The Middy Thread

[Lenore]

So... I did it. Again. Oops...

So much for me growing my hair out.

 

[fgradowski]

Saturday I asked for a longer style middy haircut like that of the 1940's Hollywood starlets. (Namely Rita Hayworth) Today I had the chance to style it MY way with my foam rollers since on Saturday they used a curling iron and I looked more like Farrah Fawcett than anyone.

I think it turned out great! The back has that classic 'U' shape. So beautiful!

 

[DonnaP]

What size foam curlers do you use? I use the green ones, I think they are the medium size. My hair always ends up super curly the first day, and then the second and third day are looser.

Which also brings up the question--how often does everyone wash and style their hair? I usually wash and wet set, then go two days before washing again. Sometimes I have to touch up with hot curlers if I sleep on my hair funny. Today I decided to go a third day and it looked okay with touch up hot curlers (washed it Friday night, today is Monday). I don't work tomorrow so I'm going to see if I can push it one more day. I use a little pomade on my hair most days, and I"m finding washing it less seems to help get better waves with less frizziness along my part.

 

[fgradowski]

I use the blue ones. I'd like to go up a size though. I was almost late to class because I had so much brushing to do!
I wash my hair at least every other day. I have very greasy hair, and I just can't bring myself to let it go for very long especially with the pomade and hairspray in it. It probably doesn't help that I hate the smell of my pomade!

 

[DonnaP]

I use a pomade I bought for my husband's beard, it smells really nice.

 

[TheSacredFemme]

Hey Donna,

I usually wash and set my hair (with sponge rollers) every Sunday...then if things really go downhill I'll spritz my hair with water halfway through the week and re-set in some loose pincurls. Having a perm does wonder for making my hair last! Plus I have a quite short middy, around chin length in the shortest layer.

 

[TheSacredFemme]

Does anyone have some links to updos that can be done on a medium length middy cut (longest layer just about skims my chin)? I've been quite lazy on the curling front lately and definitely need some tricks to hide post-gym hair!

 

[AvavanBlythe]

I have about half the foam curlers out there. In most brands the blue is the smallest, if not close to the smallest. The green is Large in most brands, though I've seen a couple brands where they were Medium in place of... is it Pink? From the last Ebayer I bought from, Blue was 5/8", Yellow was 7/8", Green was 1", Pink was XL at 1 1/4". This seller also has all these sizes in black. If you're interested in that for aesthetic appeal, here's a link.

As for the 70s look, your hair length and roller size need to work well when sculpting your curls. If you're wanting more of a pageboy, always comb under and smooth with your hands. I have more luck with L'Oreal Lock It hairspray, since it's brushable. If you're wanting more of a Hollywood sculpted look, larger is better, but you may have more luck doing large pinned curls. I'd suggest something I saw from Vintage Current, and use sleeper clips. She has a nice tutorial for that.

I think it depends on what look you're going for, though. If you're wanting the everyday 40s woman, tighter curls give that authentic look. Since many like using a Sculptor for this, a wooden dolly peg does fine, or use the 5/8" foam curlers, but don't get too tight on them.

Personally I wash my hair everyday. I've gotten heavily into fitness, and I can't leave my scalp all sweaty. If you're mostly sedentary, going a couple days without hair washing is fine, so long as your scalp can handle product staying on it. Leaving hairspray or gel on for too long would be my main concern. Think about those hair cuticles. Unless you're going out, I suggest just brushing and adding a few drops of coconut or jojoba oil to your palms to smooth over.

 

[Lenore]

I'm thinking with summer coming (and because I've never really done it), I should go shorter. Has anyone had any luck modifying C-dot's tutorial for a baby or shorter middy?


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[sheeplady]

I'm thinking with summer coming (and because I've never really done it), I should go shorter. Has anyone had any luck modifying C-dot's tutorial for a baby or shorter middy?


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So, this may or may not be helpful. I've seen diagrams where the baby hair cut is around 3 inches and the middy is 4 inches.

What I have noticed in real life, however, is most women cut their hair in a middy to be about six to 7 inches, rather than the shorter 4. If you look at c-dots tutorial, her hair lies on her shoulders, which indicates that it is likely about 6 inches as well.

My middy's come out short, about four inches, when I cut them. I follow c-dots tutorial but am aggressive in my cuts. For instance, my top hair comes down only to the top of my eyeballs, not my nose. My back hair doesn't touch my shoulders. (When I cut my back hair, I leave a nub more than a pony tail.) Then I adjust my side angle cut to match my short back hair angled up to meet my short top hair.

As a warning though, it is a tight fit to get in curlers this short and I imagine it would be tough to do in pin curls. However, I like it short, it frames my face. It also has an advantage of looking short of bobish when straight. It's not a true bobbed haircut obviously, but because of the short back length it looks like one. It still is very much a u-shape.

