Getting out!

Join me for a hike?

History of Hair Combs.

  I love these but seldom use them because I've never figured out how to use them with my hair.  My hair is down below my rear and they don't stay well.  These types of hair combs have been around for a very long time but do not seem to be in use as much as in the past.

There is evidence that these types of combs have been around since the Stone Age.  The first combs were made out of fish bones, Ivory, or wood and people used them to remove lice, insects, and dirt from the head.  

As time passed and civilizations developed, people began making hair combs out of horn, alabaster, walrus, onyx, and ebony due to the invention of metal tools.

The evidence found indicates that each civilization developed its own version of hair combs because they tended to be quite similar with 5 to 10 teeth and shaped like the human hand.  It wasn't until the Egyptians that double sided combs with either thick or thin teeth.  These double sided combs were used both for styling and cleaning and soon became quite popular in other cultures both in Asia and Europe.

Back in ancient China, the type of hair comb worn in the hair indicated the a person's social status.  In addition, Chinese hair combs were often made into the shape of phoenix, butterflies, birds or flowers worn at the top of buns.  Later on in China, women began wearing a cornet comb which was extremely elaborate and made up of painted yarn, pearls, gold, silver, and jade with a one foot long comb made of white horn on top of it all.  This comb has two flaps that hung over the shoulders and the woman had to turn sideways to get through doors.

Then in the 1600's, women in Japan used tortoise shell or lacquered wood combs decorated with gold or pearls.  These were often worn by courtesans in Japanese society.  Then New England Farmers began making their own combs during the late 1700's.  During 1800's hair combs made out of Tortoise shells became popular in China.

 In the late 1800's hair combs companies began to make hair combs out of celluloid because the demand for ivory continued to be high but the supply dropped.  Celluloid could be made to look like ivory or tortoise shell but celluloid proved to be quite flammable and was prohibited.  At this time, hair combs were often decorated with real or fake gemstones or pearls.

Around the turn of the 20th century, Oyannox, France became the center of decorative combs during the late Edwardian period and the 1920's.  Oyannox is the home to Auguste Bonnaz who used celluloid to create decorative hair combs in new colors and patterns rather than just tortoise shell and bone.

 When plastic was invented in the 1930's, manufacturers changed over to making hair combs out of plastic.  This material allowed the cost of decorative hair combs to drop.In addition, the upswept hair styles of the 1930's and 40's often used decorative hair combs to secure the hair.  Then in the 1950's, fashion used hair combs in small hats and veils to secure these to a woman's head.

One of the most valuable combs dates back to the fifth century B.C and was found in the tomb near the Black Sea.  The 10 ounce pure gold comb was found in 2016.

The Sea Holly Comb created by Rene Lalique around 1900 later sold in 2015 for $170,000.  The comb measured 3 3/4 inches by 5 1/2 inches and was made of horn, silver, gold, and glass.  The creator signed the comb which was what made it so valuable.

I think I'm going to invest in decorative hair combs to help hold up my hair.  I have time and want to get out of the rut I'm in.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

6 Facts About Graduation.

 Here in Alaska, both high school and college graduations are beginning to happen.  The seniors are due to graduate next week but due to the restrictions of the coronavirus, they won't be able to have a ceremony at the school.

So one of the local churches is hosting something with proper social distancing while the school is organizing a parade so the students will be able to drive through town and be recognized.

Rather than looking at it's history, I'm going to share some interesting and odd facts about graduation.

1. Graduates wear long gowns as they walk across the stage.  The gowns are known as full academic dress or regalia and this tradition began about 700 years ago when universities were just starting out.  At this time, universities didn't bother heating buildings so these gowns were worn to stay warm.  Later on, the full academic regalia became the mandated dress to keep students from going over the top with their regular outfits.

2.  The tradition of tossing caps at the end of the ceremony is a recent one.  It began at the Navel Academy in 1912.  Up until 1912, graduates from the Naval Academy were required to serve two years in the Navy before they could be commissioned as officers.  In 1912, that requirement was changed so they were commissioned immediately upon graduation, so this class no longer needed their undergrad caps and threw them to signify they were done with it.

3. The standard tune of Pomp and Circumstance that plays at most graduations was not written for that purpose.  Edward Elgar wrote the song in 1901 to honor King Edward VII and when Edward received an honorary degree from Yale in 1905, they played it in the background. Princeton adopted it in 1907, Chicago in 1908, Columbia in 1913, Vassar in 1916 and so on until it became the standard graduation song.

4.  Pomp and Circumstance is also known as "Land of Hope and Glory".  The title comes from a line in Shakespeare's Othello play referring to the glories of war.

5. Diplomas were originally made of sheepskin, thus the saying about receiving a sheepskin.  Universities hand wrote the information in ink on paper thin sheepskin that were rolled up and tied with a ribbon.  Once paper making techniques improved, they began making diplomas out of parchment but people complained about diplomas being rolled up and secured with ribbons because they were hard to flatten out and frame.

6. The cap's nickname "Mortar Board" comes from the fact it looked like a masonry tool used when the cap was originally created so it looked like the headgear worn by church officials in the 16th century.  Although the design changed over time, it's nickname did not.  The tassel was added in the 19th century.

