I love vintage photos of everyday women’s hairstyles. They are real, attainable and not movie star quality. I think it’s just so wonderful to see that not everything was perfect but still looked lovely.

For those of us who like to do vintage hairstyles, I think it’s easy to get caught up in thinking you have to have a perfect style, but these women are proof that perfection was not always attainable (and they still look great).

I have also decided to do this post because I have been noticing that lots of people are searching for ‘1950s women’s hairstyles’ and coming to my website. I don’t have loads of content on this specific era and this is because I absolutely love 1 940s hairstyles. So today’s post is a bevy of wonderful 1950s photos of women and their 1950s hairstyles.

Enjoy!

1950s vintage photo of a young woman posing in a photo booth with a 1950s hairstyle, red lips, 1950s accessories.

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

1950s Photos of Everyday Women’s Hairstyles

“A smile and a squint”, May 1955. What a super example of curled hairstyle pulled back with a curl left in the front. Our young lady looks adorable.

1950s vintage photo of a young woman with a 1950s hairstyles and pearl necklace smiling at the camera. Super 1950s vintage hairstyle inspiration

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

1950s vintage photo of a beautiful young women named Dorothy Wallace. She is wearing a short 1950s hairstyle (very popular during the 50s).

1950s vintage photo of a beautiful young Black Women named Dorothy Wallace. She is wearing a cute short 1950s hairstyle. Fantastic vintage hair inspiration.

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

Cute short pageboy 50s hairstyle in this image of a young woman with the BEST glasses on! This feels like a yearbook photo to me.

Further Reading: Vintage Photos of Women who wear Eyeglasses

1950s vintage photo of a young woman with red lips, short 1950s hairstyle and 1950s eyeglasses on with pearls around her neck

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

Photo booth images are a super resource for vintage hairstyle inspiration. You can usually see the style really well, like on our serious faced young women (Rose Morrison) with the plaid vest and a bobbed curl hairstyle.

1950s vintage photo of a pretty young Black Women in a photobooth with a 1950s hairstyle and plaid vest

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

Two women in Japan in 1950s fashions and short 1950s hairstyles smile for the camera.

1950s vintage photo of two Japanese women in 1950s fashions and 1950s hairstyles in Japan

Girls night! Pick your fav hairstyle from this group of young ladies having a great time together.

1950s vintage photo of a group of girls in 1950s hairstyles and 1950s fashion posing for the camera at a girls night

Source: Etsy-DearMacyVintage

HAZARD! Ada has something she is thinking about in this photo booth image. Maybe it’s about her fantastic hair? HA!

1950s vintage photo of a Black woman with a 1950s hairstyle and plaid dress on posing in front of a sign that says hazard

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

A head full of curls and some doggy time on the porch swing.

1950s vintage photo of a young woman with a 1950s hairstyle holding a dog on her porch swing.

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

November 1955-This photo makes me happy, and it’s because of the big smile on our adorable woman in the big chair. Her hair is perfectly curled and she has a great 1950s outfit on.

Further Reading: Vintage Photos of Wallpaper Designs in Mid Century Homes

1950s vintage photo (November 1955) of an older woman in a 1950s dress sitting in chair in her living room with a 1950s hairstyle. Love the big smile on her face.

Source: Etsy-AlaskaVintage

“The Dixie Cups”. 4 women with short hairstyles posing together at a party.

1950s vintage photo of 4 Black Women drinking out of dixie cups posing together in 1950s fashions and 1950s hairstyles

Source: Etsy-JakeRoebucks

Teenage girls in a 1950s fashion show. Another group photo with lots of 50s hairstyle inspirations.

1950s vintage photo of Teenage girls at a fashion show. They are all wearing 1950s fashions and 1950s hairstyles.

Source: eBay

My last photo of this post, is of Ruth Shoemake who has let her natural curls just do their own thing (the cut is still very 50s though). Another great photo for inspiration.

1950s vintage photo of a young woman wearing a 1950s hairstyle and a parl necklace. No makeup.

Source: Etsy-therescuedphoto

I hope you enjoyed the photos I chose for this post, even if your not a vintage hairstyle fan. I will be doing a more detailed post later on down the line, so stay tuned for that.

Question time: Do you like 1950s hairstyles? What was your favourite photo from above?

Further Reading:

When I talk to readers, social media followers and even friends, I hear the same comment…I love your hair but I could NEVER do a vintage hairstyle. Well friends, I’m here to tell you..yes you can! Practice is the trick and helpful tools is another! I am not even close to being an expert on this topic, but I do know that thru my vintage hairstyling journey that watching videos, reading vintage books and looking at vintage & modern images have 1000% helped me get better at doing my hair. So for today’s post I want to share some vintage & modern hairstyle books you can pickup either digitally or hard copy to help get you started (or inspire your next style).

1940s Womens Vintage Hairstyle 1940s Hair 1940s vintage hair

Special note: Sorry to any of my readers who are looking for MEN’s haircuts. There was not really any good content to share that fit the theme of this blog post. Did not leave you out on purpose.

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

NOTE: If you click on any of the items featured below and they are not available, don’t fret! Hit the search button and see what else is on the websites. There are 1000’s and 1000’s of items being listed daily.

