settings really dries my hair well. I know others (who have the space in their home of course) who have bought vintage salon dryers and just sit under those for a while watching TV, reading, using the net, etc.

Rosemary says:
February 10th, 2010 at 3:45 pm

I was wondering if you made the blouse in these pictures?
P.s: You have such a classy style!

Dusky Ledoux says:
February 10th, 2010 at 4:01 pm

You look gorgeous! Such a beautiful length on you! I’m not sure what to say about the pin curls… i rarely do them, but when i have, i find it a whole lot easier and more effective to do a set on clean but dry hair, sprayed with setting lotion, but not too damp! And then sleep in them over night nice under a headscarf pulled tight! Mine never dry otherwise either (and my hair isn’t even exceptionally thick!)!

Ahhh you are such a cutie! xx

Screen Siren says:
February 10th, 2010 at 4:29 pm

I have super thick and over processes hair that never wants to dry with pincurls. What you can do is you can do them while your hair is partially wet, it will take the same shape since your hair is so thick, and it won’t have to set as long.

Sarah says:
February 10th, 2010 at 4:51 pm

Oh, I really love this! I can’t help but be a little envious – I’m too chicken to cut mine off! I would love to do a vintage cut like this. You really do remind me of Lauren Bacall with this haircut, except you are prettier. As a fellow super thick-haired girl, I wish I could offer some advice…I can only echo what a few others said: When I had shorter hair and could actually pin/rag curl my hair, I waited until my hair was 80% dry before I rolled it up. That usually did the trick for me. I’ve also heard that setting lotion works wonders.

Ally says:
February 10th, 2010 at 4:57 pm

Cute haircut and pin curl set! I love the little gold bow clip. I also love your blouse, is that another you sewed?

Tilly says:
February 10th, 2010 at 5:06 pm

You look beautiful! The slightly shorter length really suits you. And VERY Bacall.

mary says:
February 10th, 2010 at 6:29 pm

Love it! Looks just lovely! Really suits you…

Lindsey says:
February 10th, 2010 at 6:34 pm

You look ADORABLE!!!!! It looks absolutely amazing on you! What a cute pin/clip in your hair. Where did you find it?

I have very think hair too and my sponge curlers or pillow curlers keep my hair wet. It’s a big disappointment after sleeping on them all night! Do you use a setting lotion?

Rainy Daisy says:
February 10th, 2010 at 8:14 pm

So gorgeous! I have never had much luck with pincurls, myself. I love giving bouncy curls to other people, but my hair always falls straight again, despite wet-setting, hairspray, mousse….etc. Boo.

Then again, I don’t think I could pull it off the way you do.
Cheers!
Daisy

Catherine says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:12 pm

I have the same issues with having lots of (very long) hair, and pin curls can be tricky. I’ve found that if I can’t wait any longer and they’ve half way dried, I can let them down and then use a diffuser to dry them the rest of the way.

Christine H. says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:17 pm

I love it, it’s amazing! I adore Gene Tierny–I’ve been falling asleep watching Laura the past few nights, one of all time my favorite movies. Her hats (well her entire wardrobe) are fantastic in that movie, I want them!

Bridget says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:31 pm

I love it! So cute and soft! and it brings out your lovely blue eyes and adorable freckles! Gorgeous! Now I can’t wait until my hair grows out so I can do the same!!!

Trendsetter. as always.

B

Marianne says:
February 11th, 2010 at 12:13 am

STUNNING! And those pin curls look so soft!

I have super thick, fine, straight hair that takes AAAAAGES to dry, and have found I need to set my hair when it’s dry, and spray a bit of water and product on each section just before I roll and pin it. I sleep on it, it’s usually dry by morning For those pesky back curls, I have found making the rolls (and sections) smaller helps a lot, but they are still the first to drop out :< Good luck! Let us know if you find a solution!

And again, your hair looks beautiful!

Hana says:
February 11th, 2010 at 1:37 am

GORGEOUS haircut! absolutely adore it! The pincurls seem to really work for you! I got my hair cut in a shorter 40′s-ish style & I’ve been attempting some 40′s styles but I have the same problem as you (thick hair resulting in pincurl issues)…my pincurls simply refuse to dry no matter how long I leave them in or even when I attempt to use a blow dryer on them! I’ve taken to simply using a hot roller set (which my hair loves) but the look just isn’t the same…do you use a setting lotion for your pincurls? if so where do you get it?

reilly says:
February 11th, 2010 at 2:41 am

Look how gorgeous you are! I love the shorter look on you.

