Bobby pin
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A bobby pin (barbie 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.
[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
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.
[edit] Miscellaneous uses
Hollywood movies have glorified bobby pins for use in lock picking.
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