My fiance needs some information on how to do her hair in a 50's hair
style for the big wedding day, her hair is long and very hard to curl,
the curls usually fall out.  Web sites with pictures and advice would
be appreciated on how to get her hair curled.  Also, web sites with
other styles for her length hair (she is asian, has black hair, her
hair falls down about 8 inches from the shoulder) would be
appreciated.

Hello, kevingj-ga!

 What a fun question. Here are some links for you and your fiance!
 
 A site called Vintageous.com has links to all sorts of hairstyles
from the 50’s as well as other years. A lot of the 50’s glamour “do’s”
are upswept, as you can see from the pictures. I don’t know if this is
what you are looking for, but begin by going to
http://www.vintageous.com/links.htm . If you follow the Hair Archives
links, you can look through all sorts of hairstyles. The page you will
be most interested in is at
http://www.hairarchives.com/private/archives.htm. Click on any of the
photos from different eras to see what is appealing.

 Some tips on curling hair into nice waves (sort of like the Jane
Mansfield look) can be found on “Making Waves” at
http://www.geocities.com/Wellesley/2457/makewaves.html There are also
hair-crimping irons sold today, larger but similar to the Marcel Iron
shown at the bottom of the page. In either case, I would use some sort
of spray-on styling gel before setting the pin curls. The trick, then,
is to not brush it out once it is set and let loose. Simply run your
fingers through the hair.

  The hairstyle gallery at
http://www.costumegallery.com/hairstyles.htm has a large number of
links to hairstyles from various eras, including the 50’s.

  Another technique my daughter’s use is to set their wet hair, with
gel, into thick braids, which are then lightly fingered through with
the hands once the hair is dry. If you want your hair long for the
wedding, you could then brush the top and sides back into a more
sweeping style and let it set with gel, let the waves from the
loosened braids hang loosely, and gently curl the ends under with a
curling iron. It would look quite similar to the picture on the
opening page of the Hair Archives site at
http://www.hairarchives.com/private/main.htm

  Rag curlers would also work quite well with straight hair, but I
don’t know if this is a look you would want. See a picture at
http://www.geocities.com/Wellesley/2457/ragstyle.jpg . If you like it,
the directions are at
http://www.geocities.com/Wellesley/2457/ragcurls.html

 A website concerning Asian hair and hairstyles might be helpful, but
I only saw a few suggestions that you might consider. Go to
http://www.asiams.net/

 Another site concerning various aspects of Asian hair care with some
links to styles can be found at
http://beauty.about.com/cs/asianhaircare/index_2.htm

 I hope this offers some help! Of course, the last resort is always
the hairdresser who will use lots and lots of hairspray to keep your
fiance's hair from moving!

 Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

 umiat-ga 



Google Search strategy
+curly +50's +hairstyles
curling Asian hair

I grew up in the 1950s, and for much of that period, the most popular
hairstyle for teens was a simple ponytail, worn high on the head. A
classic, perky ponytail with a ribbon bow, and maybe a couple of
retro-styled barrettes here and there, would save all the agonizing
over curls and styling. It would also hold up well to the rigors of
dancing at the reception. A trouble-free hairstyle takes a lot of the
worry out of one's wedding day preparations!