Historical hairstyles - Valkyrie knotted ponytail (Janet Stephens style)

 

One of my hair staples for more than a year has been Janet Stephens' knotted Valkyrie ponytail, a historical style inspired by Scandinavian depictions of Valkyries:

This length-shortening updo/half-updo is pretty easy and fast to do, and very comfortable to wear. I've been wearing the standard Valkyrie ponytail and my braided variation (either three-strand or rope-braid) as a weekly staple for more than a year now 😃. A recorded tutorial of my own version of Janet Stephens' video will be coming soon, but in the meantime here are some written instructions as usual, as well as the (ample) pic gallery 😃 xD

 

 

• For this style I used:

-Comb and/or brush as needed.

-A metal-free elastic for the initial ponytail

-Hairstick

-Open pins for final touches 

Steps:

-With the help of some aloe vera gel as a light fixator to control flyaways and static, I comb the hair into a high ponytail, using a metal-free elastic. Mid-height is my preference, but you can do a higher or lower ponytail according to your personal taste.  

You can also do this knotted ponytail without any elastic, as shown in Janet Stephens' video above, but I often use elastics for more than one updo because my hair is very fine-textured and slippery, and that combination generally means absolutely no hold on its own 😅, so I need to have an elastic as a base for the whole updo to stay put in a secure way. Because there's no way my hair wants to hold a knot on its own without the knot slipping down the hair in two seconds, no matter how long the length is xD

-Now comes the knot - Which I do similarly to Janet Stephens' video, but also differently, given that I use an elastic as a base and am also left-handed: What I do is twist the hair counter-clockwise around the base of the ponytail, as if I were doing a cinnamon bun. The knot comes from sliding the hair through the loop and tightening it by pulling against the base of the ponytail, similarly to the self-dressing part of Stephens' tutorial.

 

 -As exemplified in Janet Stephens' video, the knot can be enough to hold the hair, depending on your hairtype and length. In my case my hair is very long, similarly to the first model in the video, but while hers is thicker and of less fine texture, mine is extremely slippery, so the knot slips out of shape immediately even with the elastic base. To remedy this, I further secure the knot using a hairstick (Janet Stephens's tutorial uses a bodkin/hairstick for her shorter-haired model). This also looks nice in a decorative way, and it's additionally functional apart from securing the knot, as it also ensures that the hanging braid stays out of the way in a comfortable way. 

 

-I also tend to use a couple of open bun pics to polish some flyaways at the nape.

 

-Finally, I add some more aloe vera gel (or the fixator of your choice) to set the style and smooth flyaways, and it's done!

 

Final rec on this style: My very fine-textured, straight hair needs both the elastic base and the hairstick for this style to work all day long. Every head of hair is different, so, depending on length, texture (curlier hairtypes would generally hold the knot better on their own), density, fineness/coarseness of the hair strands, and hairtype in general, your hair will be able to hold the knot on its own or not, and you may need either the elastic base or the hairstick, or both or neither. Just experiment to see which option works best 😃!

• Picture gallery (2018-, updated from time to time): 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-With side braids:

 

 

 

-As a cosplay style:

 

SwordWomanRiona / rionashairblog.blogspot.com.es

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Cosplay hair - Knotted ponytail at a Tolkien convention

During the May 2019 EstelCon, the annual convention of the Spanish Tolkien Society, I wore one of my hair staples for more than a year, Janet Stephens' knotted Valkyrie ponytail, with a casual ranger look (aka Merida's kirtle and cloak xD):

  Janet Stephens' video of this style:

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Cosplay hair - Paranda braid for an Elven cosplay with a 14th Century Medieval twist

Cosplay hair pic spam today :D! For the first day at a Tolkien convention last May I wore my Elven purple dress with a parada braid (just a simple three-strand braid with a paranda). I also debuted a late 14th Century-early 15th Century reenactment, so I gave this cosplay a 14th Century twist with the liripipe open hood that I quite like :D (the dress, while not historically accurate, gives me 14th Century vibes as well because it reminds me of the long-sleeved cottehardies). 

So, braid pics incoming!

