The History of Finger Waves: The Wet-Set Wave of the Jazz Age

Picture a 1920s or early-1930s publicity portrait and there is a good chance the sitter's hair is set in glossy, sculpted ripples that lie close to the head. Those ripples are finger waves. They are among the most recognisable looks of the Jazz Age, and they are worth studying because they are a technique as much as a style. The waves are moulded into wet hair by hand, using fingers and a comb, and left to dry undisturbed. The results look precise, almost architectural, yet they require no heat on the hair at all ^[1].

The problem finger waves solved

Finger waves answered a very specific problem. In the early 1920s many women in Europe and North America cut their hair short into a bob, a dramatic break with the long hair that had been standard for generations ^[2]. The bob was liberating, practical and modern, but on straight hair it could also look severe. A fashion guide quoted in the historical literature puts it plainly: finger waves were developed in the 1920s to add style to, and soften the hard appearance of, the bobbed hairstyles of the flapper period ^[1].

Short hair also made the technique possible. Long hair is heavy and hard to mould close to the head. A chin-length or shorter bob could be shaped into tight waves that sat neatly against the skull and framed the face.

How finger waves are made

The method is simple to describe and difficult to master. Damp hair is coated with a waving or setting lotion. The stylist then pinches a ridge of hair between the fingers and combs the hair beside it in one direction, then pinches the next ridge and combs in the opposite direction, building a chain of S-shaped curves across the head ^[1]. The waves are left to dry without being disturbed. Once dry, they hold as deep, smooth undulations.

Traditionally the waving lotion was made with karaya gum, a natural plant gum that dried to a firm hold. Later stylists switched to liquid gels and hair sprays, and clips, and later tape, became popular for holding the heavy damp waves in place while they set ^[1]. Because no heat is used, finger waves work on straight hair as well as on naturally curly or permanently waved hair ^[1].

Finger waves versus the marcel wave

Finger waves are often confused with marcel waves, and in old photographs the two can look almost identical. The difference is in how they are made. The marcel wave was created with a heated iron. In 1872 the French hairdresser Marcel Grateau devised specially shaped tongs, with one rounded arm and one concave arm that fitted together, heated over a gas or spirit flame ^[3][4]. Stylists tested the temperature on paper before use. The marcel wave lasted longer than a finger wave, but it relied on heat and carried the risk of scorched hair.

A third technique, the croquignole method, wound hair around heated curlers and is associated with early permanent waving ^[1][4]. All three could produce the deep, regular waves that defined interwar glamour, which is why historians look closely at the regularity, depth and texture of waves before naming them.

Stars of the finger wave

Film and stage stars spread the look. Performers such as Josephine Baker, whose sleek, sculpted short hair became one of the most celebrated images of 1920s Paris, are credited with popularising finger waves, and Hollywood actresses of the late 1920s and early 1930s wore the latest variations on screen ^[1]. Black-and-white film flattered the style: glossy waves caught studio light and gave a sense of movement even when the head was still.

The Journal on this site tells the story of Josephine Baker and the Eton crop, the very short, slicked style she made famous. Finger waves and slicked crops belonged to the same visual world, in which a short, controlled head of hair was a sign of modernity.

Inside a 1920s salon

The finger wave arrived at the same moment as a boom in professional hairdressing. The bob had to be cut, and the cut had to be maintained, so women who had once dressed their long hair at home began visiting salons and barbershops regularly ^[2]. Many barbers who had only cut men's hair suddenly found women in their chairs asking for a bob, and dedicated beauty parlours multiplied. Finger waving became a standard skill in those salons, taught in beauty schools alongside cutting, marcel waving and early permanent waving.

A typical appointment would begin with a shampoo, then the application of setting lotion to towel-dried hair. The stylist would decide where the parting and the first wave would sit, often following the natural direction of the client's hair growth. Working from the parting outward, ridge by ridge, the waves were built across the crown and down toward the nape. Clips held each ridge until the next was formed. Drying could take a long time, which helped make salon hood dryers an everyday fixture by the end of the decade.

The skill involved was considerable. Even, regular waves depended on consistent tension, the right amount of lotion and a careful eye for the shape of the head. Uneven ridges were obvious, and in an era when photographs and films showed perfect waves on the stars, clients expected precision.

Decline in the 1930s

As the 1930s progressed, hair began to grow a little longer and softer. Waves remained fashionable, but they became looser and were increasingly produced by pin curls, rollers and improved permanent waves rather than by finger waving alone ^[4]. The tight, close-to-the-head finger wave became a signature of a specific moment, roughly the mid-1920s to the early 1930s.

The 1990s revival

Finger waves returned strongly in the late 1990s. In the United States and Europe pop stars such as Madonna wore them, and hip-hop and R&B artists, including Missy Elliott, made them part of a bold, polished stage look ^[1]. The revival was helped by a movement toward shorter hair in the African American community, where finger waves on short relaxed or natural hair became a celebrated salon speciality ^[1].

This revival is important because it shows that finger waves are not only a costume piece for 1920s parties. In many Black salons they became a living art form, with stylists developing their own sculpted variations, adding colour and combining waves with tapered cuts. Red-carpet looks in the 2010s and 2020s regularly borrow from both the Jazz Age and the 1990s versions.

A myth to set aside

Some online articles claim that finger waves were widely worn by enslaved people in the nineteenth century, or that the style only became popular after a particular actress danced on live television. These claims appear on the internet without reliable sources, and we have not found evidence to support them. Live television did not exist in the period in question, which is a useful warning sign. Until good evidence appears, we treat these stories as unverified and leave them out of the history.

Finger waves and modern hair care

Because finger waves are set wet and dried without heat, they are gentler on hair than many heat-styled looks. The main risks come from strong-hold products left on for long periods, and from rough removal of dried gel, which can cause breakage. Rinsing set products thoroughly and keeping the scalp clean are sensible habits. Readers who want to understand how hair and scalp respond to styling products can find educational resources at https://trichology.com.

Why finger waves matter

Finger waves capture a whole era in a few ripples: the shock of the bob, the glamour of early cinema, and the skill of hairdressers who could sculpt a head of hair with nothing but a comb and their hands. They also show that technique, not only technology, drives hair history. In an age of electric curling machines and permanent waving, one of the most elegant looks of the period was made with fingers.