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Sat 22 Oct, 2005 07:21 pm
So my current novel takes place in the 1870's. It just so happens in one tiny part I have imagined a speck of glitter in a character's hair.
Lord help me.
I'm pretty sure sparkly type stuff was around back then, but doubt it was glitter as we think of it today. I've researched to my researcher was sore and found only a brief mention of Egyptians and metal (and those three words about sums it up) and then turned a few antiques from the era decorated with a glitter of "crushed German mirror glass."
Can anyone help with the origin of glitter or what might have been used as an equivalent during the late 1800's? ... I'm starting to not only recheck my sparkly hair bit, but am considering making this character bald out of spite.
Stymied by sparkles,
Sam
Well, I am sure they had spangles!
Wanna go with that?
ehBeth wrote:Bunny - check yer PM's
ehBeth...I checked and there's nothing there.
Could the glitter be a sequin? Sequins have been in use since at least the 1800 and probably way before that. I've tried to find some history on them but I can't find much of anything.
dlowan's the other bunny!
There are certainly a lot of things that could be in hair that are sparkly, so depends a bit on the purpose. Some sort of hair ornament, can customize to the time. Marcasite, perhaps.
All the way to the moon and back, by the way.
Well, they used 'strass' and from about 1860 onwards something whch was called "diamentine glitter" (which was much smaller than strass).
not too sure
I think that you're right, it's crushed glass.
But then it would kind of sting, so maybe it was crushed mica.
The mineral feldspar, finely ground, was used as a glitter in cosmetics in the 19th century.
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