I love trading, because I got this great 1960s hairstyle book!

I just got this great 1960s hairstyle book, thanks to a trade from a blog reader. She contacted me because she had an antique/vintage hairstyling book that she didn’t have any use for, but didn’t want to toss it or give it to the thrift store. She asked me if I knew anything about the author or if I would be interested in it.

It’s called The Art of Hairstyling by Mary Kawakami, written in 1963. It’s looks to be self-published, which is no small feat.

The author page describes Kawakami as a platform artist and teacher. In one of my magazines from 1956, a hairstyle done by Kawakami was featured as she had won the Coiffure Guild of Los Angeles Grand Prize at their annual hair show. She had a beauty school in Provo, Utah called Mary’s College of Beauty.

I love that name. That is a classic style of beauty school name. My school was called B&L International Beauty College, another classic style beauty school name.

Recently, someone brought this article to my attention about her remarkable life, even having a street named after her, Mary Kawakami Drive. She sadly did pass in 2023.

I was so pleased with this book when I received it for so many reasons.

1. I have never seen a hair book from this time period written by a minority woman.

2. It is soooo Atomic Era cool. The names of these 1960s vintage hairstyles include Marshmallow Flip, Satellite, and High Fidelity!

Coquette Hairstyle Notes

Keep in mind one major thing when you are looking at these 1960s hairstyle tutorials. The hairstylist curls the hair in the direction the hairstylist wants the final curl to direct towards. That is the key to creating a style that you have control over.

If you want the hair to wave or move back, set the curl to go the same way, whether you are using a hair roller or a curling iron. In the Coquette Hairstyle in the above image, the magnetic rollers and pin curls are wet set in the direction that the final hairstyle direction is. In image #4, the pin curls rotate back and up in a counterclockwise curl. In image #10, you can see the hair brushed out above the left ear rotates back at up in the direction the hairstylist wanted the hair to go.

Satellite Series Notes

This hairstyle is part of the Satellite series. I find it interesting that Kawakami chose to do this hairstyle completely in stand-up pin curls.

According to Kawakami it will, “insure ease and flexibility of combout.” It also requires only the bare minimum of hair tools. All you need are:

• rattail comb
• pin curl clips (double prong or single prong depending on hair length)
• setting lotion
• curl papers (It looks like she used them on the back-bottom of the style)
• teasing and smoothing brush

And if you look closely, you’ll see that the pin curls are all sectioned in triangle base shapes.

I really love this hairstyle. The model reminds me of Phoebe, Don’s neighbor, in Season 4 of Madmen.

1956 Grand Prize Winning Coiffure

In my December 1956 American Hairdresser Magazine, this hairstyle by Mary Kawakami is featured as the Grand Prize winner at the Coiffure Guild of Los Angeles’ annual hair show. I’m hoping I’ll find more of her hairstyles in my vintage hair magazines!