One of the main ideals for beauty during the Elizabethan times was a woman's hair. Women's hair during this time was hugely extravagant and they paid lavish attention to hair care this was because of Queen Elizabeth's reign who presented her hair immaculately and also was a big fan of wigs.
One of the most striking things about Elizabethan hair is the colour, because of queen Elizabeth she was blessed with auburn hair, however not every woman was blessed with this so they went to the extreme length of dying their hair, they often used a mixture of rhubarb juice and oil of vitol (sulphic acid) however this was highly corrosive and caused women's hair to fall out.
The texture of the hair widely varied during this period, when a woman was unmarried she wore her hair straight and loose this was seen as being virginal, so as a woman became close to the stage of being married they would pin their hair up in shorter styles and was also curled, these pinned up styles were often very elaborate and were tied to the head with ribbon on plaited then would be decorated with ornate jewels and pearls which would compliment the ornate outfits that they used to wear.
During this time a high hairline was very desirable, this was again inspired by the queen and was also emphasised by her use of wigs, some women would even pluck their hairline back an inch to achieve this look. Elizabethan hair was also very high, with rounded edges or sometimes was even moulded
into a heart shape using hair rats (pads made of hair to support the elaborate styles of the time.)
It is also important to understand that only affluent women of the time would be able to afford these hairstyles as they were highly elaborate and took a lengthily time to create.
Victoria Sherrow (2006). Encyclopedia of Hair - A Cultural History. London: Greenwood Press. p 116 - 117.
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