This site requires Javascript to be turned on. Please enable Javascript and reload the page.

Design Stories: Exploring Everyday Things

Kindness 20 catalogue advertisement

This page is referenced by:

Gendered Marketing Strategies (Markiyan)
Looking back at the original product, competitors and other print ads used marketing tactics that not only helped sell the product, but also reinforced societal and gender expectations. Advertisements marketed these products not just as hairstyling tools, but also as essential multitasking tools for maintaining a woman’s appearance, aligning with ideas of femininity.
A woman's self-worth is associated with the feminine mystique. According to feminist scholars, advertising often taught women how to “live out this [feminine] mystique by buying products that would enhance role performance in daily life” (Stern 1992, 14). The ads can be analyzed to see how they perpetuate beauty standards and social expectations that tied a woman's self-worth to maintaining a perfect appearance.

Kindness 20
Competitors like the Kindness 20 used similar marketing terms and tactics. The Kindness 20 catalogue advertisement emphasized speed, ease of use, and safety, using phrases like heating up in “less than 10 minutes” and requiring “no water or lotion.” This framed it as an efficient solution for achieving salon-quality hair at home. This reinforced the societal idea that women should be able to manage their hair quickly and effortlessly (Eaton’s 1969, 317).

The Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter
The Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter also focused on speed and ease of use. The packaging showed step-by-step instructions, which reinforced the idea that the product was simple to use. It also emphasized safety by stating the rollers were “not too hot to the touch.” The packaging shows a voluminous, curled hairstyle, reinforcing the beauty standards of the time (Esty n.d).

Rayette Cinderella Electric Hair-Setter
The Rayette Cinderella Electric Hair-Setter ad shows various hairstyles, and includes text suggesting how quickly women could change their look between daily activities. This ad also emphasises speed and convenience, showing how fast women could switch hairstyles (Retro Adverto 2012).

Clairol Kindness Ad
Another notable advertisement is the Clairol Kindness from the 1960s. This print ad from the United States features a woman with curlers and the phrase “men can’t love a head full of curlers,” suggesting that a woman wearing curlers is unattractive (eBay n.d). The ad reflects the societal pressures women faced to maintain a certain appearance, especially around beauty and femininity.

Miss Carol Ad
The Miss Carol ad from Chatelaine engages with the beauty standards of the time but presents a slightly different angle. The image shows an ad, that emphasizes the youthful appearance of women, even mothers. The slogan “Does She or Doesn’t She?” implies that the woman’s well-maintained hair might not be as effortless as it seems, reinforcing the idea that beauty standards extended into motherhood (Chatelaine 1961).

Molyneux interprets the slogan as a tension between a woman’s maternal and sexualized roles in the 1960s. She argues that the ad shows the woman not only as a maternal figure, but also as a sexualized temptress'. This reflects a broader social expectation that women must be nurturing mothers while maintaining their appearance. The ad presents a narrow view of femininity, but according to Molyneux, it also empowers women, giving them the agency to take control of their beauty at home (Molyneux 2002, 126-132).

Following the Second World War, the 1950s and 1960s became a time of change as more women entered the workforce in Canada, which Chatelaine often discusses (Glew et al. 2016, 137-138). The magazine presented different views, highlighting how work could bring fulfillment and independence, but also raised concerns about its effect on marriage (Glew et al. 2016, 139-141). By 1961, more women were working, but many still stayed home, reflecting a transition and showing society being stuck between the old and new roles (Glew et al. 2016, 138-144).
Takeaways
Feminist scholars note that “advertisements are... considered one of the most influential means of colonization in that they are wrought for mass audiences, are simple to understand, and are accessible to nearly everyone in the invaded culture" (Stern 1992, 11). These advertisements focus on selling convenience, speed, and ease of use to consumers, while reinforcing societal gender roles by positioning women’s appearance as a reflection of their value and suggesting that maintaining beauty requires constant effort.

By examining advertisements for hair-setting products like the Kindness 20, Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter, Rayette Cinderella Electric Hair-Setter, Clairol Kindness, and Miss Carol, it's clear that these marketing tactics reinforced beauty standards tied to femininity. These products were marketed not just as hairstyling tools, but as essential items for maintaining a woman’s appearance. They reinforced the idea that women’s worth was tied to their physical appearance, and that maintaining beauty had to be quick, easy, and constant. These ads played a significant role in shaping and reinforcing the societal pressures women faced to meet these beauty standards.

