When I was brainstorming for this writing challenge, and specifically for the letter F "Falkland War" came to mind. But frankly yesterday's post about the Ethiopia famine was depressing enough, and I'd rather treat you to something lighthearted today.
So "fingerless gloves and feathered hair" it is, and if you're anything like me, In your mind's eye, you see Cindy Lauper!
First of all: In today's day and age fingerless gloves make a lot of sense, because smart phones. Back then though? It was more a case of "because I can" ;-)
And that “because I can” attitude pretty much sums up 1980s fashion as a whole. It wasn’t about subtlety or practicality. It was about expression, visibility, and taking up space, sometimes literally. Fingerless gloves weren’t elegant and they weren’t especially useful, but they signaled movement, attitude, and a refusal to be neat or apologetic.
The same applied to hair, especially feathered hair. Not just “big hair”, but hair cut in visible layers, light at the ends, designed to move. Feathered hair looked soft and airy, even when it took a small engineering project to achieve. It framed the face, caught the light, and made sure you were noticed before you even opened your mouth.
Cindy Lauper embodied this perfectly. Her look always felt assembled rather than styled: feathered hair that bordered on chaos, fingerless gloves stacked with bracelets, fishnets layered where they didn’t strictly belong. It looked playful, improvised, and fearless, as if fashion were something you did, not something you followed.
But she wasn’t alone. If there were official poster children for feathered hair in the 1980s, Howard Jones and Limahl would absolutely qualify. Howard Jones wore a softer, intellectual version: light layers, gently blown back, very synth-pop, very thoughtful. Limahl, on the other hand, turned feathered hair into performance art. His Kajagoogoo-era look was sculpted to appear effortless, airy, fluttery, almost androgynous, and completely inseparable from the music and the image.
Of course, achieving that “effortless” look was anything but effortless. Commercial products did a lot of the heavy lifting: mousse, blow-drying with round brushes, strategic backcombing, and, inevitably, generous amounts of hairspray. Hair in the 80s was built, not merely brushed.
And then there were the unconventional methods. Long before YouTube tutorials and affordable styling ranges, people improvised. Sugar water, beer, and lemon juice all made appearances. And yes, the rumors were real: some people really did dilute fabric softener with water as a detangler or shine enhancer. It wasn’t safe, it wasn’t recommended, but it happened. The 80s treated hair like a chemistry experiment, and sometimes the results were spectacular.
Feathered hair was meant to look light and touchable, even when it had survived heat, product, and possibly a mild industrial solvent. But that contradiction was part of the charm. Like fingerless gloves, it wasn’t about function. It was about freedom. The freedom to be seen, to be expressive, and to dress like you had absolutely nothing to apologize for.
Now tell me, what hair experiments did you do, and how did they turn out?
I grew up in the 80s, so I can relate to this. I did fingerless glove experiments, and it turned out to be cool. I didn't do feathered hair.
ReplyDeleteI never got too crazy with my hair. It was definitely bigger during the 80s but still rather tame compared to a lot of my friends.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun picture and would you believe I still have my jean cut off shorts from back in the '80's?? I wasn't into fingerless gloves but Rich loved my Farrah Fawcett shag hair cut! I'll have to see if I can find a picture of that.
ReplyDeleteJamie (jannghi.blogspot.com): Though I lived during the 80s, I didn't wear a whole lot of this stuff. For Halloween last year, I chose to do the 80s with a net shirt. It was too tight, so I cut it into an off-the-shoulder shirt and made fingerless gloves form the cut-off sleeves.
ReplyDeleteMy era was the 50’s and 60’s, so 80’s hair wasn’t for me. I’ve always had long, or longish, hairdos, but these days, my hair is usually short. Wednesday I got a cut and color. It’s the shortest ever, for me. I do use product though. I used to be a hairdresser, so different hairdos and color are part of who I am.
ReplyDeleteFingerless gloves and feathered hair does make me think of Cindy Lauper, although I would say wild hair instead of feathered hair. I think hair did define the 80's. I've never been daring enough to experiment with my hair except cut it once in a while and even that is a bit hard to decide on the length.
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely day.
lissa @postcards from the bookstore
I love feathered hair. Back in the days, I went to a hairdresser for layered cut and perm. Now a days, so many Youtube videos on how to cut your own hair. It's really easy to do the cut. I've been cutting my own hair since I've retired.
ReplyDeleteI also thought of Madonna in Desperately Seeking Susan.
ReplyDeleteI had a Dorothy Hamill hair cut that feathered....I loved it. I wore pink leg warmers and sometimes curled my hair so it was really big.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Barbie