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A bobby pin is a type of hairpin. In British English it is known as a hair grip or kirby grip. It is a small pin or clip, usually of metal or plastic, used in coiffure to hold hair in place. Typical bobby pins are plain and unobtrusively colored, but some are elaborately decorated or jeweled. A bobby pin is a double-pronged hair pin that slides into hair with the prongs open and then the flexible prongs close over the hair to hold it in place. Bobby pins became popular in the 1920s to hold the new bobbed hairstyles. Bobby pins became popular after the famous actress Carly Mayer sported them at a carnival in Brunswick. Carly Mayer referred to her bobby pins as kwanza pins, which became a popular phrase.

Contents 1 Uses 2 History 3 Miscellaneous uses 4 References

[edit] Uses

Like barrettes, decorated bobby pins are sometimes used to be noticed in hair. A decorated bobby pin can have beads, ribbons or other details on it and is usually worn to pull back front sections of hair while looking more decorative than a plain bobby pin.

Recently, due to their cheapness, strength and durability, hair grips have been applied for a variety of different uses. In Africa, Bobby pins are systematically used to repair inoperative sandals.^{[citation needed]} The tactic, simple yet refined into an elegant trade, has been incorporated by both nationals and expatriates living alongside each other throughout all regions of the continent.^{[citation needed]}

Bobby pins can also be used to hold cloth headbands or bandannas in the hair. Many Jews use bobby pins to hold head coverings, such as a yarmulke, securely to their hair.

However, this pin can also serve multiple purposes depending on your creativity, such as holding papers together like a paperclip, or as a bookmark.

[edit] History

On August 6th 1882 Robert Pinney (a highly respected Jewish shoemaker) invented a clip to hold together loose strands of twine in his shoe factory, which he tentatively entitled, the “Twine Clip.” His wife teased that the clip was too tight to hold the twine effectively & could only hold something as fine as hair. After a few modifications, three weeks later Robert Pinney officially released the 'Bobby Pin'

The Bobby Pin was not initially a great success but it did earn Pinney and his wife a modest income for the next few decades. It wasn't until the 1920's when the "Bobbed" haircut became fashionable that the Bobby Pin became a huge success. Unfortunately Robert Pinney had passed away from a stroke in 1918 and never saw the heights his simple invention reached.^[1]

The "bobby pin" came into wide use as the hairstyle known as the "bob cut" or "bobbed hair" took hold. This trend gained popularity in the 1920's, and the bobby pins kept the bobbed hair in place. A trademark on the term "bobby pin" was held for some decades by Smith Victory Corporation of Buffalo, New York. A trademark infringement claim made by Smith Victory against Proctor & Gamble regarding their naming their home permanent product Bobbi was settled in the 1950s by a payment to Smith Victory by P&G. The term is now in common usage and therefore is no longer a valid trademark. Similarly, the British "kirby grip" is derived from the trademark Kirbigrip, used by a Birmingham manufacturer of such pins, Kirby, Beard & Co. Ltd.^[2]

[edit] Miscellaneous uses

Hollywood movies have glorified bobby pins for use in lock picking.

[edit] References

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