Wednesday, March 23, 2011

north is good

Chignon, Chuck Jones

(shēn-yŏn') 
n.
A roll or knot of hair worn at the back of the head or especially at the nape of the neck. From Old French chaignon, chain, collar, nape of the neck.

Le Chignon, Eva Gonzalès , 1865-70
My hair is finally long enough to wear pulled up into a messy chignon. For one thing, its quick and easy. It's great for keeping pencils handy, and sometimes, I add chopsticks. An added bonus is that my earrings are highlighted. The old danglies have been rescued from the back of the jewelry box.  It's nice to have at least one feature heading north these days, when everything else seems to be shifting south.

The chignon can be traced back to Ancient Greece, where Athenian women commonly kept theirs in place with gold or ivory pins. Athenian men wore the style, as well. It was also popular in Ancient China, where married women wore a low knot. During the Victorian era, chignons were often enormous constructions including false hair or pads. In the 1940s, many women wore the chignon under a headscarf, while working in factories to support the war effort during World War II. The timeless chignon is still popular today because of its elegance, and ease.

Portrait de Dora au Chignon, Pablo Picasso, 1937

It's interesting to note that in the Scottish lowlands, where my paternal ancestors hailed from, a variation of the chignon was once called a "cockernonnie" or "cock-up". That's all I have to say about that.

I think hairstyle is the final tip-off
whether or not a woman really knows herself.

Hubert de Givenchy, Vogue 1985

As you can see from the sidebar, my chapbook, Patina, is available for pre-order.  I have an advance sales period of six weeks, before the pressrun is determined.  If you are interested in purchasing a copy, it would help me tremendously if you would pre-order now.  Click the book image on my sidebar or the link below.  Thanks so much for your invaluable support, my friends. You're the best. 


46 comments:

  1. My grandmother, with long, dark, red hair often wore hers in this style. And she made sure it stayed red to the day she died at 92! Thanks for the memory!

    Rick

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  2. A sensuous hairstyle is all I have to say.

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  3. I wonder if I could get mine to do that....

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  4. Old 333, hey, the ancient Athenian guys did! Go for it!

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  5. isn't Cleopatra wearing one on the Egyptian coin that bares her image? Thanks for the memory.

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  6. the good thing about putting your hair up is that you can shake it down...like a naughty librarian :)

    Have fun up north.

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  7. The name Chuck Jones reminds me of Walt Disney, because of the paintings by W. Langdon Kihn. He was among the authors that did the best they could to record the stories not written. In North America the Hopi called the style (if written in English) "squash blossom" which was the Girls hairdo and an old wife would wear her hair in braids.

    The two heads outlined together at the top in one shade shown with a necklace of 2,500 hand-drilled turquoise beads and four ear pendants Found buried under 15 feet of New Mexican sand in ancient Pueblo Bonito.

    With an ektachrome, and writing "Hopi Heads Symbolize the Beauty and Antiquity of a Priceless Turquoise Necklace" next to the color image is how the book by National Geographic recorded a color-illustrated story of Indians of the Americas, says it, which says to me an explanation of Eldon Schafer and why I couldn't seem to leave the bookstore without every book I opened.

    It is hard to go into a bookstore and not pick up (just to look) books just like some folks have a hard time visiting pet stores.

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  8. I used to think I had too much, or too heavy, hair for one. Now I know better. Mine's a cock-up!

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  9. yes, the necklace and the earrings made up the shape of a third person, that I would describe as the face of a ghost.

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  10. My five year old niece taught me the chignon years ago. Been wearing a modified version ever since.

    Yes, when unchignoned, I can sit on my hair.

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  11. Chignon...I like. I liked them LONG before I knew they had a name (which is today--grin!)

    I meant, on GIRLS! Not for me, although I have lots of fast-growing hair. I'll no doubt grow hair after I'm dead, cremated, and buried. :,)

    PEACE!

    FYI...Just was notified my book will be shipped August 6!!!! They did not mention which year--grin!

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  12. Tess,

    Very few hairstyles work for women (at least as their hair appeals to me most) as the chignon.

    Classic, classy, elegant, smart.

    Trulyfool

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  13. I just cut off my hair back into the trusty bob. can't fail with a trusty bob. :0)

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  14. The Chignon seems to have been replaced by 'industrial accident'. At least that's what most modern hairstyles look like!

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  15. North IS good. :) I love wearing my hair "up" and is one reason I won't cut it even though I'm now well into my forty's and often feel like I should. I "store" things like pens up there during the day too and often forget they're up there. I can get a pretty good assortment of things going on up there as the day progresses.

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  16. chic, elegant and something sexy about the fact that hair swooshes down when a couple of pins (or chopsticks) are removed

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  17. Oh yes, the chignon, very nice. Do I sense a new photograph about to make an appearance in your sidebar?

