Hair Extension found on Pennsylvania Avenue

Hair Extension. Black Polyester or Polymer fiber. Slightly dirty and in tangled condition. Collected on Pennsylvania Avenue near the Mall. Washington, D.C. (see No. 9) 19th January, 2009.

Artifact Overview

From its coloration, and from the demographic make-up of both the city of Washington, D.C., and that of the out of town visitors during inauguration week, our specimen is believed to be a black fashion accessory, perhaps discarded due to lack of adhesion. It has seen some abrasion, and confusion of strands, perhaps it was even stepped on by the crowds in the national capital that week. At the very least, it falls into our category “Tangled Things”.

Historic Overview

Hair extensions date as far back as ancient Egypt when both men and women wore wigs. Baroque and Georgian hair styles for featured high wigs and even elaborate model ships. The Enlightenment frowned upon artifice in women's hair, yet by the Romantic era fashion turned to elaborate Apollo knots. In the mid Victorian era hair pieces were used extensively in Europe and the Americas by a burgeoning middle class. Edwardian women wore false hair additions to create the pompadour hairstyle. In the 1920’s shorter women's hair styles, including “bobbing” and the “permanent wave” were preferred to extending hair, but in the 1940s longer hair came back into fashion, with or without wigs. The 1960s saw trends for much larger, longer hair. “Coils”, “bouffants” and “beehives” used extravagant hair pieces. Wigs made from real or artificial hair were commonly worn from the 1960s into the early 1970s. In the 1980s and big hair was fashionable, perhaps in lamentable ways, but this trend avoided artificial hair.

In the 1990s hair pieces or wigs became more affordable and more widely accepted. Celebrities (“Spice Girl” Victoria Beckham for instance) were probably imitating African American fashion trends (or the trends of drag queen superstars) when they popularized hair styles featuring extensions. Currently the trend is more widespread. Teenagers looking for long hair have extensions as do older women trying to replace thinning hair. An array of synthetic fibers and natural human hair are utilized. In the Autobiography of Malcolm X mention is made of hair straightening techniques, most of which were inconvenient as well as involving chemical irritants, noxious smells and even pain. The preference for straight hair over curly is considered in light of the prevalent racism of the day.

Adhesion Methods

Varying methods have been found for attaching hair extensions with varying levels of convenience, reversibility and safety. Usually the extension is attached to a small group of collected hair strands. Adhesion and removal of extensions involve wax, glue, chemicals or heat all of which can damage existing human hair and scalp. Semi-permanent hair extensions can be quite costly for each application and their usual duration is only four months.

See also: Trifold Brochure featuring Plan of the Washington, D.C. Mall