A hard plastic headband, or Alice band

Headbands are a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plastic or metal. They come in assorted shapes and sizes and are used for both fashion and practical/utilitarian purposes.

Horseshoe-shaped headbands are sometimes called Alice bands after the headbands that Alice is often depicted wearing in Through the Looking-Glass.^[1]

Tartessian gold headband from the Iron Age.

History[link]

Greeks and Romans[link]

The beginning of headbands started no later than the ancient Greeks who wore hair wreaths. The Greeks and Romans wore these pieces to very special occasions or an important event. Cultures such as the Etruscans and Romans started to decorate their wreaths with jewels made up of gold and silver. While wreaths are certainly a likely beginning of today's headbands, some believe that current day hair bands have slowly taken shape from scarves that were worn around the head or were modified from the band of hats that tied under the chin.

Early 20th century[link]

In the early 20th century, wide headbands known as headache bands were very popular accessories in women's fashion. Their name, of course, results from the belief that the tight pressure they provided around the forehead could relieve or prevent headaches. The French called such a garment a bandeau (bandeaux, plural). In the 1910s, headache bands would likely have been more lacy in design--a crochet central panel decorated with ribbons and rosettes and bordered with lace, for example.^[2] Examples from the 1920s and 1930s are more apt to be dramatic sheaths in exotic fabrics and decorated with feathers, and would have been worn with fashions by couturiers such as Paul Poiret.^[3] These sorts of headache bands probably achieved their peak of popularity in the 1920s. Today, items called headache bands are apt to be strictly utilitarian and medical in focus.

During the same period, jewelled headache bands or headbands, often in precious metals and precious gems were popular.^[4]

1980s[link]

Deely boppers were a fad in 1982.

Princess Diana famously wore an emerald and diamond choker as a headband in Melbourne on the occasion of a state tour of Australia in 1985.^[5]

Symbolism[link]

In Japanese culture, hachimaki headbands may symbolise determination or devotion.

Fashion[link]

Materials and uses[link]

Rafael Nadal wearing green head band during a tennis match.

A headband depicting the Tree of Currier House (Harvard College)

There are many kinds of headbands such as, leathered, plastic, metal, fabric, toothed, and novelty. The leather headbands are usually glued onto a harder plastic headband, or they are hand-stitched. Plastic headbands, which are most common, can be wavy, straight or angled and come in many colors. Metal can also be used to form and support leather headbands. Metal-only headbands may be plain or decorated, sometimes with precious jewels. Fabric headbands are comfortable because they do not dig into the head. They usually have an elastic band, so that the headband forms to the head. The toothed headbands have comb-like teeth that are connected to the top part of the headband. Their teeth ensure that the hair stays in place. Novelty headbands can be used for holidays and may have decorations attached such as bunny ears, reindeer ears, Santa Claus hats and others. Headbands are often are part of a larger fashion statement - they can be color coded and matched accordingly to one's outfit.

Utilitarian uses[link]

Two cloth headbands

Flag of Corsica shows a man wearing a headband.

Headbands, or sweatbands, are worn around the forehead during physical activity to absorb sweat and keep it from reaching the eyes. Sweatbands are often made of a continuous loop of terrycloth, as it is a particularly absorbent fabric. Folded bandanas, usually knotted behind the head, also serve this purpose. Headbands are usually used for sports but have not been popular since the late 1970s or early 1980s.

Some specialized headbands are designed to be worn covering the ears, to protect from cold temperatures and snow. These tend to be broader and of heavier fabric.These headbands are usually made from a heavier material such as neofleece, micro fleece, polyester and other materials. They are usually designed to draw sweat away from the skin and keep it dry and warm. These special headbands come in women's, men's and children's sizes. These headbands also come in many colors and are useful when doing winter activities such as skiing or snowboarding.

See also[link]

• Diadem
• Laurel wreath
• Tiara
• Hachimaki
• Deely bopper
• Bandeau

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Headbands

Lauren Conrad
Born	Lauren Katherine Conrad (1986-02-01) February 1, 1986 (age 26) Laguna Beach, California, U.S.
Other names	L.C.[1]
Occupation	Television personality, fashion designer, author
Years active	2004–present
Website
www.laurenconrad.com

Lauren Katherine Conrad (born February 1, 1986) is an American television personality and fashion designer.^[2] She came to prominence with her starring roles on the MTV reality series Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and its spin-off series, The Hills, which at one point followed her personal and professional life as she pursued a career in the fashion industry.

