A hair tie (also called a ponytail holder, hair band, hair elastic, wrap around, gogo, or bobble) is an item used to fasten

hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and fi ...

, particularly

long hair Long hair is a hairstyle where the head hair is allowed to grow to a considerable length. Exactly what constitutes long hair can change from culture to culture, or even within cultures. For example, a woman with chin-length hair in some cultures ...

, away from areas such as the face. This is usually done as part of a

hairstyle A hairstyle, hairdo, haircut or coiffure refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human scalp. Sometimes, this could also mean an editing of facial or body hair. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal groomi ...

such as

pigtail A woman with long pigtails and braids. In the context of hairstyles, the usage of the term pigtail (or twin tail or twintail) shows considerable variation. The term may refer to a single braid, but is more frequently used in the plural ("pi ...

bunches A woman with long pigtails and braids. In the context of hairstyles, the usage of the term pigtail (or twin tail or twintail) shows considerable variation. The term may refer to a single braid, but is more frequently used in the plural ("pi ...

, or ponytails for straight, wavy, and loosely curled hair, and referred to as afro puffs, bunny tails, and "pineapples" for highly curled and highly textured natural hair. Two common types of hair tie are the scrunchie and the elastic. The term can also include a fixed tie or rubber band which is placed ''through'' or around strands to hold specific parts of hair together, rather than tie it or clasp together like a

hair clip A barrette (American English), also known as a hair slide (British English), or a hair clip, is a clasp for holding hair in place. They are often made from metal or plastic and sometimes feature decorative fabric. In one type of barrette, a cla ...

. Hair ties' elasticity and

durability Durability is the ability of a physical product to remain functional, without requiring excessive maintenance or repair, when faced with the challenges of normal operation over its design lifetime. There are several measures of durability in us ...

vary according to the material or materials from which they are made.

History

Hair ties have likely been in use for thousands of years. In the 18th century wigs used a "queue" or "tail", consisting of a leather strap or small bag, to hold the wig together and support it. The early to mid 19th century and the modernisation of the rubber industry allowed for use of rubber in clothing, which would ultimately include early elastic hair ties.

Other names for hair ties

Hair ties are known by numerous names. Among the more common are: * Bands * Binder * Bobbin * Bobble * Bunchie * Chongo * Ding dong * Dodoggle * Doof * Dooflatchee * Elastic band * Gogo * Hair band * Hair binder * Hair bow * Hair deals * Hair elastic * Hair elastic band * Hair holder * Hair knick knacks * Hair lacky * Hair thing * Hair Toggle * Hair up * Liga * Nubby-doo * Ponytail holder * Ribbon *

Rubber band A rubber band (also known as an elastic band, gum band or lacky band) is a loop of rubber, usually ring or oval shaped, and commonly used to hold multiple objects together. The rubber band was patented in England on March 17, 1845 by Stephen P ...

* Scrunchie * Twistie * Whiztinger * Woogie * X-Twist

References

Headgear Hairdressing {{fashion-stub

History

Other names for hair ties

See also

References