Jump Ahead
Victorian hair is one of those things we think we recognize on sight. Ringlets, enormous updos, maybe a bun or two. But Queen Victoria was on the throne for more than 60 years, and women’s hairstyles changed quite a bit between 1837 and 1901.
Early Victorian styles tended to sit lower and closer to the head. By the 1870s, hair had moved upward into increasingly elaborate arrangements of braids, curls, and knots. The 1880s brought things back under control somewhat, while the 1890s introduced the soft height we now associate with the Gibson Girl.
The easiest way to recreate one today is to work from a real portrait rather than a vague idea of “Victorian hair.” The photographs below span several decades and show just how many variations there were.
The Low Victorian Bun
One of the simplest styles in these photographs comes from a woman photographed sometime between 1860 and 1870. Her hair is parted neatly down the middle, smoothed back, and gathered into a low bun at the nape of her neck. The State Library of Queensland describes the hairstyle the same way, so this is one instance where we can see the arrangement particularly clearly.
It’s also an easy one to copy. Make a clean center part, smooth the hair toward the nape, and twist the length into a compact bun. Keep the top fairly flat instead of adding modern crown volume.
William Sommer’s 1890 portrait shows a softer version of the low bun. The sitter’s hair is still gathered at the back of the neck, but the front isn’t pulled nearly as tight. A little texture and a few loose curls give it a less severe look. The Cleveland Museum of Art dates the drawing specifically to 1890.
For this version, loosely wave the hair first, then make your bun. Don’t smooth every strand into submission. The slight looseness around the face is part of what makes it work.
Long Victorian Ringlets
This George Richmond portrait has been on the page from the beginning, but there’s a wrinkle: it isn’t actually Victorian. The Cleveland Museum of Art dates it to about 1830–1835, just before Victoria came to the throne in 1837.
It’s still worth keeping because the tightly defined ringlets are closely related to the curled styles seen in later 19th-century portraits. Here, the hair is center-parted and smooth on top, with groups of narrow curls framing both sides of the face.
Fast-forward roughly 30 years, and the same basic idea is still visible in this Mathew Brady Studio portrait of Harriet Beecher Stowe, dated to about 1860–1870. Her center-parted hair falls in several long, narrow curls on either side of her face.
Clara Jennings wears an even more dramatic version in another Mathew Brady Studio portrait from about 1860–1870. Her ringlets are long, glossy, and very deliberately separated rather than brushed together.
To recreate this look, start with a center part and keep the crown smooth. Curl relatively small sections vertically and let each curl cool before touching it. Don’t brush them out. You want visible individual spirals rather than a head of soft waves.
Aina’s Smooth 1862 Style
Aina, better known today as Sarah Forbes Bonetta, was about 19 when Camille Silvy photographed her on September 15, 1862. The portrait was taken a month after her marriage to James Pinson Labulo Davies.
Her hairstyle reminds us that Victorian hair didn’t always involve curls or towering buns. The hair sits close to the head, with broad, smooth sections brought around the sides. The photograph doesn’t show enough of the back to tell us exactly how the length was secured.
To borrow the look, keep the hair smooth at the crown and sides and direct the length back without adding height. Braids, twists, or a low pinned arrangement can handle the part we can’t see.
The Braided Crown and Long Plait
This young woman, photographed in Brisbane sometime between 1880 and 1890, gives us one of the clearest hairstyles in the group. Her hair is divided between a thick, long plait tied with a large bow and a much smaller braid wrapped around the head. Even her fringe gets its own treatment, with rows of tight little curls across the forehead.
It’s also one of the most fun styles here to recreate because each element is easy to recognize.
Separate enough hair near the front or crown to make a narrow braid, then wrap and pin it across the head. Braid the remaining length into one thick plait and finish it with a ribbon. If you have bangs or shorter pieces around the forehead, curl those tightly rather than trying to blend them into the braid.
No chignon required.
