Marie Antoinette and this week’s fresh to market vintage have something in common. Both have bouffants. The word “bouffant” comes from the French work meaning “puffy.” (To be strictly accurate, the feminine version of the word is spelled “bouffante.”) The history of the hairdo that inspired the expression “the higher the hair, the closer to heaven” has its roots with Marie Antoinette and her towering, puffy, powdered wigs.

Fashion wise, the peak of bouffant popularity was the 1950s and early 1960s. It was a rebound style from the war years, emphasizing femininity. Hairdressers teased, ratted, and backcombed women’s hair into a puffy mound that was held in place with a quantity of hairspray that added five pounds on the scale. Style icon Jacqueline Kennedy and her bouffant ignited the trend worldwide in the early 1960s. The beehive, which for us will always bring to mind the B-52s, literally grew out of the bouffant.

Wearing a bouffant required planning and dedication. It was definitely not wash and wear. Although a tiny shred of our brain wishes we knew how to build a proper bouffant so we could peacock around with it, the rest of our brain remembers that actually using a brush in the morning is an afterthought, so we are probably lacking the proper commitment. Our bouffant dream is probably best left to having a perfect lady head vase like the one in this week’s fresh to market vintage.

1960s Napcoware Lady Head Vase

This beauty has the most soulful eyes and a great bouffant hairstyles. Her eyeliner reminds me of my older sister who was so beautiful when she was young. She really turned heads. These lady head vases do exactly the same thing.

1960s Napcoware Lady Head Vase, Made in Japan, $66.99

-Mary Ellen, Aunt Hatties Attic

Silver and Black Floral Spray Brooch

The 80s doesn’t seem that long ago to me until I realize it was 40 some years ago. Yikes! This silver and black brooch seems to me the epitome of 80s style. I can see this worn on the lapel of a boxy suit jacket with big padded shoulders. The executive wearing it heading off to a power lunch. Her outfit calling out her importance and this brooch gleaming in the fluorescent lights of her office.

Floral Spray Brooch, $28.95

-Pam, Vintage Renude

Zell Hibiscus Majolica Salad Set c 1900s

Elegant antique hand-painted Majolica salad bowl & six plates in the “Hibiscus” pattern. Made by the Zell factory circa 1907-1928. All pieces are marked. This lovely lemon-yellow colored set has a red flower & green leaves on a basket weave background with a rope-like trim.

Antique Majolica Salad Bowl and Six Plates, $295

-Linda, Selective Salvage

50s Pink Metal Bed Tray

Breakfast in bed? Don’t mind if I do. This vintage metal bed tray is equally happy serving brunch on a lazy Sunday as it is serving chicken soup and toast when you’re under the weather. It’s super sturdy, generously sized and has a tilting top for reading the paper.

Metal Tilting Bed Tray, $72

-Laurie, NextStage Vintage

That’s this week’s fresh to market vintage. Are you tempted to rat your hair into a bouffant, throw on a bed jacket with feathered trim and have tea and toast on the bed tray? We know we are.

We don’t necessarily want to tease you, but we have some cool content in the pipeline for the next few weeks. Don’t miss a single post, subscribe to our email newsletter. One email a week delivering links to all our posts keeps you always in the loop.