Students in Shippensburg University’s Theatre Arts program had the opportunity to study costume history in the Fashion Archives & Museum this spring semester. Prior to spring break, as an integral component to studying fashions of the past, the students explored different eighteenth-century hairstyles. “Too often,” the instructor Dr. Karin J. Bohleke explained, “women’s hair is reduced to the towering and exaggerated styles associated with the 1770s and 1780s that featured boats and other elaborate headpieces. But there were so many other options and the century featured a much broader evolution of looks and techniques.” Using the recent publication The American Duchess Guide to Eighteenth Century Beauty, students busily worked at recreating different styles—with elegant results. One student, Eliza Eames, brought in her sister as a willing model and recreated the soft, curled hairstyle of the 1790s that appears in a number of portraits by Elisabeth Vigée-LeBrun (see image below). The students unanimously agreed that the style was still eminently flattering and wearable today. They thoroughly enjoyed this hands-on experience, and of course, a towering feather adds an element of fun.
