Hair Cushions: An Experimental Book Review of The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Beauty

I’m no stranger to 18th century costuming, but my knowledge is relatively new and limited to Outlander and Black Sails, and I am still learning (always). I attended Costume College last month and sat in on the 18th century beauty lecture led by Lauren Stowell and Abby Cox from American Duchess. My husband, friends, and I are attending Fetes Galantes at Versailles next year, and I absolutely need to bring my A-game, meaning more historical accuracy and less pop culture interpretation. So it was nice to be able to literally get my hands on the accessories and hair cushions featured in their second book, and there were several “ah ha!” moments that made me itchy to go home and experiment. Jumping down experimental rabbit holes, as one does, I made the Banana, Grub, Ski Slope, Donut, Spearhead, and Tootsie Roller hair cushions. Here’s how it went…

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I have their first book, The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking: How to Hand Sew Georgian Gowns and Wear Them With Style (which I had signed at Costume College, thank you ladies!), but I enjoyed the lecture so much that I purchased their second book, The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Beauty: 40 Projects for Period-Accurate Hairstyles, Makeup and Accessories, on Amazon before the conference was even over. One of the hair cushions passed around the class was stuffed with cork. I have A LOT of wine corks saved up from mine and my friends cellars, so I ground up about 200 corks in the blender. Yes, the blender! I chopped 18 at a time with a little bit of water on ice breaker pulse setting and set them out to dry. Meanwhile, I scanned, scaled, and printed the patterns for Banana, Grub, Donut, and Ski Slope. Since this was experimental, I ordered a yard of cheap wool felt (Toffee – Grey Brown – Wool Felt Oversized Sheet – 35% Wool Blend – 3 12×18 inch sheets) for these pieces. I hastily sewed the pieces together according to their instructions and stuffed them with cork bits.

[Related: Cork Craft Round-Up]

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To add unplanned authenticity to the pieces, dog hair made its way into the cushions by way of a tv tray mishap. Wine and/or a clumsy golden retriever may have been involved, but no one is judging or blaming anyone here…right?

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Sewing up the cushion openings by hand while watching Harlots and trying my damnedest to not be tempted to play hard and fast with the outfits on Harlots for my own Versailles inspiration was very difficult. So I soldiered on and read through the book about the evolution of hair shape through the decades. I was beginning to lean towards the donut or ski slope for my Versailles outfit (also leaning mid-18th century or maybe shortly after, forever influenced by Claire from Outlander), but for my forehead and head shape, maybe make one or both smaller than the scaled versions from the book…

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…and that’s when I found two more patterns I hadn’t seen before. Damn it. I made the Spearhead (in two sizes) and Tootsie Roller as well, knowing I’d need one of them for my late 18th century riding habit’s “hedgehog” wig (I know that’s not the proper name, but the nickname has stuck). One yard of toffee wool was completely used for the cushions above, so I used leftover black melton wool from my riding habit, barely seen in the background below, for these three additional pieces. I’ll be wearing a black tricorn, so I’m not worried about the color peeking through all the brown frizz.

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I now have a variety of hair cushions to play with, scale, modify, and refine for the ball next year. I’m loving the book so far, and I thank the authors for writing Layman enough for this unrefined newb to understand. I can’t wait to experiment with the makeup and hair products, and the other accessories as well! There’s just so much information in the book!

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Outlander inspired costumes on the blog:

Costuming Claire from Outlander: Season 2 (& the Red Shoes)

Costuming Claire from Outlander: Season 1 (Additions)

Outlander Inspired Druid Lanterns (DIY)

Costuming Claire from Outlander: Season 3

Costuming Outlander Inspired “Cross Creek” Claire

Costuming Claire from Outlander: Season 1 (c. 1945)

Costuming Captain Black Jack Randall from Outlander

General 18th century pieces also on the blog:

Sewing 18th Century Pocket Hoops

Sewing 18th Century Pockets

Sewing 18th Stomachers

Sewing 18th Century Jackets

Sewing 18th Century Stays

Sewing 18th Century Petticoats

Sewing 18th Century Hat Trim

Sewing an 18th Century Drawstring Bag