Products like the Ten-Ten Hair Setter reflected the societal change that women were experiencing. They allowed women to manage their appearance at home, offering a sense of autonomy and efficiency. The expectation to maintain beauty never disappeared, instead, it was made more convenient.
Competitor Analysis (Markiyan)
After reviewing eBay listings for this product, we moved onto catalogue advertisements and other representation of the product. Due to the lack of catalogue listings and advertisements specifically on the Ten-Ten Hair Setter, we analyzed competitor catalogue listings, packaging, and advertisements to gain a better understanding of the Ten-Ten's design and features. This analysis considers how consumer behaviour concepts and perceptual biases may have influenced the product’s design and how it was perceived.
Kindness 20
The Kindness 20 is a very similar product to the Ten-Ten Hair Setter and may have been a direct competitor, sharing key characteristics with the Ten-Ten. A listing from Eaton’s Spring/Summer Catalogue (1969) shows it was sold with pins and a handle, suggesting these features were standard and likely included with the Ten-Ten (Eaton’s 1969, 317). This emphasis on portability and convenience reflects consumer preferences, valuing products that offered efficiency and ease of use.

Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter
Another product that provides insight into the design of hair setters during this period is the Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter. The packaging shows the British pound symbol, suggesting that this model is from the United Kingdom. The Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter also features removable rollers and has a base designed to heat them efficiently. It highlights similar key design elements that reflect the growing consumer demand for speed and ease of use (Esty n.d.). By promoting speed and ease, the Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter appealed to consumers who saw problems when they perceived a gap between their current state, using regular curlers, and their desired state of achieving faster, salon-quality results at home (Engel, Blackwell, and Miniard 2014, 350)

90s Hairsetting Devices
In later years, there is an increased variety of hair setters, which may hint at a rising demand and growing popularity. A 1993/94 Consumer Distributing Catalogue shows a wider selection of hair setters than in earlier decades. Descriptions in the catalogue show advancements in design, with products offering features like larger roller sizes, more styling options, and soft-cushioned rollers, suggesting a shift toward comfort and customization (Consumer Distributing 1993-94, 225). This increased variety suggests that manufacturers were responding to consumer feedback and the growing demand for comfort and customization. This increase in variety aligns with Engel, Blackwell, and Miniard’s point that consumers are likely to seek products that match their values, preferences, and previous experiences, which reinforces a perceptual bias (Engel, Blackwell, and Miniard 2014, 36).

Takeaways
The Kindness 20, Clairol 2-Minute Hair Setter, and later 1990s models show how consumer behavior shaped product design and innovation. Consumers engage in extended decision-making when they perceive a gap between their current state and their desired state (Engel, Blackwell, and Miniard 2014, 350). With hair setters, advertising features like speed, ease of use, and portability address that gap. As the products evolved, manufacturers responded to growing demands for comfort and customization, reflecting consumers’ increasing bias toward products that aligned with their personal preferences and lifestyle needs.
For the Ten-Ten Hair Setter, these insights suggest that its design and advertising likely focused on similar values: speed, convenience, and simplicity. The Ten-Ten’s features, such as its portability and efficient heating mechanism, would have been key selling points. Advertisements may have highlighted how the product could provide salon-like results at home in a fraction of the time. The marketing likely framed it as a time-saving beauty solution, promising quick, hassle-free results.
Gender Roles (Pedro & Maria)
(Pedro) With the end of the second world war and the beginning of the baby boom, consumerism and rising use of cheap plastics and synthetic alternatives to metal became more and more frequently pushed out by companies as hair itself became the most affordable accessory of the century. Times may have been tight, but ideas abounded. Recycling was now a given, and after the war years, it was considered particularly shameful to waste any scarce items such as fabric, buttons, or thread. As both wardrobes and wallets gaped empty, attention was directed to Spectacular hairstyles which became the hottest accessories of the era. (Sundh, Emma, and Sarah Wing, 2015).

