My partners final design.

Here is my partners final design sketches. For the final assessment I will be creating a look that has a french plat down the middle of the head, which then leads into a fishtail plat. Then there will be padding on the back of the head which is pointing upwards. This will then be covered with big, backcombed hair and the front section twisted against the hair to create a curl. 

How did Elizabethan's decorate their hair?

The coif:
This would usually be worn by women and children from the poorer background. This is because it would be used to protect the hair from the weather. The coif was usually made out of white linen and fit over the hair, tying under the chin.

Image sourced from google images, originally from here

The caul:
The caul was usually made from netted rope, however could also be made from wire. This was the embroided with pearls, gems and more expensive decorations, therefore this would have been worn by the more wealthier members of society.

Image sourced from google images, originally from here

Reference: Research on the coif and coil from 

http://www.elizabethancostume.net/headwear/snood.html

The Pillow Box hat:                                                                           

You can infer from the name that this type of item the Elizabethan's used to decorate their hair resembled a box. These would usually sit at the back of the head, holding the hair.

Image sourced from google images, originally from here

Ribbon, pearls and gems: 

Image sourced from google images, originally from here

Ribbon, pearls and gems:

Once again, this method of decorating the hair was favoured by the wealthier members of Elizabethan England, particularly the royal. This was because it represented the status of wealth and having the means to afford luxurious fabrics and items that poorer people did not. This was also a very beautiful method of decorating the hair. As you can see in the image above the ribbon has been threaded through what seems to be a twist rather than a plat and has then been decorated with various pearls and gems.

Experimenting with padding for my design

 In todays lesson my partner and I experimented with the padding that I have included in my initial hair designs. I think this worked well and with a bit of practice could looks quite successful. Practicing this has also lead me to realise that due to the length of my hair, I could make the padding a lot higher and therefore adding a contemporary twist to the historical element of my design. 

Initial hair designs

Here are the initial designs for my take on a contemporary yet historical Elizabethan hairstyle. On the right I have drawn a bun with a plat wrapped around it to decorate, this would be the contemporary element of the design. The historical element of this design is the heart shaped padding with curls to decorate on the top of the head, with the curls left down at the sides. The left design is more contemporary than historical. This is because there would be a big crimped/frizzed texture to the hair. The only historical element to this hair design would be the pearls used along the hairline/through the hair to decorate and the middle parting. When looking at these designs I think it is important to now look into finding a way to incorporate both of the designs, remembering to keep the final design as much historical as it is contemporary. 

Experimenting with Historic Elizabethan hairstyles.

Here is the outcome of my experimentation of using curls to decorate the padding used to create a historic Elizabethan look such as these ones

Image sourced from google images, originally from here

Image sourced from google images originally from here

When experimenting with these historic looks I used padding then crimped the hair in order to cover the padding. Following this I decided to curl some of the hair in order to cover the crimping. Here is the outcome of this.

 I feel that the outcome of this was good. I think the curls cover the crimping well and add a pretty element to the overall look whilst still looking like the texture and shape of the historic Elizabethan portraits. This is definitely something I will take into consideration when designing my final Elizabethan hairstyle.


Another way that I have experimented with to cover up the padding needed to create a historic Elizabethan shape was to wrap the hair around a clip in a figure of eight, pin in place and heat using straighteners. This created a wave to the hair that when placed over the padding created the texture that was featured in most historic Elizabethan looks. Here is the outcome of this.

 Again I think this looks quite successful and is again something I will take into consideration when designing my final new Elizabethan hairstyle.

Experimentation with Contemporary Elizabethan hairstyles

As you can see I have been experimenting with the contemporary element of my Elizabethan hairstyle. I have taken inspiration from catwalk looks such as the Topshop Unique fashion show and have crimped and then back combed my hair in order to create the big puffy hair. I feel this still links to the historic element of my design as the texture of the hair resembles that of the texture from the historic hairstyles (coarse, frizzy and puffy) yet buy including the element of having the puffy texture down, I feel it adds a contemporary feel to the overall look and resembles that of the hairstyles that have been featured on the catwalk in the past few years. Here is the final outcome of this experimentation.

Contemporary Elizabethan hair texture

Both above images from Topshop unique ss11 

Above image from Marc Jacobs 11 

When adding the contemporary element to my Elizabethan hair style I think I will go for a look that resembles these above images. This is because I have long hair so I think creating this large texture on my hair will prove very successful and effective. However these looks still remind me of Elizabethan hair styles due to the colour on the Marc Jacobs look and the middle parting on the Topshop unique look. Therefore by keeping the middle parting and adding another element that resembles previous Elizabethan looks I will hopefully achieve something effective. 

Looking into contemporary Elizabethan hair styles.

Updo's. 

To me this Dolce and Gabbana look from fall 2013 feels Elizabethan. The middle parting in this hair style reminds me of an Elizabethan look. However I feel as though the look as a whole reminds me of being Elizabethan, for example the use of the crown as a head piece and the red lips all contribute to this look having an Elizabethan feel.

To me this look, again from Dolce and Gabbana gives me an Elizabethan impression. However again due to the use of an extravagant head piece used to decorate the style. I think when planning my designs I will try and incorporate a head piece into my style as I feel this gives it a royal and elegant feel to the overall look. 

This look from Valentino fall 2013 feels Elizabethan to me due to the colour of the hair and the slicked back middle parting. This fits with the typical look of an Elizabethan woman, however they have made the look contemporary by not having the hair in the frizzy style that was previously worn or in and by having the hair in a plait. 

This look to me feels Elizabethan purely due to the height and texture of the hair. However they have managed to put a contemporary twist on the look with the use of the fishtail plait and having the front of the hair loose.