Shades of Grey

Are you a silver fox or dark and dashing? Deliciously salt and pepper or ravishing red? Whatever camp you fall into there is a lot to discuss when it comes to grey hair, says Sara Whatley 

Grey is a hot topic. Just mention the word round the coffee pot in our office and everyone, men and women, explode into opinion and woeful tails of dye jobs gone wrong, the latest and greatest brands, colours and treatments, and a whole lot of laughs too. 

I remember finding my first grey hair with a mixture of horror and fascination, just benignly sprouting out the top of my head – am I really so old? 

Scrap that, I mean wise and wonderful, of course. And seeing as grey hair is so fashionable nowadays, I was actually a bit pleased. 

Tell me honestly, how do you feel about yours? Some people love them, or at least tolerate them, and if they are lucky enough to have a mallen streak (in my opinion the coolest distinguishing mark, but better consult Catherine Cookson about that one), I hope they wear it with pride. 

On the other hand, the mere thought of a single grey will have some turning to the bottle (dye or wine, your choice). Then comes the question of what type of dye you use, potency, frequency, colour... it’s a kaleidoscope of decisions. 

There is no denying that we live in a youth obsessed society and it can be hard to go against the grain of ‘keeping up appearances’. And so you reach for the bottle at the first few silver streaks and therefor set the tone, literally, for the next however many years. 

But I have known plenty of people who have suffered from what I would call ‘dying fatigue’ – they start the process but quickly get exhausted by the constant pressure to keep grey roots covered. It’s a never ending job! Those that prefer to stick to the dye and remain fabulously full colour – hats off to them! This is an opportunity to play away from your natural colour and have fun with some new shades. 

If you do choose to make the transition at some point never fear, going grey gracefully is possible. There are temporary root touch up products, and clever ideas such as lightening the end of your hair, adding layers to break up block colours and distinguishing lines, and once you have transitioned to grey consider high or low lights to enhance your grey shades. 

Grow grey gracefully, or dye with glorious abandon. Whatever path you take just remember that beauty comes from within and not the pile of hairs on your head.