 

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Historical styles - 15th Century Burgundian braided updo and conical hennin

Today's hairstyle post is about historical reenactment and the Middle Ages - The updo I wore for my late 15th Century Burgundian reenactment, under a conical hennin:

I actually debuted this reenactment at a Tolkien convention, so all these pics are a Noldorin Elven version (those are actually Vulcan ears, I didn't have any Elven ears at that point xD). 15th Century Burgundian fashion wasn’t a headcanon of mine for Elven fashion before this, but I can totally see the (in my headcanon at least) quite fashion-extravagant Noldor wearing this kind of court fashion xD And the looped braids kind of showcase the pointy ears, too!

The hairstyle is something that can easily be worn under the hennin, and it’s also inspired in what can be seen of the hair (ugh for the patriarchal modesty mindsets :S) in illuminations from the time - There are examples of looped braids that show under the hennin (1, 2, 3), and examples of the hair being worn in a high bun under the hennin. In my case, it’s a braided high bun with a paranda (no foam donut in my case, although that’s another option). The two front accent braids are braided with golden cord and looped around the ear, crisscrossed and tucked around the bun. For an alternative Elven-inspired style, those front braids could also be worn hanging loose (this is actually how this Burgundian woman wears her hair, too!)

• For this style I used:

-Comb and/or brush as needed.

-A metal-free elastic for the initial ponytail
-Paranda for the braided ponytail (or a foam donut, or both. Both resulted in an overlarge, too heavy bun in my case).

-Lots and lots of pins (open bun pins and closed bobby pins. Like, LOTS.

-Fixator, like hairspray
-Tangle Teazer to untangle the root backcombing easily and damage-free.  Baby brush to brush off the hairspray and smooth all the hair

Steps:

•  Hairstyle:

-Separate two front sections and braid to create the accent braids. Add cord or ribbon as a decorative effect if desired.

-Pull the rest of the hair into a high ponytail - relatively high on the head in order to be able to put on the hat/headdress easily later.

-Braid the ponytail, with a paranda for added volume (tutorial here). Other options: High donut bun, unbraided, or braided bun without paranda and a donut bun in order to give more volume (a relatively voluminous bun is desirable to serve as an anchor for the hat).

-Coil the braid around the ponytail base in order to create a braided bun. I secured it with two metal bun pins - Something that looks relatively historically accurate, and that doesn't protrude much from the bun, in order not to interfere with the hat later.

-Loop the front accent braids around and over the ears, crisscrossing them at the front and coiling them around the bun.

• Hennin:

-Wrap velvet band at the hairline and tie at the back. This band serves as anchor in order to secure the hat.

-Put on hennin over the bun. Further secure it with another velvet band tied over the base directly above the other band. This should keep the hennin from sliding back.
-Pin decorative veil over the hennin as desired.

 

 

 

More about hennin construction:

 Materials I used: Buckram/burlap fabric for the base (two layers), wire, long wood sticks (3X), dark red and gold patterned damask  for the lining, normal thread to sew it all. Gold organza for the veil and black velvet for the strips that hold the hennin in place.

Also, some tutorials I studied for this project: Steeple hennin , truncated hennin, another truncated hennin. And my Pinterest board with references.

Fabrics and materials: Gold organza for the veil, black velvet for the strips holding the hennin in place, dark red and gold damask for the lining, burlap/buckram for the base, wire and long wooden sticks.

Initial fabrics test with the materials and a 'fairy/princess' conical hat I've had since I was a child xD (you see the veil from that costume hat popping out there)

Cutting out the shape for the base (two layers):

Initial test of the hennin form with the two layers of burlap cloth and the damask:

Sewing long wood sticks to the first layer of the burlap base to keep the shape and stop the heavy fabric (plus the lining afterwards) from buckling under its weight

Sewed a second layer of burlap over the first one, and added wire around the circumference to further help keep the shape.

Damask lining, and the hennin is complete! Veil is held in place with pins (decorative or not), and velvet strips (one over the hair and beneath the hat, the other over it) keep the hennin in place. The velvet strips I tie at the back of the head and that really keeps the hennin secure with no need for further support.

 

Also sewed the U-front hook that helps adjust the hennin as well:

 Another final test at the Tolkien con while wearing another Elven cosplay:

SwordWomanRiona / rionashairblog.blogspot.com.es

If you copy-and-paste this post and/or alter it without any permission, credit or link, you're stealing my content. In that case, please stop. Please ask before using my work, or at least share it properly, giving credit to me and my blog.