Hairpins and Curlers

by Shanna Hatfield

A while back, I struggled to describe what a hairpin from the early 1900s would look like in a scene in my latest Pendleton Petticoats book.

I perused the pages of my reproduction 1897 Sears and Roebuck, Co. Catalog, but the drawing wasn't clear enough to provide an accurate picture and the description lacked detail.

Fast forward a few days to a book signing I did at a two-day vendor event. The first day, I didn't have the opportunity to wander around and look at the other booths. Since many of them had vintage treasures galore, it was about to drive me nuts.

The second day was equally busy, but toward the end of the afternoon, I darted around to a few booths. I stopped at one to admire some beautiful tablecloths from the 1940s and happened to glance down at a little display tucked between hideous ceramic figurines from the 1960s and a selection of children's books.

There I discovered something that made my little ol' heart pitter-patter in my chest...

A box of hairpins!

 Although the box originally held a dozen, there are eight total. Some are thick and wide, some are thin and narrow. I have no idea on the sizing difference.

 The vendor said she bought a whole collection of hair items from a retired beautician.

She thought the hairpins were from the late 1800s or early 1900s - right in the time frame I needed for my book. If any of you have any details on this type of hairpin, I'd love to hear more about them.

While I was perfectly giddy with this find, I also discovered this little gem:

An advertisement for a wave curler...

 with complete directions on how to use.
In case you can't read the fine print, the directions say:
   First place the curler under strand of hair close to head. Twist end of the curler around strand of hair to fasten. Now coil hair around the curler with a twist, letting each coil touch.  
   Bend end over, dampen hair lightly after it is done up. From half hour to one and one-half hours will produce a beautiful wave.
   For Bobbed Hair - Double curler in center, place ends of hair between curler, roll up or down the way you want the hair to curl. Bend both ends.

 There were also two leather-covered curlers included with the ad.

Wires inside make them very flexible - perfect for creating those old-fashioned curls.

Although I haven't been inspired to try the curlers yet, I'm so happy I found these vintage treasures!

A hopeless romantic with a bit of sarcasm thrown in for good measure, Shanna Hatfield is a bestselling author of sweet romantic fiction written with a healthy dose of humor. In addition to blogging and eating too much chocolate, she is completely smitten with her husband, lovingly known as Captain Cavedweller.

Shanna creates character-driven romances with realistic heroes and heroines. Her historical westerns have been described as “reminiscent of the era captured by Bonanza and The Virginian” while her contemporary works have been called “laugh-out-loud funny, and a little heart-pumping sexy without being explicit in any way.”

She is a member of Western Writers of America, Women Writing the West, and Romance Writers of America.

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