Conrad has written three books in her L.A. Candy trilogy with a spin-off trilogy in the works, and has two fashion lines; LC by Lauren Conrad and Paper Crown. She, her hairstylist, and her makeup artist run a beauty website, The Beauty Department.^[3][4][5]

Early life[link]

Conrad was born in Laguna Beach, California to parents Jim and Kathy. She is the oldest of three children. Her younger siblings are Breanna and Brandon.^[6] In 2004, Conrad appeared on MTV Cribs, giving a tour of her Laguna Beach home.^[7]

Career[link]

[edit] 2004–09: Laguna Beach and The Hills

During Conrad's senior year of high school, she appeared in the MTV reality series Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County in which she agreed to have her life taped. Upon graduation in 2004, she attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco for one semester along with her friend, Heidi Montag. During the second season of Laguna Beach, she returned home and began taking classes at a local community college before subsequently transferring to the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising.^[6]

Conrad at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards.

After the success of Laguna Beach, MTV developed The Hills, a spin-off series. The series originally documented the personal and professional lives of Lauren and her friends (Heidi Montag, Audrina Patridge, and Whitney Port) while living in Los Angeles, California. The first season premiered on MTV on May 31, 2006. At the time, Conrad was an intern at Teen Vogue while living with then-housemate Heidi Montag.^[8]

The series was later renewed for a second season, which was filmed from late summer 2006 through February 2007 and premiered on January 15, 2007. During that time, Conrad and Montag's friendship deteriorated, as Heidi was increasingly spending her time with her new boyfriend, Spencer Pratt. By February 2007, Audrina Patridge became Conrad's roommate after Montag moved into a separate apartment with Pratt.^[9] Filming for the third season of The Hills began in mid-summer 2007 and lasted through March 2008. The premiere episode of season 3 aired on August 13, 2007. During that time, Conrad was able to revive her position at Teen Vogue and was offered a trip to Paris alongside Whitney Port. By March 2008, Port had left Teen Vogue for fashion PR firm People's Revolution, and after asking Conrad to assist at an event, Kelly Cutrone invited her to work for her company.

Filming for the fourth season of The Hills began in mid-summer 2008 and lasted through November 2008. The premiere episode of Season 4 aired on August 18, 2009. Filming for Season 5 began in January 2009, and the premiere episode aired April 6, 2009. Conrad confirmed that the fifth season would be her last.^[10] She made her final appearance in the series on May 31, 2009. The program continued without her, with former Laguna Beach castmate Kristin Cavallari being hired as Conrad's replacement. In March 2010, it was announced that the sixth season of The Hills would be the last.^[11] There was much speculation that Conrad would make a guest appearance for the series finale. The series ended on July 13, 2010, after airing six seasons and 102 episodes. She did not appear in the finale, but later said that she filmed an alternate ending of the series with Brody Jenner.^[12]

2007–09: Early fashion and retail endeavors[link]

Conrad at VH1's 2009 Divas concert

Conrad landed an internship at Teen Vogue while filming season one of The Hills.^[6] Conrad and her reality show appearances have been credited with improving sales of Teen Vogue. It was reported in March 2007 that since the second season of The Hills began airing in mid-January, newsstand sales for the magazine increased by double digits over 2006 sales. According to Lisa Love, the West Coast editor of Vogue who evaluated Conrad for the internship position, Conrad had to interview successfully in order to get the job, "regardless of what the cameras wanted".^[13] In January 2007, Conrad was named the first official spokesperson of "mark.", a line created by Avon and marketed toward young women. She was featured in the brand’s magalog and in the "mark." online community.^[14] Conrad was replaced by Ashley Greene in June 2010.^[15]

