Rockabilly Hair and Make up

Sara Ashouri is a Make-up Artist who blogs on make up, with the latest reviews and how-tos.

She recently posted that one of her favorite styles to experiment with and wear is the rockabilly look.  Sara says a bandana in the hair is one of the edgier, yet easiest looks to achieve.

Here's what she says you need to do:

Line the bandana up like a triangle. You can fold the bandana to make it smaller for when it goes around your head. You hold it by the two ends, and while your hair is up in a bun, you place the bandana underneath, closest to your next, with the two ends at the very top of your head. Then you just tie it and secure with bobby pins if needed.

As for makeup she says for her it's all about the eyes, full lashes, carbon black eyeliner  - and the lips.

Keep in mind you can always experiment with look in your own way. A red lip isn’t the only color you have to do to achieve the look, especially if its worn during the day. Other colors I love playing around with are baby pinks, mauves, corals, and hot pinks. Just make a semi-bold statement with your lips! And be sure to have that clean looking winged liner. Two of the main important things of the make-up.

Pin Up Art and Photography

Ever wanted to be a classic 40s bombshell babe or vintage vixen? Ever wanted to enter the realm of 50s kitsch and cheesecake? With Helen McLean’s pin up packages, you get over 3 hours of dress up fun, transforming you into a pin up of yesteryear! Including hair styling, make-up, a glass of bubbly, various costumes and the all important pin up photography. Also catering for custom calendars and hen’s day packages.

Roots of Country - Rockabilly

Back in 1996 a six-hour six-part documentary taking a look at one of America's quintessential music genres - country - went to air.

"America's Music: the Roots of Country" delved headlong into what is a rich subject matter, telling its story through live footage and interviews with the stars themselves.

To a new generation of music fans, it offered an eye-opening introduction to some of the great figures from country's past, such as Jimmie Rodger, Hank Williams, Kitty Wells, Johnny Cash, George Jones, Loretta Jones and so many more who paved the way for today's big stars.

Writer Robert K. Oerman told the Chicago Sun-Times that the the idea from the beginning was to take the viewer back and forth and in and out of history. He teamed up for this series with producer Tom Neff, a filmaker known for his documentaries of visual artists including Red Grooms and Beatrice Wood.

"One reason country lends itself to this kind of treatment is that, unlike other styles of music, all its historical elements are still living, breathing styles today," Oermann said.

"People still play bluegrass, people still sing folk songs, play rockabilly, Cajun, Western swing - these are not dead things."

Each of the six hours has a theme - including Rockabilly.

"The Roots of Country" was not only made with entertaining viewers in mind, but with the hope of sending a message about the importance of maintaining a living connection to country's past.

The Rockabilly Revival

Rockabilly might have been born from the jazz, blues and blue grass of the US south, but it’s lived on through five decades in one form or another.

While the Stray Cats enjoyed large-scale fame in the 1980s, the scene has had its own life in the 2000s. Over the past decade there’s been a convergence of the rockabilly style with the swing music scene. Brat Setzer of the Stray Cats played a big part in joining the two subcultures. He formed the Brian Setzer Orchestra as both a rockabilly and swing musician. The Reverend Horton Heat, Rattled Roosters and Royal Crown Revue are also popular in both scenes.

Today there are still lively rockabilly scenes in several major US cities – especially on the west coast. There are a number of big festivals including Viva Las Vegas and Hootenanny along with the Heavy Rebel Weekend Festival on the east coast.

The subculture also thrives in Europe where there is a big focus not just in contemporary musicians reviving the rockabilly traditions, but in artists from the ‘50s.

So why has rockabilly survived in one form or another for all these years?

Meg Appelton in her article “The Rockabilly in the New Millennium” argues that the rockabilly culture is an antithesis to current trends as it embraces its roots in "old school" societal fringes.

She says the rockabilly phenomenon has survived down the generations thanks to a growing dissatisfaction with mainstream culture, music and stylistic icons.

“Rockabilly frequently becomes a way of life or lifestyle to those active, who see the larger scene to be like a family,” she explains.

“The rockabilly lifestyle is not restricted to only the music but also the home furnishings, cars, and even small things like the cigarettes smoked.”

Stray Cats Greatest Hits

The hits are all here, along with some revealing album cuts, rarities and portions of a 1982 live broadcast that display the Cats' considerable live charms. This album will have you up and dancing - full speed from start to finish. To buy it click here

Rockabilly Hair

There a couple of basic hairstyles for Rockabilly men. One of the most iconic would have to have been the ducktail haircut. It’s a symbol of the 50s that has captured the imagination and endured so well. The ducktail required combing the hair back to the middle of the head, then with the end of the comb, make a centre part. This required a fair bit of grease – hence the term “greasers”. This style quickly identified a guy as a rebel, a non-conformist.

Rockabillies also wore their hair short on the sides, longer at the back and with enough length at the front to create the upswept “pompadour". Another popular cut was the flat top



Women’s styles follow two general looks. The first is the moderate-length, layered cut. This style is always curly or wavy and is a classic look from the 40s and 50s. The other look is the most common among the Rockabilly devotees - the one made popular by Bettie Page, the 1940s and 50s pin-up model. The look is longer, generally created with blunt cut fringe across the forehead. The hair is generally styled to have soft waves while the fringe is straight and smooth.


Here is a great step by step tutorial on how to achieve retro hair in under five minutes.


This is a really nice tutorial for a longer, softer vintage look