1963

This year, 1963 was the start of my interest in hairdressing, I was 11 years old and was a pupil at 'High School'. At that time, women's careers (in my mother's eyes) were temporary, as a woman was to 'be there' for her husband, in other words a slave to Housework and to produce children....so hairdressing was a 'good idea' as it could be left and picked up again in the kitchen for 'your friends', whilst the children was sleeping.

I went along with this as I was very much infuenced by mum, who is still a very astute woman, where as my father was an ex-hairdresser, so it was 'in my blood'. His father Ralph Hall of Hull had hairdressing shops in Waterloo Street in Hull, but failed to sign Dad up as an apprentice, as why did he need to?....then second World War was declared and he was an age that was 'called up' to serve his country.

My mum told me that I needed to practice my skills (which she showed me), so I permed her friends hair, with a product called Twink, this was the most foul smell ever at that time, it should have been enough to put anyone off the trade, but not me. So i started taking appointments like a 'real hairdresser', perming and setting mum's friends, cousins, aunties and of course Grandma.

One day, Aunty Doreen (which of course was not a real aunt, mum's friends all had to be called Aunty something or other, even to this day, ' Aunty Molly', gets her title when we see each other) said "Will you trim it today please?"........trim?, I thought, how do I do that? She realised by the look on my face, I had not done many (infact none at all), so she said "Cut the same amount off each piece in a straight line, then put the perm paper round it and wind it up"....so I did, and that's how it all started until Twiggy and Mary Quant hit the fashion world,.......now that's a different story.

Excitement, pleasure, intrigue....I needed to do these styles, not shampoo and sets every 15 minutes as by 1967 I was in full-time hairdressing.