60’s Hairstyles for Women During the 50s, women were constrained to short, curly, perfectly formed styles. These styles took hours of effort, starting the night before in curlers, and resuming in the morning with a good deal of hair products.

So, it may not be any wonder that in the 1960s, women rebelled against the perfectly coifed “domestic goddess” look and went for long, relaxed styles. While most people believe straight, un-styled hair was the order of the day, that was generally just reserved to the hippies.

Most women actually styled their hair, but they did tend to grow it long and let the curls hang loose and soft over their shoulders. Unfortunately, the hair dryer had still not been invented and women had to set their hair on curlers and let it dry that way.

Another style started with long straight hair and was swept back smooth at the crown. Like a ponytail, it was combed straight and gathered into a single rubber band, but only using the hair in the front and pulled up to the top back of the head. The rest of the hair beneath was left straight down the back.

Moptops were common for both women and men. This was a rather unsophisticated look with hair circling around the head at just below ear level or lower. The Beatles were famous for this look. Another short style for women was inspired by a supermodel of the day, “Twiggy,” whose short boyish hair went with her “twiggy” boyish body. But, somehow, she really pulled it off.

Finally, Jackie Kennedy’s pageboy haircut was all the rage, as women all over the U.S. attempted to look and dress like her. The 1960’s was a time of long, mid-length, and short haircuts, but one thing most of these hairstyles had in common was feminine elegance.