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  18. Willow,
    Good to know that the Scots get one up on the French occassionaly.
    rel

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  19. I love the updo...looks so classy. And it will be good for the hot summer months. Chignon is one of those words that I was never sure how to pronounce : )

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  20. that is quite a chic style.. and as you mentioned...it works even better with a pair of classy, big dangling earings :)

    also it makes you look a little taller, doesn't it ?

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  21. Willow this is a wonderful post...my grandmother ALWAYS wore a chignon...she had WHITEST white hair and it was so beautiful. ONE of my greatest pleasures was seeing her hair after it was washed...long and flowing...

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  22. That's how I wear my hair and have done for much of my life. Hair 'claws' make it quick and easy to achieve.

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  23. I can remember the French roll being popular in the early 60s;
    also, I think ladies even now today in the Church of God Assembly wear their hair still in this fashion. I have pre-ordered my copy of your book. Congrats to you. We are all behind you! The cover is enticing! :)

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  24. Lord Thomas, speaking of French roll, I remember those long, narrow, tornado shaped bristle curlers, used to wrap the hair for the effect. I should try it, as long as I don't end up looking like Alice on "The Brady Bunch"!

    Thanks for supporting my book efforts, Unks. x

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  25. I agree the upswept hairdo is so much easier! Would love to see a photo of you with your new do.

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  26. Hi! Willow...
    The Stories behind the "Chignon" is/are very interesting and all the photographs are great!
    Thanks, for sharing!
    DeeDee ;-D

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  27. Love a good chignon!

    I keep my hair long so that it can be put up in hot weather and/or doing yard work, cleaning, etc.

    One time, many years ago, a hairdresser said to me: You're over 40, you should have short hair." I walked out of his salon.

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  28. grace kelly step aside. it's Willow's turn! I could never keep my hair up in one though I know there are some kind of roll things you can buy to roll yr hair around.

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  29. McGillicutty, I love the bob, but having worn one for the last 15 years, I was so-so-so ready for a change!

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  30. Who, I have the very same bookstore ailment. It helps to have library therapy!

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  31. Steven, that is some LONG hair, man! How long did it take you to grow it?

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  32. CHK, okay, I'll see what I can do, as far as a photo. But it's not going to be today, heehee!

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  33. Loved this post. Over all the years of my life I think I have had every hairdo coming and going. Had a chignon on my wedding day and my beautiful sister did too. We were two beautiful brides on the same day in a double wedding.
    QMM

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  34. I'm terrible with my hair - pulling it back in a simple ponytail is about more than I can manage. Well, and it's probably not QUITE long enough for a chignon yet.

    I was tickled yesterday when Dr. Linthead told me he had preordered your book. Woo hoo!

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  35. Thanks, Bug, I love you guys. x

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  36. Loved that woodcut in your sidebar. Who is that done by?

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  37. Congrats on the poetry book Tess! I love the cover too!

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  38. maybe in my next life i will have hair thick (and long) enough for an attractive chignon.

    my grandmam (on father's side) wore her looooong hair up in this fashion for as long as i remember. the photos of her as a young woman showed that this was a fashion she began as a young woman - and when young it was a striking raven chignon....

    i bet you look striking with your chignon! and how handy to always have a pencil at hand

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  39. Thanks, Teri, I found it while rummaging around in google images. It had become separated from its artist.

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  40. I've been wearing my hair that way lately and, despite the fact that I am due a haircut, I can't quite bring myself to do it because then it will be too short to tie it up that way. It's a gorgeous hairstyle, I've always liked it.

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  41. I always love the way a chignon looks. Wish I could wear it. I've been meaning to ask about your header and the other wood-block-print-looking image on your sidebar--did you do those, Tess? I kept forgetting to ask. I love 'em.

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  42. Loved the Hubert de Givenchy quote. I came into my hair at an early age (hot rollers, age 15) and I've never looked back.

    x
    terresa

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  43. Terresa, you have THE best hair EVER! I've always longed for thick, red hair.

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  44. I wore my hair in a proper Chinion first as a teen, along with a mid-calf skirt, as I would hitchhike to the next happening town. For the last two decades I like to wear my now white hair away from my face, up and spilling over like a little fountain. Low Chinions can be very elegant, but up high they can look more wild and interesting it seems to me.
    Lovely images in your post, very nice.

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  45. Tess, any chance I could get a copy signed by you? I'll pre-order now even if that's not possible. Love the title, you mentioned Patina was one of your fav. words :o)

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  46. The only time I wear my hair up is when I'm cleaning the bathrooms - yuk! Although MOTH always comments that he goes all gooey when that happens. Ever-so-practical me thinks its the joy of clean porcelain that is actually causing that gooeiness in him rather than the damp tendrils at the nape of my neck!!
    Millie x

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Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of existence.
― O. Henry (and me)