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When Did the Fake Hair Cutlure Begin?

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H

Harina

Well-Known Member
This is probably a question that some of the older ladies can answer. For some reason, I can't imagine people in the 50's, 60's, 70's, and 80's wearing weaves and braid extensions. Even when I look at pictures or watch films from these periods, I don't see the fake hair thing. I've been trying to figure out when it all began, especially the styles listed. I'm assuming it really took off in the 90's but there must've been a starting point earlier on when women started wearing fake hair. I doubt everyone just woke up one morning with a weave glued to their head. . Did you notice a big increase in women wearing fake hair when you were younger? Or was it a gradual change? Did it startle you? Did people make a big deal when this was happening? Just Curious. If there was a thread on this, please bump it, because I couldn't find one.
 
Think Diana Ross...

BTW...the title is totally making me laugh, thanks!

ETA: Not saying she was first...just the first I know of, I think...LOL!
 
Good question, I was born in the 80's so I'm used to fake hair, but even in the 90's fake hair wasn't in as today. I can't wait to read the replies.
 
I've thought the same thing...I was watching old school videos and 90% the women had their own hair! It seems like it all started around the late 90s when it became soo widespread. I think women have always worn fake hair, but it was the "wear everyday all day full head of weave" until maybe the last 10-15 years.
 
There were wigs in the early 90's in a lot of Family matter episodes. I didn't notice then but Laura Winslow sometimes wore wigs, not all the time though. And MYra, wow! She was the queen of bad wigs, lol :lachen: I just never noticed before now. I wish i would have known about it that early, i would have been waistlength by now. I didn't catch on till 2007. Wow, i'm late.

ETA: I think wigs were primariliy worn by Actresses back in the day. Now everyone is doing it.
 
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chiprecious said:
I've thought the same thing...I was watching old school videos and 90% the women had their own hair! It seems like it all started around the late 90s when it became soo widespread. I think women have always worn fake hair, but it was the "wear everyday all day full head of weave" until maybe the last 10-15 years.[/quote]

Right, it's like it just crept up on all of us. My friend and I are we're joking about how we're the only race of women who have to refer to our natural hair as "natural". The more I think of it, the more bizarre it seems.
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secretrose said:
There were wigs in the early 90's in a lot of Family matter episodes. I didn't notice then but Laura Winslow sometimes wore wigs, not all the time though. And MYra, wow! She was the queen of bad wigs, lol :lachen: I just never noticed before now. I wish i would have known about it that early, i would have been waistlength by now. I didn't catch on till 2007. Wow, i'm late.
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Knock me over with a feather! Really, I am going to have to revisit Family Matters.
 
I remember growing up in the 70s that some ladies and family members ALWAYS wore wigs when they were dressing up for church or to go out. It was as de rigeur as a girdle :yep: I'm interpreting "fake hair" more loosely than just weaves and braid eextensions.
 
soulie said:
I remember growing up in the 70s that some ladies and family members ALWAYS wore wigs when they were dressing up for church or to go out. It was as de rigeur as a girdle :yep: I'm interpreting "fake hair" more loosely than just weaves and braid eextensions.[/quote]


True True. And it should be since they were the precursors.
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I was watching Family Matters the other day, lookin at Myra like :perplexed

The wig on that chile's hair was a HAM! Laura wore a lot of half wigs too. When I was younger, I really thought that was her hair. How could I have been so naive? :giggle:
 
I got my first micro braids with curly human hair extensions in Los Angeles sometime in 1983. I was the only one I knew with them at the time other than my friend in the entertainment industry. She had them and I like them so I got some.
 
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I noticed that too. Im not sure when it became the norm, but I watch Martin reruns, and DANG, he used to crack on Pam's weave all the time:cowgirl:...and this was in the mid-90's I think.
 
CocoCure83 said:
I noticed that too. Im not sure when it became the norm, but I watch Martin reruns, and DANG, he used to crack on Pam's weave all the time:cowgirl:...and this was in the mid-90's I think.
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Tisha Campbell wore half wigs, weaves and phony ponies too. I remember reading somewhere that the hair worn on that show was supplied by Extensions Plus.
 
comike said:
I agree...try the Egyptians. Not only did folks wear wigs but there were hair pieces too...I think they just found more innovative waves of applying/attach the hair pieces.
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correct. I think a google search on "history of wigs and hairpieces" would help the OP.:yep:
 
soulie said:
I remember growing up in the 70s that some ladies and family members ALWAYS wore wigs when they were dressing up for church or to go out. It was as de rigeur as a girdle :yep: I'm interpreting "fake hair" more loosely than just weaves and braid eextensions.
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Wigs have always been popular among us as a quick way to get "perfect" hair.