This year, many of these traditions will not be happening but it is nice to know how certain traditions evolved across the centuries.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

The New Way of Proms

Unfortunately, with the coronavirus still quite active, life has changed and could remain changed for the rest of the year and possibly into 2021.  The governor closed down all schools, shifting them from being held in buildings to being done via the internet.   He made this rule go to the end of the school year, which means proms and graduation cannot be held as normal.  Around here, the junior class is responsible for earning money to host the prom at school.  It is usually held in the cafeteria or the gym depending on the school.

The proms we have today, are quite different from the original ones.  The term "Prom" is short for promenade or a short formal parade of guests as they enter.  This started back in the 19th centuries in the Northeast when graduating seniors entered coeducational banquets held in their honor at colleges as a way of teaching them manners and recognizing their upcoming graduation. Researchers have found references to Proms dating back to 1879.  Furthermore, colleges often held proms as part of a dance and dinner,

Eventually younger high school students wanted to do the same thing so they soon held them for their graduations.  High schools proms were often held in gyms decorated with crepe paper.  Every dressed up in their best clothings, enjoyed a light meal, and spent the evening dancing to music while being watched by chaperones.  By the 1930's and 40's most proms provided real dinners, bands, and entertainment.

Then after the war with a growing economy, high schools soon held proms in hotels or country clubs.  Proms were so popular that President John F. Kennedy rescheduled his $1,000 a plate fundraiser booked at the Beverly Hilton so the prom scheduled there at the same time could be held. Then in 1975, President Ford allowed Susan's high school to hold their prom in the White House while he was in office.  It is important to note, that proms have always undergone growing pains as societal views have changed over time.  Often proms are the last to make changes such as when interracial dating became more normal. 

Now most high schools have to figure out how to handle the issue of schools being closed and rules that limit the number of attendees to any event.  Where I am, the junior class had already ordered the prom decorations when school closed.  So the teacher in charge of the juniors decided to have both a virtual prom on the actual day and then plans to have an unperson one later in the year.  For the virtual one, she arranged for a special snap chat filter to be there from 5 to 12:00 this past Saturday night.  The radio station agreed to play music for the prom from 9:00 to midnight so students could still have a prom.

She asked them to send their pictures to her so she and I will spend this week turning those photos into a memory book we will send out both in digital form and in hard copy.  She has a color printer.  Then on Monday May 11th, we can pass out the hard copies when students come by to pick up their weekly packet of work.  

We know this is to the same as attending the prom in person but it is what we can do.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great week. 

Wait For Me!

Wait for me!

Passage of Childhood

I wonder if any of the puffs will go to China?

Blush Has Been Around Since Egyptian Times

 Blush is something I didn't learn to use as a teenager.  When I began using makeup I didn't understand you needed a color that added just a bit to highlight your cheeks.  I thought you chose the color you liked.  I finally got the hang of it.

In case you might be confused, blush was originally referred to as rouge and most of our grandmothers wore it.  I remember my grandmother who would use a bright red rouge on her cheeks.  It was just two spots on her cheeks.  The term blush has become more common over the past few years.

As far as anyone can tell, the Egyptians were the first ones to make and use blush.  They'd take a red ochre ( a red pigment made from earth) mix it with fat and use that on their lips and cheeks so they stood out against the eyes ringed with black kohl.  It conveyed an image of health so even the sick could appear healthy.

The Romans used a red vermillion (made from cinnabar which is a form or mercury and is highly toxic) on their cheeks while the Greeks preferred to use crushed mulberry to obtain the red color.  Unfortunately, the Greeks often wore lead face powder under the crush mulberry stain which could lead to their death.

By the Middle Ages, only the upper class continued using lead and other dangerous substances to keep their pale skins.  They might have slightly pink cheeks from natural juices but they stayed away from red because prostitutes wore heavily rouged cheeks to advertise their profession.

Then when Queen Elizabeth took the throne, she promoted the pale skin though use of lead based foundation but she used rouge to make her cheeks red and women tried to emulate the same look.  This continued through the 1500's all the way to the 1800's.  Women wore blush because they thought it made them look younger, healthier, and it was recognized as actual makeup by the mid 1700's.

Furthermore, They had a choice of colors based on what it was made from.  If the blush used carmine (an insect), the rouge had a bluish undertone while if it used a reddish mineral, the rouge was more orangish where as rouge based on vegetables was more of a transparent reddish.

Then when Queen Victoria took over in 1837, she pushed for the more natural look by ruling that wearing heavy makeup including rouge and lipstick was extremely rude and was only worn by prostitutes.  She allowed a light blush made of red juices from beets, strawberries, etc because it made women look younger and more innocent.

The reputation of makeup changed beginning in the 1900's when industrialization made it possible for cosmetic companies to mass produce blush and other items.  This meant that makeup was made out of safer ingredients. One of the first rouges created during the industrialization was made of grapefruit and butter with alkanet (a plant) for the red coloring.  In addition, blush came into popularity especially by flappers in the 1920's.

Women continued using blush over the decades but in the 1990's or so, blush went from the redder tones to the more natural tones and became known as blush. In addition, rouges could be found in powder, liquid or creme forms  Recently, the use of blush has decreased due to the increased use of bronzer or highlighter.

So. now you know more about blush, it's use, and it's history.  let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.