Until 1848 only the wigmakers guild was permitted to make or sell items made of human hair.  At the end of the 18th century when powdered wigs went out of fashion the wigmakers created a new mode of employment and it became the fashion all over Europe to have jewelry or decorations of hair.  The technique was a trade secret.

Perhaps they needed assistants for this popular craft.  In 1824 ten young women travelled from Våmhus to Finland.  In those days peasants weren’t allowed to travel unless they had legitimate reason, for example to take employment.  They must return home after 6 months.  In 1825 twenty young women from Våmhus travelled in small groups not only to Finland, but some to Germany, England and Norway as well.  We cannot be sure that they went to work with hair but a few years later many girls and women travel on their own to do hair work on order.  Often this income was intended for improvements at home.  Some of the younger women found their husbands-to-be and a new homeland.

When the 19th century came to a close, hair work began losing in popularity and it no longer was profitable enough to pay for travelling.  For a time the hair workers continued to travel in Sweden but soon even that was not worthwhile.  Swedes knew that hair work could be made at Våmhus and orders came together with a braid of hair in a brown envelope addressed to the “Hair worker” at Våmhus.

All over Europe the studios were closed and the craft was forgotten, but not so here.  In 1957 the Swedish Hemslöjdsförbundet (Home-craft's society) inspired hair workers to teach a new generation of hair workers.  Ada Ryttar and Bälter Elin Olsson held the first class in hair work.  To secure the knowledge of hair techniques, hair workers founded a Hair worker's society, Hårkullornas förening, in 1992.