There’s probably a factual answer, but I figured I’d ask here because there might be a bunch of answers, or people might have their own personal 60’s experience to draw on.
You know, one of those 60’s hairdos like Peggy has on this season of Mad Men. Big, poofty, doesn’t move a lot. Very cute on her.
I assume that’s one of those “weekly appointment shower cap don’t sleep on it too hard” things they used to do. (Well, used to? I roomed with an older lady on a trip I just took and found out she washes her hair once a week, when she does her curlers. I don’t even know where you buy a shower cap these days.) Would she have done it herself? With, what, curlers? A curling iron? Some sort of… implement?
Seriously, I have no idea. I get how you get the curly Marilyn look with curlers, and I get the “fake hair” thing they did a lot then, and in a couple years I guess she’ll have to grow it long and iron it or whatever. But how do you get all that volume without curls?
Ratting and hairspray mostly, from what I understand.
If you want a really high bump in front of a ponytail… like Audrey Hepburn at the end of Breakfast at Tiffany’s… you can buy pads to put under the hair to hold it up.
To be a little more specific about how ratting works, in case people don’t know … you take the hair that’s going to be on top of the style, and put that aside. Then, for the hair that will be providing the structural foundation of the 'do, you hold the ends of the hair, and vigorously comb it up, toward the scalp (backcombing), resulting in a puffy tangle. A generous application of Aquanet hairspray will keep this in place, providing the needed volume. Then, go back to the hair that was kept aside, and smooth it over the ratted hair, again, hairspray that in place.
Curlers can help hold the dome shape (especially for fine hair), but you need that ratted hair for the height.
Sleeping with a fabric headband to push the hair into a specific position also helps keep the shape (especially on those styles that look like the back of head is elongated).
My mom was (and still is) a fan of big hair. She says she used to sleep with her hair wrapped around orange juice concentrate cans. I suspect this was to keep the style in place.