In 2007, Conrad appeared as a satirical version of herself in the comedy Epic Movie. In 2008, Conrad made a cameo appearance in an episode of Greek. In May 2009, Conrad appeared as a cartoon and ironic version of herself in an episode of Family Guy.^[16] Conrad had previously done voice work for the show in the episode Prick Up Your Ears in a spoof of Laguna Beach. Conrad's first fashion line, The Lauren Conrad Collection, debuted at the Mercedes-Benz LA Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios in March 2008. In March 2009, Conrad announced that she would be taking a break from the fashion line. As a result, 2009's spring and summer lines were canceled. She earns an estimated $1.5 million annually for her television appearances, fashion line, and product endorsements. In fall 2009, Conrad launched LC by Lauren Conrad in Kohl's stores nationwide.^[17] Conrad appeared as a guest judge during Cycle 13 of America's Next Top Model.^[18] In August 2009, Conrad appeared on an episode of the tenth anniversary edition of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, playing for her charity: m.powerment by mark.^[19] She was asked one question for $50,000 and answered correctly after using her "Ask the Audience" lifeline. In 2010, she guest starred on Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.

[edit] 2009–10: L.A. Candy and defunct reality series

Conrad released her first novel, L.A. Candy, on June 16, 2009.^[20] Inspired by her personal life, the book focuses on a young woman who moves to Los Angeles and becomes the star of a reality show. It was a New York Times bestseller.^[21] The second novel, Sweet Little Lies, was released on February 16, 2010.^[22] The final novel, Sugar and Spice, was released on October 5, 2010,^[23] along with another book, Lauren Conrad Style, which is about her experiences in and her knowledge of the fashion industry as well as being a style guide. In 2011, Conrad made another three-book deal with publisher HarperCollins. The books, titled The Fame Game, will be a spin-off series of the L.A. Candy trilogy and will follow character Madison Parker.^[24][25] Conrad launched a production company, Blue Eyed Productions, in early 2009. It has purchased the rights to turn L.A. Candy into a movie, in which Conrad would serve as an executive producer. The movie would be based on all three books.^[26]

On September 24, 2010, Conrad announced during an On Air with Ryan Seacrest interview that she would star in an upcoming MTV reality series. The show would focus on her fashion career rather than focusing on her personal life, which she says "will be something very different" from The Hills.^[27] The series began filming in mid-October 2010.^[28] However, after MTV had viewed the pilot, the network decided to not pick up the series. MTV's head of programming, David Janollari, said, "She did do a pilot. There were talks about whether we could somehow manage to put together a special based on that footage but that's also a big question mark based on her interest in that and the finances. We decided not to go ahead with the show," later adding, "We love her! We would love her on our network! It was a great attempt but it just didn't feel like a perfect fit for us now." Conrad released a statement of her own, reading, "We sold a show to MTV, filmed it and are really proud of the final result. MTV felt the subject matter was too high brow for their audience and offered me the opportunity to change the show by incorporating more of my personal life. We agreed going into the project that this show would be an aspirational one, focusing on my career and my goals and not my personal relationships. We delivered the show that we sold and are sorry MTV didn't feel their viewers were savvy enough to appreciate it."^[29]

[edit] 2011–present: The Fame Game and continued career

Conrad is working on launching a new fashion line, Paper Crown, and is scheduled to be in stores by fall 2011.^[4][30] The line is her third collection after The Lauren Conrad Collection and LC by Lauren Conrad. Her now defunct reality show would have focused on the creation and launch of the line. In April 2011, Conrad, along with her hairstylist Kristin Ess and her makeup artist Amy Nadine, launched a beauty website called The Beauty Department.^[31] The site offers beauty advice and tips as well as how-tos and tutorials.^[32]

In September 2011, Conrad announced plans to expand The Beauty Department to include a beauty and cosmetic line as well as to expand her current fashion lines.^[33]

Conrad is writing a spin-off book series of her L.A. Candy novels. The first novel, The Fame Game, was released on April 3, 2012. The second book in The Fame Game series, Starstruck, will be released on November 6, 2012. She is also writing another book, titled Lauren Conrad Beauty.^[34]

Personal life[link]

In 2008, Conrad began dating My Boys actor Kyle Howard. The couple broke up in June 2011.

Filmography[link]

Television[link]

Film[link]

Published works[link]

• L.A. Candy (2009)
• Sweet Little Lies (2010)
• Sugar and Spice (2010)
• Lauren Conrad Style (2010)
• The Fame Game (2012)
• Lauren Conrad Beauty (2012)
• Starstruck (2012)

Awards[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

	Los Angeles portal
	Biography portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lauren Conrad

• Official website
• The Beauty Department
• Lauren Conrad at the Internet Movie Database