The High Victorian Bun
A woman photographed sometime between 1870 and 1880 wears her hair much higher, with the bulk of it arranged directly over the crown. The archive doesn’t give the hairstyle a particular name, which is a good reason not to assign one ourselves.
What matters is the silhouette. Instead of gathering the length behind the head, almost all of the visual weight sits on top.
Another 1870s portrait makes the construction easier to see. This member of the Curtis family wears a sharp center part with the hair pulled tightly upward into a bun on top of her head. That’s also how the State Library of Queensland describes it.
For a simple version, make a center part and brush both sides upward toward the crown. Secure a high ponytail first if you need the control, then coil it into a bun. For the fuller shape of the first portrait, loosen or braid the length before pinning it around the base.
Piled Curls and Decorative Combs
These three women, possibly sisters, were photographed during the 1870s, and their hairstyles are almost as ornate as their dresses. All three have center parts with curls piled high on the head and decorative combs holding the arrangements in place.
I like this photograph because the styles aren’t identical. It’s a good snapshot of how the same basic idea could be adapted rather than copied exactly.
At home, divide your hair down the center and curl the lengths first. Pin the curls loosely around the crown rather than forming one solid bun. A decorative comb tucked into one side will do more for the period look than adding another dozen curls.
Half-Up Victorian Curls
Not every young woman in the 1870s had her hair completely pinned up. This teenage girl, photographed by Albert Lomer in Brisbane sometime between 1870 and 1880, wears hers in a curled half-up, half-down style. The State Library of Queensland identifies her as a teenage girl or young woman and specifically describes the hairstyle as half up and half down.
This may be the easiest style in the article to wear without feeling like you’re in costume.
Curl the hair first, then take sections from the front and sides and pin them toward the crown. Leave the remaining curls loose down the back. Keep the curls fairly defined instead of brushing them into modern waves.
Short, Tight Victorian Curls
This portrait from about 1890–1900 is especially interesting because the woman’s hair appears quite short. Instead of a visible bun or long braid, she wears a mass of small curls close around the top and sides of her head. The photograph was taken by W. J. Ford and is held by the State Library of Queensland.
It’s a useful example for anyone who assumes Victorian hairstyles require very long hair.
For short hair, work with the length you have rather than trying to fake an updo. Small rollers or a narrow curling iron can create tight curls, which can then be shaped close to the head with pins.
A Smooth Late-Victorian Updo
Another photograph from 1890–1900 shows almost the opposite approach. This woman, photographed by Mathewson & Sons in Brisbane, has her hair swept smoothly away from her face and arranged neatly at the back.
There isn’t much visible ornamentation or an obvious curl pattern. The effect comes from the clean shape.
Brush the hair away from the face and gather it toward the upper back of the head. Twist or coil the length and pin it closely against the head rather than letting the bun project outward. A little softness at the front keeps it from looking like a modern slicked-back bun.
The Gibson Girl Updo
The Gibson Girl belongs at the very end of the Victorian period and continued well into the Edwardian years. Charles Dana Gibson’s ideal began appearing in the 1890s, usually with plenty of soft, upswept hair around the face.
The photograph already on this page captures that familiar exaggerated silhouette: lots of height at the front and crown with the hair gathered high rather than tightly slicked back.
To recreate it, curl or wave your hair first. Loosely pull the front and sides upward while leaving plenty of fullness around the hairline. Pin the remaining length into a high, soft bun, then gently loosen the front with your fingers.
The goal isn’t a perfectly round “beehive.” In fact, that’s one thing I’d retire from the old version of this article. The beehive belongs to a much later era. What makes this look like a Gibson Girl is the soft, almost oversized volume around the face.
Victorian hair becomes a lot less mysterious once you look at real people rather than costume versions of them. Some of these women wore elaborate curls and braids, but others had nothing more complicated than a smooth bun.
Pick the portrait you like, copy its basic shape, and let modern bobby pins handle the rest.
