Mervin Hair Wave Clips and 20's Hair

 In the mythical land of finger waves and wave clips, live a few very select and special tools. Back in the 20's and 30's, not every woman could afford a hair dresser or a permanent set. That doesn't mean they didn't crave perfect waves as much as we do today! Though I personally have learned the fiddlesome finger waving technique, on my thick hair it just doesn't come out the way I would like. If I set the thinner side of my part with finger waves they turn out just fine, but the other half? Less that perfect, my thick hair just wants to settle into large waves not small ones! For both the women of the past, and people like me today, there is a solution, Mervin hair wave clips!

Though the Sears add above illustrates many contraptions I would love to try out, the item I was actually able to find via etsy were these Mervin wave clips. They are quite large, over an inch wide and over six inches long. The clips are spring loaded, with two little combs that jut out to create the wave.

To create the wave you open the clip by pinching the spring--like so-- and then place the open combs firmly against your head so that the tines reach your scalp. Then let go of the spring the the hair is formed into the wave as the side combs return to their original place in the center. The resulting wave looks rather finger waved as the hair is curved in the required different directions by the teeth of the wave clip. I have never used anything like these and I have yet to discover an easier way to achieve 20's hair!

The shot above is from an upcoming outfit post you will see soon, but this is the result of using these wave clips! Look at those waves! Even in my thick hair these clips do the job wonderfully!

Now time for the bad news, these clips are vintage from the 30's or earlier, meaning they are rare and hard to find now in 2014. I found mine separately on etsy and I would love to have two more! They show up on etsy and ebay from time to time but can be expensive if the seller knows what they've got is vintage gal gold. So sadly the hunt for these isn't an easy one, can't someone out there buy all these patents and start making these wonderful tools again for us vintage gals? Once again I wish that someone could be me, one day perhaps. Someday I want to do for hair accessories what American Duchess has done for shoes.

That's all for today ladies, I'll show you more of the outfit above later this week! Have a good weekend!