People in the 1800s washed their hair far less often than we do today, and when they did, they used a combination of natural ingredients, vigorous brushing, and dry powders that served many of the same purposes as modern shampoo and conditioner. Commercial bottled shampoo didn’t exist for most of the century, so hair care was a hands-on, labor-intensive process built around whatever was available in the kitchen or garden.
How Often People Washed Their Hair
Advice books and ladies’ magazines from the Victorian era recommended washing hair anywhere from twice a week to once a month, depending on hair type. Oily hair warranted a wash every two weeks, while hair with a normal amount of oil was supposed to go a full month between washes, unless someone worked in dusty conditions or traveled frequently. These longer intervals weren’t just laziness or ignorance. Every wash required hauling and heating water, and the harsh soaps available could strip hair badly. Spacing out washes was practical advice that also happened to protect the hair’s natural oils.
Brushing as the Primary Cleaning Method
The famous “100 brush strokes before bed” rule wasn’t vanity. It was hygiene. Between washes, daily brushing with a natural boar-bristle brush was the main way women kept their hair clean. These bristle brushes worked differently from modern plastic ones. They pulled oil away from the roots and distributed it down the hair shaft, which prevented greasy buildup at the scalp while conditioning the dry ends. The bristles also physically swept dust and dirt out of the hair, functioning almost like a dry mop.
A typical routine started with a wide-toothed comb to work through tangles, followed by long sessions with the bristle brush to smooth, clean, and style. For women with very long or thick hair, 100 strokes was sometimes considered too few. The entire vanity set, usually a matching comb and brush displayed on the dressing table, was a central piece of a woman’s daily grooming kit.
Dry Powders: The Original Dry Shampoo
When hair looked greasy between washes, people reached for absorbent powders. Arrowroot powder was one of the most popular options during the Victorian period and is considered one of the original dry shampoos. Other common choices included cornstarch, oat flour, and various natural clays. These powders were dusted onto the roots, left for a few minutes to soak up oil, then brushed out thoroughly.
For women with darker hair, plain white powder was a problem since it left visible residue. Period sources suggest mixing in cocoa powder or cinnamon to better match brown or red hair. The concept is nearly identical to modern dry shampoo, just without the aerosol can.
Egg Shampoo: The Most Popular Wet Wash
When it was time for a full wash, eggs were one of the most widely recommended cleansers throughout the 1800s and into the early 1900s. Egg yolks contain natural sulfur and a small amount of ammonia, both of which cut through grease. They also contain fats that left hair soft rather than stripped. The typical method was to beat an egg yolk in a saucer, rub it into the scalp and roots with the fingers, let it sit for a few minutes, then rinse it out thoroughly with warm water.
Some women used the whole egg, others just the yolk, and a few guides recommended beaten egg whites alone as the gentlest option, noting that no soap was needed unless the scalp was particularly dirty. The key to all egg-based washes was rinsing completely. Period beauty manuals warned that any egg left behind would turn sticky and greasy, ruining the whole effort. Done right, though, the result was hair described as lustrous, bright, and silky.
Soap, Borax, and Other Wet Cleansers
Plain soap and water was the other common option. White castile soap, made from olive oil, was preferred because it was milder than the harsh lye-based soaps used for laundry. Some recipes called for dissolving borax in boiling water with a bit of olive oil to create a gentler wash. Others involved boiling bran (the outer husk of grain) in soft rainwater, straining it, and using the starchy liquid as a cleanser once cooled.
Rainwater was specifically preferred over well water or hard water because it lacked the minerals that made soap leave a filmy residue on hair. Collecting rainwater for hair washing was a routine domestic task in many households.
Herbal Rinses for Shine and Softness
Soap, even mild castile soap, left a residue that made hair dull and tangled. To counter this, women followed their wash with a vinegar rinse. Apple cider vinegar or plain white vinegar cut through soap buildup and restored some of the hair’s natural acidity. The vinegar was often infused with herbs, especially rosemary, which appeared frequently in 19th-century beauty advice as a remedy for dull, lifeless hair.
A common preparation involved steeping rosemary in vinegar for about a week, then diluting it with two parts water to one part vinegar before pouring it through freshly washed hair. This served the same role as a modern conditioner or clarifying rinse, leaving hair smoother and shinier.
The Labor of Washing Day
One reason hair washing happened so infrequently was the sheer physical effort involved. There was no running hot water in most homes for much of the 1800s. Water had to be pumped or carried from a well, heated in a kettle over a fire or stove, and transported to wherever the washing was happening. For women with hair that reached their waist or beyond (common throughout the century), this was a significant undertaking.
Drying was equally tedious. Without electric dryers, women sat with their backs to the fireplace, running a comb through wet hair and waiting for the heat to evaporate the moisture. In summer, they could sit outside in the sun. By the 1890s, metal devices filled with boiling water appeared on the market. One, called “The Princess Hair Dryer and Burnisher,” was shaped like a brush and meant to be run through wet hair so the heat from the water inside would speed evaporation. Another option for women with very long hair was running it through a clothes wringer to squeeze out excess water before the slow drying process began.
A full hair wash, from heating the water to finishing the drying, could easily take the better part of an afternoon. This made brushing, dry powders, and infrequent washing not just a cultural preference but a practical necessity for daily life in the 1800s.