Promtacular!

And The Winners In The “Shared Hair” Category Are…

Posted on March 17, 2011 by promtacular! in 1980s Prom, Aquanet!, Feathering As A Lifestyle Choice, Shared Hair | No Comments

Year: 1984

The theme? Layers. Layers, layers, layers. Can you count them all? NO. NO, YOU CAN’T.

Layered hair.

Layers of ruffles in his shirt.

Layers of flounce in her dress on top AND bottom.

As if, perhaps, a giant gust of wind blew by they might just be swept up. WHOOSH!

Michele writes: “My date got his tux from a thrift store or from a member of his parents wedding band! He told me to get a dress that was “Baby Blue.” I didn’t see the tux till he picked me up! We looked like back up singers for the Donnie & Marie Show!!”

In The ’50s, Dance Cards Were Anti-Gravity

Posted on March 16, 2011 by promtacular! in 1950s Prom, Bizarre Backdrops | No Comments

Year: 1952

Gillian writes: “My grandparents at prom together. The white rectangle hanging from my grandmother’s wrist is a dance card (which I find adorable) and the gauzy shadows around her neck and shoulders are a tulle wrap, according to my mom. I am baffled as to what they’re standing next to, though it appears to be a stone wall? Grandma might be baffled too, judging from her expression.”

I LOVE this photo. I love the timelessness of the dress (which cannot be said of most of the get-ups around here, ahem) most of all.

I cannot explain the painted stone wall. Not even a little bit. Was it there specifically for prom? If so…um…because how come?

And yet again, we have teenagers from the ’50s looking like they’re old enough to have kids in middle school. Why was that? It’s just — does this couple look the same age as Justin Beiber? Absolutely not.

On the plus side, they DID have dance cards. We should bring that tradition back. Anyone?

Up! Up!! And Away!!!

Posted on March 07, 2011 by promtacular! in 1980s Prom, 1990s Prom, Aquanet!, Backdrop FAIL, Feathering As A Lifestyle Choice, Hybrid Bangs, Shared Hair, Shine On!, Tacky Backdrops | 3 Comments

Years: 1989, 1989, 1991

Because I slacked last week, this Monday you get THREE photos.

One of my favorite Twitter friends, TheNextMartha, sent these to me because she is awesome. Also, because she embraced her high school years with fervor, as you can no doubt see.

There are many lovely and wondrous things to be noted about these images, but mostly I like her Progression of Bang, for which this blog post is named.

They begin sprayed upward, in a full embrace of the Texas cum Jersey mantra The higher the hair, the closer to God. Up!

At the following event, her hair has come down an inch or two, but her bangs have exploded in a remarkable upward feathering frenzy. Up!!

But by the third photo, we’ve moved on to the 90s “hybrid” bang, which is neither pronounced nor completely absent. There is a whisper of bang, but mostly they’ve been incorporated into the rest of the hairstyle, barely acknowledged. Away!!!

TheNextMartha did not elaborate much on the three images.

Of the first one, she simply writes, “Boyfriend was damn tall.”
I would like to add that her boyfriend also shared her hair mantra, in the most remarkable way. Also? Is that a macramé poster they’re standing in front of? Or a hammock stapled to the wall?

Of the second: “We practically have matching hair. Just not right. Boyfriend: Not really.”
It was his feathered hair, right? So unfortunate. Also, I love that the background is basically a painted version of the real thing, featured in the last picture.

And of the third, her actual prom: “Peach Asymmetrical and horrible. Tanning Involved: Yes.”
The trellis might have had more impact were it not in front of a bare wall surrounded by houseplants, but it’s still loads better than the painted version above.

Lastly, I would like to note for the record that I attended high school in these years, and all of these fashions make perfect sense to me. Including the let’s-tan-but-still-wear-pantyhose look in the last shot. Also, do I detect a note of Sun-In?