Vintage Hair Tools

Hairstyle Books 1940’s & 1950’s

“1948 Hairstyles for You by Ivan of Hollywood!” Learn what styles are good for you, how to start with a good haircut (very important), how to finger wave, what styles to do for various age groups (only a guide, I never follow that rule) and so much more!

(Digital copy avail HERE)

A vintage hairstyling book from 1948. Inside includes guidance on hairstyles, haircuts, curling, etc. Great guide for doing 1940s hairstyles.

Source: Etsy

“Hair Beauty on a Budget” – a vintage booklet from 1950. Inside includes guidance on hair washing, home perming, hair styling, etc.

(Digital copy avail HERE)

Source: Etsy

1954 “How to Wear Your Hair -101 Better Hair Styles to increase your glamour & charm.”

I might purchase the digital copy myself because they have a section on how to wear your hair if you wear glasses (that’s me!).

(Digital copy available HERE)

1950s Hairstyle Book: 1954 "How to Wear Your Hair -101 Better Hair Styles to increase your glamour & charm."

Source: Etsy

“The Mystery of Hairstyling” originally published in 1955 (Digital PDF version avail HERE).

Learn how to create a “cleaver soft wave effect” and so much more.

Source: Etsy

This post was a focus on 1940s & 1950s hairstyle books, but I could not find one for Black Hairstyles from those decades, so I’m going to share this 1960s Guide….“1965 Styles and Sets for Black Hair” (Digital copy avail HERE)

1960s Vintage Hairstyle: 1965 Styles and Sets for Black Hair. Inside it has instructions on how to do 30 hairstyles that were in style in the 1960s

Diahann Carroll’s favourite do is the casual bobcap.

1960s Vintage Hairstyle: 1965 Styles and Sets for Black Hair featuring Diahann Carroll's favourite hairstyle.

Source: Etsy

The following are modern books that you can purchase to also help with your vintage hair journey….

“Vintage Hairstyles Simple Steps for Retro hair with a modern twist” (New..avail as of August 8th, 2022 HERE). You can also find it HERE.

“Vintage Hairstyling: Retro Style with Step-by-Step Techniques 3rd Edition” (avail HERE).

Source: Vintage Hairstyling

Now..does all the above just seem to hard? I hear you and I’m in the thick of it. So I have an option for you that is fun, affordable and stylish…..Annabelle’s Wigs!

Annabelle’s Wigs is an online designer and retailer of vintage / pinup style vegan synthetic wigs, lace fronts, hair pieces & hair extensions. They are based in the UK, but ship all over the world.

Why Wigs? Wigs are great way to change your vintage style in a few minutes with no losing sleep with uncomfortable rollers, no brushouts that take forever, no being upset over curls that did not take. You have instant style! A great option for those who are just not wanting to deal with the fuss.

READERS: I was given a free wig in exchange for a review, BUT I am giving my honest opinion about the product as I don’t believe in leading my followers astray.

MY REVIEW:

I was very excited to have been approached by this company as I have been a follower of them on their Instagram for some time, but have not made a purchase yet. Why? Well I was just not sure if purchasing a vintage style wig was for me. I was also not sure of cost vrs quality and if the style I chose would even look good on me. Well readers all my fears were put aside once my wig arrived in the mail.

My Wig:

I chose the BECCA a dark brown pinup style wig, finger waved with short fringe in a 1950s style (seen below). She was priced at $28.00 GBP which is around $45 Canadian (Great price). And yes I chose brown!

Annabelle's Wig: The BECCA a dark brown pinup style wig, finger waved with short fringe in a 1950s style

Why did I chose brown? Well for one, if I’m going to wear a wig why not go the opposite of what I look like (including adding bangs). Secondly, dark brown is ACTUALLY my real hair colour but I have been a blonde for over 20 years so not many people remember those days (besides my parents).

Okay out of the package we go……

It was glorious! Shiny, styled exactly like the photo and packaged very well so that it was in mint condition on it’s arrival across the ocean.

Now it’s time to put it on, but how?

Their website has helpful tips on how to put on how to get your hair ready (if needed) for how to put it on & wear your wig and I was supplied with detailed care instructions in my package. Very helpful indeed!

NOW the Result….

1950s Vintage Style Wig by Annabelle's Wigs worn by the Vintage Inn Blog.

Here is a side by side as a reminder of what I look like before the wig….

Annabelle's Wigs 1950s Pinup style hair before and after.

To say that I’m happy is an understatement. I LOVE how it looks and it’s so fun to go back to my natural hair colour after 20 some on years of being a blonde. I can’t wait to style it with hair flowers, hairscarfs and wear it out to a Rockabilly party or swing dance (or just to the grocery store).

Their customer service was also steller and they will help you chose the right wig for you (including colour, hair advice etc.). Whatever you need. They were also very helpful explaining the difference to me about a full wig vrs a half and guided me to what I was looking for.

I will be ordering another wig from them in the near future (I’m thinking clip in’s) and I encourage you to do the same. Have fun with your vintage hair journey!

Other places to find hair tips:

Youtube / Instagram / TikTok / Facebook & BLOGS!

Thanks for dropping by friends! I hope you enjoyed finding options on how to make your vintage hair journey a bit easier. Drop me a line if you have any questions anytime about what I shared above at: vintageinnblog@gmail.com

Further Reading:

Liz

Category: Vintage Hairstyles