Mugsy says:
February 11th, 2010 at 8:29 am

OMG I love your hair! Wish I could convince my stylist to give me a “proper” middy cut, just once *sigh* While I have a lot of hair, it’s rather fine so it does actually dry (eventually). I find that just misting my sections with a bit of water works fine, and it actually gets to dry – why is the back of one’s head the hardest to cope with (lol)? That’s the part that everyone else gets to see, darn it. Good luck trying out all of the fantastic advise everyone’s offering

Megan says:
February 11th, 2010 at 12:00 pm

What an adorable cut! I bet it’s nice not having the extra length to hassle with!

Nadja says:
February 11th, 2010 at 12:18 pm

I see you got some thoughts about thick hair, I have that too!
I set my whole hair in pincurls. I take stripes of hair measured aboute 2cm x 2cm or less from the scalp in the back and lay the pinculs in layers starting from the neck and working upwards. If you want you can make standing pincurles they dry in a coupple of houres if you make them in the morning.

Jena says:
February 11th, 2010 at 1:18 pm

You look lovely! I tried to get a Gene Tierney cut two days ago… Took in multiple pictures, diagrams, you name it.

I came out with a one inch blended layer at the bottom, a short bang, and no U shape.

Going back in today after extensive research of side looks, and studying the diagram… Your pictures really make it easy to see the layering which is so difficult to see in Gene’s hair. I just think its funny that hairstylists are super scared to put any layer whatsoever in my hair. This is the fifth time in a row of blunt ended haircuts! Puttting hot rollers in is an absolute nightmare with a blended edge!

Anyways, my hairstylist said that the curls of the 1940′s were put in with magnetic rollers in wet hair, and then set under a dryer bonnet. Sounds about right to me! Since I think the only went in once a week, I think that they left that without washing. Which is incomprehensible in this day and age, but considering that hair washing has gradually grown from rarely to every 24 hours over the centuries, it is only “gross” in context of the present day.

—– QUOTED

From the 1940s to the 1960s, many if not most middle-class women had their hair washed only once a week, at their hairdresser’s, where it was restyled for the next week. The professional hairdresser stepped into the void that the maid left when domestic service became rare. Washing one’s hair daily or every other day is a very recent development. That’s where conditioners came into play. Many people have wondered how on earth women could have nice hair by modern standards before conditioners, but conditioners are made necessary by shampoos. Well-maintained hair of the 19th century didn’t need conditioners because the oils weren’t regularly stripped from it.

— end Quote

Anyways, I am so happy that I stopped by and was able to hear about your haircut. I had just wished that you had had it done, somehow its way understandable when you do it. You are an inspiration!

Christina Thompson says:
February 11th, 2010 at 5:51 pm

OMG! Your hair looks so pretty! I love the little clip too!

joss says:
February 11th, 2010 at 11:12 pm

you look lovely darling. for pin curls i recommend you use hot rollers. they are very good for thick hair and last very long and only takes about 20 minutes. just make sure you put them on very tight or else you wont get the right pin curl look.

Lolita Haze says:
February 11th, 2010 at 11:47 pm

I am having hair envy like mad right now! Gorgeous do!! Me wanty!

Peldyn says:
February 12th, 2010 at 1:43 am

Your hair looks lovely! I was going to cut my hair, but since it was a stress induced urge to cut my friends talked me out of it. I merely cut my bangs instead. Seeing your hair makes me want to cut a bit of my length now

Kitten says:
February 12th, 2010 at 9:40 am

Very Cute! I have thick hair too. When I do pin-curls I usually let it dry quite a lot, maybe even use the hairdryer a little, and then I curl it (using mostly stand up curls) put on a head scarf and sleep on it. I have never tried setting lotion, and I don’t seem to need any either. However, I do need to put the curls back up every night if I want them to last. But I just do about 7 big random curls…My hair is about 8″ at it’s longest point, and cut pretty much like a middy. Good luck experimenting!

Gina says:
February 12th, 2010 at 7:12 pm

Wow! The hair looks amazing!

Thank you ever so much for taking time to share your comment! Although I try to answer questions, I am not always able to respond to each comment individually. But please know that I appreciate from the bottom of my heart every comment I receive!