The Wig Curlers

The wig curlers that could be found on the dressing tables at Versailles were not that different from those found in stores today. They were made of clay and varied in sizes depending on the curl size desired.

Clay curlers, around 1700

People already know that heat would make the hair stay curly which lead to a variety of odd ways to curl the hair. The simple way was to heat the curlers beforehand which is probably why they were made of something as simple as clay and not porcelain. For those who wanted permanent curls this was the procedure: first you twirl the hair around a clay curler and the curler would be steeped in boiling water. Another way was to make the hair damp and then place the hair in an oven until the hair would stay.

The curlers were thick and round at each end while the middle was thinner to keep the hair in place. Unlike most other make-up tools, the wig curler was actually widely used. Considering how simple the technique was to create the desired curls it is no wonder that even those of smaller fortunes would find the means to get hold of one.