How did women in the 1950's wear their hair for work and what kind of clothes did they wear?

1950s women

Women flocked to the workforce in the 1940's to help with the war effort, when the 1950's rolled around many women stayed home to raise children but still a significant number of women chose to bring home a paycheck.

In this photo above we have three women sitting in a waiting room for a promotional photo reading various magazines that were popular at the time such as LOOK, GLAMOUR, and LIFE.

Each woman has a short hairstyle with neat curls and they have no bangs as they have brushed those up and over their forehead and styled them into place. Pin curls and rollers were most likely used to get the desired look. These gals all have brunette locks and their ears show as either the sides are cut short or they are tucked behind the ear.

They are all wearing dresses or skirts which was expected of professional women during this era. They look very feminine and capable.

The furniture is simple and typical for the era as we can see a side chair, couch, side table, coffee table and lamp.

hair 1

This one has no part like a boy cut with one side being cut very short above the ear. All strands are brushed forward from the back of the crown and they are cut in graduated lengths and in a choppy fashion. The bangs are side swept and brush over the eyes as they get longer toward the other side and fall into place with the hairstyle. The longer side is cheek level and has razor cut ends. The color is a beautiful red tone with golden highlights that attract the light. She has smoky eye make-up and pale lipstick.

Photo found on Flickr

What a wonderful photo of two brothers posing in front of a vintage car.

Vintage 1930s

The older teenage brother must be dressed for an outing wearing slacks with creases down the legs and a dark suit jacket that would be too small in today's world. He is wearing a white tie. The younger brother is leaning up against the wheel well of their ride very casually with his hands in his pockets. He has a button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up above the elbow. His hair is greased back in period fashion with a side part. The bangs are long but kept out of the eyes with pomade, tonic or even vaseline. A small and modest house is in the background and there is not much to the landscaping. Life was quite simple back then.

close up

The close up shows the boy's face and his blonde hair. His round glasses are very much 30's fashion. If only photos could talk we could find out what these two were up to. Most likely the younger of the two is cooking up a strategy to be a tag along.

This is a lovely portrait of a woman in the 1930's with a typical bob hairstyle.

1930s bob

Her part is off center and she is bang-less. Her brunette hair has gentle finger waves with curls at the ends. The length hits at mid ear which makes this bob quite short. Her make-up is quite plain and she is probably not wearing any. Often the photographer would touch up the photos to smooth skin and refine details. She is wearing a blouse with flowers printed on it and two strands of pearls.

The 1930's was a time when short hair for women was in full swing and the strands were usually combed down and parted on top. In the 1920's gals were starting to go for a shorter 'do and a step toward that they often put their longer hair up to make it look short and / or they created height on top like in this following photo.

1920s Updo

1950's classic: cat eye glasses and a short pixie type cut.

1950s hair and glasses

Her hair is short and wavy which is quite typical for this decade. Her bangs are pushed up and off of her forehead in waves and she has no apparent part. Usually women back then made finger waves or placed pin curls to get the desired look. They often set their locks at night with when it was wet and then let it dry during the night. This is certainly a super easy care style. She has large costume jewelry earrings that were probably clip on. She has two pins on the front of her dress that is very plain and no frills. The frames of her glasses are dark at the outer corners and the bottom half is clear. She has a nice smile with nice white teeth and lipstick for sure.