Victorian Hair Styles

When Amelia went to live at her Aunt Cora’s house in London, she was given curly ringlets - part of her transformation to make her fit for fashionable London Society. In Victorian times long hair was plaited, pinned and twisted into complicated styles that could take hours to create – and all without hairdryers !

Amelia’s maid, Effie, used to roll and twist Amelia’s hair into dozens of rags, tied into knots,so that it would be curly in the morning.

You can recreate her curls yourself, with your friends at a sleepover, using the same method. The Victorian look is fashionable again for this party season – lovely with a short lacy dress or top and a choker. Use more rags for tighter curls and fewer rags for a looser look – or leave some sections straight and some curled.

Here's how:
1. First, dampen your hair with a spray bottle or a wet comb.

2. Take a section of hair, twist it and then wrap the hair in one of your strips of fabric, rolling towards your scalp.

3. Tie the fabric strip in place and repeat until you have tied up all your hair.

That's it ! You can sleep overnight in your rags, like Amelia used to do, and in the morning you will have curly hair!