A woman wearing a hair net

Reconstruction of an Iron Age woman's hair net.

A hairnet, or sometimes simply a net or caul, is a small, often elasticised, fine net worn over long hair to hold it in place. It is often worn by food service workers to prevent hair from contaminating the food. A snood is similar but a looser fit and with a much coarser mesh.

Evidence has been found of hairnets as far back as ancient Greece,^{[1][dead link]} further evidence are known from archaeological finds of Iron Age bog bodies from Denmark and Germany. Hairnets were worn from the 13th century onwards in Germany and England and are shown in illustrations from this period often worn with a wimple. They were made from extremely fine silk and edged with bands of either finger-weaving or tablet-weaving.^[2]

Ena Sharples, a character in the UK soap opera Coronation Street between 1960 and 1980, was famous for wearing a hairnet.

Hairnets are part of normal attire for female horse riders and are worn in most equestrian disciplines, including dressage, eventing, show jumping and hunting. Organisations such as the Pony Club encourage their young members to become accustomed to wearing hairnets when around horses, not only to ensure a neat and elegant appearance, but also to eliminate any danger of scalping should the rider fall off and the horse tread on loose hair.

Other uses[link]

The word has been adopted by several organisations in computing and the World Wide Web.^{[citation needed]}

• Hairnet in the UK, subsequently renamed Digital Unite, is a network of older self-employed computer trainers.^[3]

• In cycling, a hairnet was the popular term given to a bicycle helmet consisting of padded leather straps.^{[4][dead link]}

• Gang members in the United States and Mexico wear hairnets as part of their uniforms.^[5]

References[link]

Diane Cluck
Diane Cluck in 2002
Background information
Genres	Intuitive Folk,[1] Neofolk, Anti-folk, Freak Folk
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar, Piano, Harmonium, Organ, Xylophone, etc.
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Self published, with distribution by Important, Voodoo-Eros & Very Friendly
Associated acts	Jeffrey Lewis, Toby Goodshank, Herman Düne, Anders Griffen, Kimya Dawson
Website	dianecluck.info, [1]
Notable instruments
Acoustic Guitar

Diane Cluck is an American singer-songwriter. She describes her music as "intuitive folk."^[1][2] She currently records in Virginia.^[2]

Early life[link]

Cluck was raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She began taking piano lessons at the age of 7, and was classically trained on scholarship at the Pennsylvania Academy of Music.^[3][4]

Music[link]

Cluck began performing her songs publicly in New York City in 2000.^[3] She self-released her first solo album, Diane Cluck, that same year. By 2001, she was appearing regularly at the Sidewalk Cafe in New York's Lower East Side, a venue has featured such artists as Jeffrey Lewis, Regina Spektor, and Kimya Dawson. Massachusetts-based record label Important Records distributed her second and third albums, Macy's Day Bird in 2001 and Black With Green Leaves in 2002. Also in 2002, her song "Monte Carlo" was included in a compilation of New York Anti-folk music, Anti-folk Vol. 1, released by British label Rough Trade Records.

She wrote most of her fourth album, Oh Vanille / ova nil, while staying at the Dorland Mountain Arts Colony in Temecula, California in 2003.^[5] The album was distributed in 2004 by Important Records, and subsequently reissued on 180g audiophile vinyl pressed by 3 Syllables Records in 2010. Her fifth album, Countless Times, was distributed by Voodoo-Eros in 2005, and her sixth album, Monarcana, 2001-2004, was distributed in 2006 by Very Friendly.

Although known as a solo performer, she has often collaborated with others, including Jeffrey Lewis, CocoRosie, Toby Goodshank, Herman Düne, and recently with drummer Anders Griffen on tours in the US and UK.^[6][7]

In December 2011 she announced a fan-funded "Song-of-the-Week" project, in which she will write and distribute a new song to subscribers every week for six months.^[8]

Style[link]

Shawn Bosler of The Village Voice writes that "though Cluck is also anti-folk affiliated, her sound is more serious— she is likely one of the most refined and elegant songwriters in all of neo-folkdom (freak-, anti-, whatevuh-). A brilliant idiosyncratic guitarist, a witty and wise lyricist, an imaginative melody writer with a powerful voice; her dark and introspective tunes are utterly captivating, sorta like an earthier Kate Bush."^[9]

David Garland of NPR Music describes her sound as "an unlikely mix of Aaron Neville, the Baka people and Joni Mitchell." Praising Cluck's singing for being "unaffected yet unusual", he notes that she "handles her guitar in a distinctive way, often plucking the strings where the neck meets the body of the guitar, producing a harp-like tone."^[10]

Discography[link]

• Diane Cluck - 2000 ( self-released )
• Macy's Day Bird - 2001 ( distributed by Important Records )
• Black With Green Leaves - 2002 ( distributed by Important Records )
• Oh Vanille/Ova Nil - 2003 ( distributed by Important Records )
• Countless Times - 2005 ( distributed by Voodoo-Eros )
• Monarcana, 2001-2004 - 2006 ( distributed by Very Friendly )
• Oh Vanille/Ova Nil 180g audiophile vinyl - 2010 ( reissue with previously unreleased tracks, pressed and printed by 3 Syllables Records, mastered by Ray Staff )^[11]

Collaborations ( list incomplete )[link]

• 'The River' - 2001 - With Jeffrey Lewis
• 'Travel Light' - 2001 - With Jeffrey Lewis
• 'Finish Line' - 2001 - With Jeffrey Lewis
• 'So Not What I Wanted' - With Herman Düne
• 'To Live Like the Boys' - With Herman Düne
• 'Palam & Porom' - 2005 - With Toby Goodshank
• Noah's Ark - 2005 - Contributed to CocoRosie album^[12]
• 'I C U Thru Lightning' (vocals) - 2008 - by Dave Deporis^[13]
• 'Tell me to stay' (vocals) - 2009 - by Stanley Brinks^[14][15]

Compilation Appearances[link]

• AFNY Collaborations Volume 1 (Olive Juice Music) - 2001 - With Jeffrey Lewis]] and Kimya Dawson ^[16]
• Antifolk Vol. 1 (Rough Trade) - 2002 - 'Monte Carlo'
• The Golden Apples of the Sun - 2004 - 'Heat From Every Corner'
• The Enlightened Family: A Collection Of Lost Songs - 2005 - 'Real Good Time' and 'Nothing But God'
• Rough Trade Shops: Singer Songwriter 1 - 2006 - 'Easy to be Around'
• So Much Fire to Roast Human Flesh - 2006 - 'A Phoenix and Doves'
• From Colette With Love - 2006 - 'Real Good Time'^[17]
• Anticomp Folkilation - 2007 - 'The River' (with Jeffrey Lewis)
• Margot at the Wedding OST - 2007 - 'Easy to be Around'
• Skins - 2011 - 'Petite Roses'^[18]

References[link]