ABSTRACT
Hairstyles are in part dictated by the available technology in hairstyling products. The invention of hair gel virtually introduced a whole era of male fashion in the 1950s marked by slicked back stiff hair. This characteristic male hairstyle reminiscent of the movies Grease and American Graffiti would not have been possible without the discovery of hair gelling agents that made the hair stiff and shiny. A similar memorable era in female hairstyling was the 1960s bouffant beehive. This architectural hair wonder was made possible by the development of aerosol hair-sprays based on newly discovered varnishes.
