Rockabilly Hairstyles

Even if you are not old enough to remember the music of the 40's and 50's, you have definitely seen pictures of the top entertainers of that period. The rockabilly culture was based on music that was country and bluegrass in style, the birth of rock n' roll. This is when men slicked their hair back or styled it in a pompadour. Some even considered the rockabilly hairstyles to be the greaser look and the bad boys in all the big films depicting that era had that type of cut. Commonly, this hairstyle involved a cut with short sides and a long top and back. This way the top could be swept up into a pompadour or slicked back, depending upon their personal style. For some, the hair was messed up a bit on top; this either came off as a bad boy look or a sensual look, depending on the clothing worn with the hairstyle. The next component is layering. All rockabilly hairstyles are layered. Each layer is four inches long. Curls are also important for pulling off a genuine rockabilly look. While you do not have to have naturally curly hair or even a perm to pull off the look you do need to be willing to spend a little time curling your hair in order to do it. Roll curls were the most common and are the most recognizable or rockabilly styles. They are large curls created by rolling the hair while damp. Once the hair has dried and the rollers have been removed the hair is thoroughly teased (and then teased a little more for good measure) and then rolled into a tube using a round hairbrush. Next, tuck the ends of the hair into the created roll and pin and spray (with hairspray) like crazy.

Pin curls were not as common as roll curls but were widely used for the back of the hair in true rockabilly hairstyles. This style involved wrapping small sections of hair that is barely damp (and well gelled) around a finger and holding the curl into place with pin curls (bobby pins had a tendency to leave an impression or dent in the curls). Allow the pins to remain in place and the curls to set for 24 hours.