Greetings, Fashion Bombers!
Danielle here to take you on a trip down Black History Beauty Trend lane.
While finger waves may have seen its origins in the 1920s, we all know it best as it was rocked in the 1990s by ’round-the-way girls and the bourgeoisie alike. For less than the price of two weeks allowance, fly girls (and gents–heyyyy) crammed into beauty shops on Every Corner, U.S.A. to get the gelled up and slicked down wavy ‘do. After the hair was washed, a stylist would then grab a fishtail comb, a gallon of gel, and get to work perfecting every little intricate wave.
Then you sat under the dryer until your waves hardened to a crisp and you had a ready-made style for a whole week (two if like Miss Jackson, you were nasty). Now if your stylist was really dope, she could hook you up with glitter and/or colors in your waves and O-M-G remember the “scrunch” with the finger waves?!?! A scandal.
Nowadays unless your name is Cleetus (ok, or Keyshia Cole), you probably are not rocking finger waves. However the style has taken on several reincarnations in the new millennium: today’s finger waves are much looser and can actually move.
For the funniest pop culture reference to finger waves that I can remember, fast forward to 4:02.
And if you wanted to learn the technique, check out this video:
In addition to revolutionizing East Coast rap, the Notorious Big ignited a certified urban fashion trend with his love for colorful Coogi Sweaters:
Founded in Australia in 1969, Coogi counted Bill Cosby amongst its initial fans in the 1980s:
Perhaps inspired by the upper middle class Cliff Huxtable, Christopher Wallace, aka Biggie Smalls or Notorious Big, reappropriated the trend in the early 90’s, wearing the expensive, intricately patterned knits in promotional pictures and even rapping about the brand in songs, saying “Living better now, Coogi sweater now” and “I stay Coogi down to the socks, rings and watch filled with rocks“: The brand enjoyed unrivaled success in that era, as college aged men and women wore the label in variations that included cardigans and form fitting dresses:
Coogi isn’t quite as popular as it was in the early 90’s, though the company still produces t-shirts, jeans, jackets, and footwear in addition to its signature knitwear.
Do you have any Coogi sweater memories?
Maybe I’m delirious, but I’d rock a Coogi dress today…why not? Would you? If so, visit www.shopcoogi.com.
What would the 90’s have been without oversized Starter Jackets?
Before Louis Vuitton Varsity’s became de rigeur, popular R&B and rap groups like Another Bad Creation, Jodeci, and NWA rocked colorful Starter Jackets (and matching caps) to show team allegiance and, of course, style:
Starter Jackets skewed towards the expensive side, so were seen as a status symbol for those who could afford them. Their exclusivity led to robberies and incidents of jacket stealing.
These days upstarts like designers Dee & Ricky are casting a new light on the trend, fashioning computer and gym bags out of vintage Starter Jackets:
What do you think?
Of course I had a Starter Jacket (I went through a bit of a tomboy phase), and probably still have my North Carolina Blue somewhere in my closet back home.
Did you guys rock Starter Jackets? Source, Source & Source
While the women of the mid 80’s were busy popularizing Doorknocker earrings, male hip hop stars asserted their individuality with large gold rope or dookey chains.
In rap’s nascent years it was important for stars to stand out in over the top ways, and wearing large jewelry, aside from glimmering in the light, was a sign of prestige and wealth. As Mr Cee, a long time friend of notorious rapper Big Daddy Kane, said in the book “Bling Bling” by Minya Oh, “…It [was] all about presence. When you look at hip hop artists, whether it’s the clothes that they wear, the sneakers that they wear, the hats that they wear – it’s all about the “wow!” effect. It’s all about getting people to look at you two and three and four times. And when it comes to clothes, or jewelry, or anything that will get attention, they will use that to their advantage.”
Pioneer rapper Kurtis Blow kicked off the ‘chain’ trend, rocking several gold necklaces at once…
…And Adidas sporting group Run D.M.C. took the look to the next level by wearing weighty, thick necklaces that resembled rope:
These days rappers have bypassed gold in favor of platinum, diamonds, and huge medallions: As Cheryl “Salt” James of Salt-N-Pepa said in “Bling Bling”, “For generations Black people were economically disadvantaged. So bling [was] a way for us to say, “We’re making it too!” It makes you feel good about yourself. Those shackles are platinum now. Those shackles are now diamonds around your wrist. Our music and fashions came from the streets. We did it on our own. And bling emphasizes that. “
It looks like this trend is here to stay!