 

[Lenore]

Thank you, Sheeplady.

I have been browsing my old photos and this thread all evening and think I know what my game plan will be. I think I'll be slightly more aggressive than my usual cut, but not too much. If it's still too long for my liking, I can always cut more, but I'd rather take baby steps to get there rather than jump too far into the pond without a life jacket. All else fails, I grab a few pictures of Liz Taylor's Italian Cut from the early 50's and go beg my mother's stylist to fix it. [huh]

 

[Lenore]

Wellll, I did it. This is day three hair. I actually really like it. I feel like a cross between Liz Taylor and Rizzo from Grease. Eat your heart out.

 

[MissMorningGlory15]

I kind of want to get a Middy Plus or Middy Long but I also really want to grow my hair out to my waist...

 

[MissMorningGlory15]

Gorgeous!

 

[AvavanBlythe]

Warning, bad cellphone pic.

I want to get an opinion on my most recent cut. I used this method on layers and this method on the "crown." After studying many many middy cuts while shown without curls, I felt like I managed to get the look in a way I'm used to cutting my hair.

This is the result.

Spoiler

I feel like I still need to round off the bottom layer, but it may also be just how it looks in this photo. I don't separate the crown the same way he does it, since I'm purposefully cutting 5 layers using Feye's method. I'm still able to blend the face frame into the layers along the jaw, and I feel like my curl sets offer the same results.

Obviously I still have a lot to learn, but for now this seems to work pretty well for me. I feel like my hair looks much like Victoria Black's comment photo here. With the method I use, I feel like I could do this at nearly any length I want, from bob to mid back. Though the longer you go, the less likely you can get the curtain effect with a page boy. That is, it'll break up, even with great hair spray.

 

[Alice~]

Well, here I am again, lurking in the Middy Thread... I believe this was the first thread that lead me to the Fedora Lounge a few years before I signed up, and several years later, I still haven't obtained this elusive haircut!

It seems hairdressers are really frightened of the middy, but I've finally found somebody local who claims to be able. I have a consultation booked in the week, and now I'm browsing this thread once more to collect images! My fingers are crossed very tightly, I'd love to get a cut that will hold my curl better and for longer.

 

[AvavanBlythe]

Alice, if you try the method I talked about in my comment, you'll get virtually the same results. From what I'd seen in the diagram, you're getting 5 blunt-cut layers that taper to shorter lengths at the sides, bangs optional if you want a special curl at the temples or on your forehead. By doing a U-shape cut on each layer followed by the face frame cutting method, I've gotten the same results sans bangs. For me it was a lot easier to cut, since I'm only worrying about each layer. You do have to even out the sides when you're done with your "bangs" area, or your hair at the crown. But that's typical of any hair cut. I've been using Feye's method for the U shape since I had waist-to-hip length hair, and it's never let my down. Just be sure to measure before you cut, and keep in mine the length difference between layers.

 

[Alice~]

Ava, I have never cut my own hair before, but the U cutting guide doesn't look too intimidating. Not so sure about the Sam Villa video - looks a little more difficult to do alone. But achievable, definitely - and quite similar to the middy style, as you say.

I saw the stylist today and to my disappointment, she wasn't familiar with the cut. However, she agreed to have a look at the diagrams and pages from Ivan of Hollywood's hair cutting guide, which I left with her. Not sure how I feel about it and may well end up following your link and doing it myself!

 

[AvavanBlythe]

It isn't fully necessary to create bangs. I'd recently found out that Veronica Lake only had a blunt cut, all 1 length. Lauren Bacall's hair had the thick side of her top lock cut just long enough for a curl at her temple, while the length was blunt cut and tapered into a U shape just below her shoulders. There's no talk of a layered middy.

I haven't had an issue with doing Sam Villa's method myself. If you ever choose to do it, the goal is keeping your fingers secure while twisting. I switch hands every 90 degrees, and that hasn't failed me. To be fair, I do get a bit nervous each time; but I think that helps me try my best.

I'm always hesitant about going to a hair cutter unless they really know what they're doing. SKM (now Vintage Current) talked about her difficult journey of finding a good one, until she found someone trained by Vidal Sassoon and understood precision cutting. I'm not that fab, but I try my best.

 

[PriscillaPetite]

I've been creeping on this site for years but this thread finally got me to sign up haha. My hairdresser recently just closed shop and left no way to contact her so I haven't cut my hair in over a year. I'm terrified about going to anyone new after 10 years! Wish me luck tomorrow, I'm going to try out the baby middy, quite a change from this!

Excuse the second day makeup, it was a very lazy day[emoji12]. I am going to miss that long second day hair though.