(Maria) Women were the sole target for this product for a number of reasons. Societal standards and gender roles being two of the main reasons. Gender roles in the 1960s played a huge role in who bought certain products and why, which in turn affected how and to whom products were marketed. The Samson Dominion Ten Ten Hairsetter is a great example of a product that was heavily targeted toward women, specifically women who stayed at home. “In the 1950s and early 1960s, women were largely expected to be homemakers, dedicating their lives to raising children and supporting their husbands. Sociologists and psychologists of the time told women that they were naturally suited for these roles, and neglecting them would lead to unhappiness and neuroses.” (D’clare 2025, 1) This quote does a great job of summarizing stereotypes and expectations of women in the 1960’s. The idea that women would be unhappy if they were to neglect their household duties is extremely outdated, but relevant in the context of our artefact. The ads discussed under “Mediation” prove this to be true.
(Maria) According to the book “Women’s Magazines, 1940-1960 : Gender Roles and the Popular Press” magazines during the 60s promoted and reflected the expectations of a woman in the 1960s (Walker 1998, 2). These expectations include traditional gender norms, beauty ideals, promotion of domesticity, and consumerism. More specifically, it was stated that women were not typically encouraged to have jobs, but rather stay at home with their families. Even though they were typically the homemakers, they were still expected to look effortlessly perfect and proper. This included things such as clothing, makeup, and most relevantly, hair. In the book "Dressing for the Culture Wars: Style and the Politics of Self-Presentation" by Betty Luther Hillman, she discusses how things such as fashion choices were a reflection of cultural, political and societal standards (Hillman 2017). The advertisements touched upon under mediation were a reflection of the same things. (1969) is a good example of marketing that emphasized use of the product, likely encouraging women to buy it. Phrases such as “Less than 10 minutes” “No water, no lotion” and “Rollers cannot overheart” were used to promote the product (Eaton’s 1969, 317). These short but effective phrases made the product out to be quick, easy, safe, comfortable, and effective; all of which are highly intriguing. Since the majority of women were not particularly encouraged to work outside of the home, the independence this product allowed was also a huge selling point. Being able to style one’s hair at home with the outcome of salon quality hair was great and would also help a woman keep up with the unrealistic societal standards of the time.
(Maria) The societal stands of women during this time, although heavily used in advertisements, as seen under mediation, were not entirely accurate. This, for the most part, was an ideal that was used to sell a product when in reality women were starting to enter the workforce. As studied by Statistics Canada, roughly one-quarter of women from ages 25-54 participated in the labor market whether they were employed or looking for employment (Statistics Canada 2024). From the 1950’s until the 1990’s, women’s presence in the workforce continued to increase as the stereotypical gender norms previously discussed began to evolve; more specifically, rising from about 24% in 1953 to 76% in 1990 (Statistics Canada 2024). This, in some part, was due to the evolution of technology. As electrical appliances evolved, the time needed to perform household chores decreased, giving women more opportunities and time to work (Statistics Canada 2024).

(Maria) In the journal “Book Notes: Transforming Labour: Women and Work in Post-War Canada” Professor Sangster suggests that the media does not accurately portray the everyday experiences of women in the workforce (Healy-Varley 2010, 721-22). Stanger goes on to explain how important and relevant the time period is when it comes to understanding women in the workplace (Healy-Varley 2010, 721-22). This journal gave some good insight into how products, specifically those directed towards women are not necessarily an accurate portrayal of women.
(Pedro) Spectacular hairstyles became the hottest accessories of the era. In order to create such hairdos, many women grew their hair a little longer, but not too long. Within some professions, hair was not even allowed to touch the collar. Moving into the 1950’s and later the 60’s, women were no longer socially expected to be employed or save the world, but rather be stay at home “picture perfect” home-wives. This post-war new age of consumerism lended to a new ambition of looking magazine gorgeous — something clearly reflected in the fashion and growing star culture (Sundh, Emma, and Sarah Wing, 2015). "With their hair perfectly set and their nails freshly painted, they were far away from the dust and grease of the factory floors” this was the social expectation (Sundh, Emma, and Sarah Wing, 2015).
(Pedro) There was an abundance of luxury, ease, pastel colours, and rounder “feminine” shapes, all marketing the expectation for the 1950s woman to be a representative housewife, moving around the house in close proximity to a refrigerator and vacuum cleaner. A well-managed home with a wife by the stove was proof of a man's success, imagery and messaging seen throughout various magazines, catalogues, and advertisements (Sundh, Emma, and Sarah Wing, 2015).