Check out the black girl groups of the 60s. Most of them wore wigs. The Supremes, the Ronettes, The Ikette (Tina Turner and her girls), Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, The Marvelettes etc...
 
Alot of women in the 50's (all races) wore those wigs. Especially entertainers. I think is was for more of a glam look. But, I'm not sure when weaves came in. I guess when someone decided that they want their wig to look more real.
 
When I was growing up it was okay to wear braid extensions. Weaves on the other hand, was a :nono:. I remember this girl was teased all the time because she wore weaves. It was okay for the celebrities to wear weaves but us non-celebs, we paid the price:lol:

I was reading on a blackbeach.com a few years ago, a subscriber blasted someone because she did not wear a weave or piece during some black beach event. She was like who goes to these events wearing their natural hair. I guess times have changed.
 
Wigs have been around FOREVER.

And I remember growing up in the '70s seeing my mom wear this phony pony clip-on. I also remember my childhood friend's mom always wearing wigs at church and then snatching that sucker off as soon as she got home.

I think that what has changed is back in the day maybe older women or entertainers were the main people wearing fake hair. Nowadays the age range has started a lot younger.
 
I think the fake hair culture that we see now, where young children are wearing sew-ins began with the advent of relaxers going mainstream. Even when they wore hair pieces, braid extensions, etc., black women's hair was still relatively healthy underneath such that have to rely on them. Improperly applied chemicals at very young ages can have devastating effects on long-term follicle health.

I'm only 21 but I can remember back in elementary school during the mid-to late 90s that over half of my predominately black school had long hair (as in APL or longer) both relaxed and natural ; "ironically" it was the darkest skinned AA girls who had the longest hair. I even remember us pulling on our ponytails to compare shrinkage. My friend Treka had ponytails that were past WSL...think Peachtree's or Cat Eye's daughter; her stretched hair was easily thigh or classic length. I had never heard that black girls couldn't grow long hair.

Now, you rarely find little black girls who still have long, healthy thick hair; natural hair is even rarer. I honestly think it's quite sad to see so many young girls with neglected look hair. I often wonder what happened within the course 10 years that could have caused such a drastic change?
 
kblc06 said:
I think the fake hair culture that we see now, where young children are wearing sew-ins began with the advent of relaxers going mainstream. Even when they wore hair pieces, braid extensions, etc., black women's hair was still relatively healthy underneath such that have to rely on them. Improperly applied chemicals at very young ages can have devastating effects on long-term follicle health.

I'm only 21 but I can remember back in elementary school during the mid-to late 90s that over half of my predominately black school had long hair (as in APL or longer) both relaxed and natural ; "ironically" it was the darkest skinned AA girls who had the longest hair. I even remember us pulling on our ponytails to compare shrinkage. My friend Treka had ponytails that were past WSL...think Peachtree's or Cat Eye's daughter; her stretched hair was easily thigh or classic length. I had never heard that black girls couldn't grow long hair.

Now, you rarely find little black girls who still have long, healthy thick hair; natural hair is even rarer. I honestly think it's quite sad to see so many young girls with neglected look hair. I often wonder what happened within the course 10 years that could have caused such a drastic change?
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Is this something that you have actually seen? That's really hard for me to imagine.

Now, crochet braids...those were "sewn-in" and I had them as a kid. But, a head full of sewn in hair?? BTW, I have seen lots of little black girls at my son's elementary school with healthy long hair. A lot of them have "shrinkage," so it's hard to see, but you can see how long it is when they get their hair pressed. My niece (age 6) has APL-length hair and most of the girls on her cheerleading squad have long hair (relaxed & natural).

We really need to stop talking about how everyone's hair is unhealthy. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
 
Junonia said:
When I was growing up it was okay to wear braid extensions. Weaves on the other hand, was a :nono:. I remember this girl was teased all the time because she wore weaves. It was okay for the celebrities to wear weaves but us non-celebs, we paid the price:lol:
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Yup, this is what I remember from the early/mid 80s. If you wore fake hair of any type you were suspected of being "bald headed". And being called bald headed was the biggest insult to a black girl. When I was in high school (86-90) I remember seeing phony ponys and not knowing they were fake. I kept wondering how these girls had ponytails but no visible elastic band. Those were my first memories of fake hair being used among young Black women. I didn't see my first sewed in track until my Senior year. This girl had one put in with green thread. LoL!
 
I think wigs and weaves have always been around. My grandma said she wore a weave back in the 60s. I had to ask her twice did she mean a wig or a weave and she said a WEAVE!
 
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