Read more about ‘bling’ and hip hop jewelry in Minya Oh’s book here:
And stay tuned for more Black History Fashion and Beauty Trends! Source, Source & Source
Did you know that the Jheri Curl, worn so proudly by the Jacksons, Ice Cube, and your crazy aunties and uncles, was invented by the son of Irish immigrants? Yep–’the curl’ was made by a white man!
Born as Robert William Redding in Rantoul, Illinois in 1907, Redding’s interest in the beauty industry began during the Great Depression when he realized that hair stylists and makeup artists had the best paying jobs (even in the midst of great poverty, folks were still getting their hair did–heyyyy). As a young man, he taught chemistry and worked as a hair stylist eventually becoming one of the first men to get a cosmetology license. When the products he was using did not meet his expectations, he began experimenting with chemicals and mixed them with household items like mayonnaise and vinegar to create his own shampoos. Later on, it was Redding who brought the pH balance factor in when it came to shampoos and invented the first creme rinse conditioner. He also started hair companies Redken, Nexxus, Jheri Redding Products Company, and Jhirmack some of which are now owned by other brands.
While permanent waving had been a popular technique since about 1872 when Marcel Grateau developed a tool that would curl the hair, it was widely done on clients with straight hair. It was Jheri Redding who first started to experiment with permanent waving on excessively curly hair using small toothpicks for rolling the hair. And thus the Jheri Curl was born and every pillow in African American households around the United States became saturated with the juice.
A jheri curl was a two-part application that consisted of a softener (often called a “rearranging cream”) to loosen the hair and a solution to set the curls. The rearranging cream used pungent chemicals, causing the naturally tight curls to loosen and hang. The loose hair was then set on perm rods and a chemical solution was then added to the hair to permanently curl it.
Perming the hair was time and labor-intensive and expensive to upkeep. The harsh mix of chemicals required for the process caused the wearer’s natural hair to become extremely brittle and dry.
To maintain the look of the jheri curl, users were required to apply activator and heavy moisturizers daily and to sleep with a plastic cap on their heads to keep the hairstyle from drying out. These products were relatively expensive (a typical bottle of activator was small, retailed anywhere from $3 to $6, and was quickly depleted.) The activator in particular had the undesirable side effect of being very greasy; this would often stain clothing and anything that came into contact with it.
Washing the hair cleansed it of the styling products but also exposed the damage done to the hair by the chemical process. Also, as the hair grew out, the wearer would be forced to return to the hair salon for a touch-up, further adding to the overall expense. The hairstyle went out of fashion by the mid 1980’s and was replaced in part with the hi-top fade haircut.
Sources say the Jheri Curl was out of style by the mid-1980s, but we all remember that classmate or neighbor who lit up rooms with the aroma of their curl well into 1995 and beyond. But the Jheri Curl did have a good run while it lasted. Who can forget iconic curl wearers like Ashford & Simpson, Rick James, Eriq LaSalle, Easy-E, the family that owned fictional company ‘Soul Glo’, and the curl of all curls worn by the late, great, legendary Michael Jackson.
Hey Guys!
Happy Monday!
As you know, February is Black History Month, and every year we try to bring you the best knowledge about African-Americans in Fashion!
When we first started, we offered history on black designers known and unknown, and last year we blitzed you with a bevy of fun black history facts (read our section here).
This year, we’re going to take a look at beauty and fashion trends born in the black community.
Our first trend: Bamboo Door Knocker Earrings: Salt N Pepa, New York City 1987
Staring in the mid 1980’s female rappers like Salt-N-Pepa, MC Lyte, and Roxanne Shanté popularized large, gold, bamboo door knocker earrings. Roxanne Shante, Roxanne’s Revenge 1984
Scores of women incorporated the trend into their lifestyle, so much so that in his song “Around the Way Girl,” rapper LL Cool J rhymed, “I need a girl with extensions in her hair, bamboo earrings, at least two pair.”
In recent years, young starlets such as Meagan Good, Rihanna, and Keri Hilson have reinvigorated the trend, rocking the style in many designs and shapes.
You can now find mainstream designers such as Kenneth Jay Lane and John Hardy selling hip-hop inspired bamboo earrings in Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus:
Have you ever rocked Bamboo Earrings?
Stay tuned for more Black History Month fashion and beauty fun!
Until then, check out these 80’s videos and reminisce:
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