On Beauty: Ditch the dye and go stylishly grey

Men with grey hair are often considered to be “distinguished” and, if they are lucky (and George Clooney-esque), “silver foxes”. There are no such complimentary terms for women with grey hair, however. In our youth-obsessed culture, the decision to let hair go grey or white is seen as a brave one.

When hair ages it also can become brittle and break more easily, the rate of growth can slow down, and it can thin. In fact, the very idea of ageing hair has been equated with candy floss and blue rinses for so long it is difficult for many of us to even imagine stepping away from the tedious process of dying our roots.

But we should shake off this idea, because grey hair looks stunning if it is looked after well. I know many women who, sick and tired of colour upkeep, ditched the dye and went back to their roots. One friend felt more confident; the dark shade she had been dying her hair was draining her face and the grey suited her much more.

The haircare industry has picked up on this trend, and plenty of products exist to make the most of our hair, at every age. Shine often fades from grey and white hair and it can become discoloured, so it makes sense to choose a good shampoo to keep it looking its best.

Violet is at the opposite end of the colour spectrum from orange and yellow, so hair shampoos and conditioners with violet pigment will immediately help to tone down and enhance grey and white hair.

Philip Kingsley Pure Silver and Trevor Sorbie Colour Silver (€6.99) both contain violet and optical brighteners to enhance and make hair look more glossy. In fact, any shampoo designed to neutralise brassy tones in blonde hair will work to brighten grey or white hair. Good ones to try are Lee Stafford Everyday Blondes (€8.50) or John Frieda Sheer Blonde Colour Renew (€7.99).

If you've noticed your hair becoming thinner you might want to try a supplement such as Viviscal, which works so well its users report all their hair becomes lusher and thicker. Including their body hair, which may or may not be a problem depending on your outlook. A good thickening shampoo will provide instant benefits, while mousse or thickening serum will provide instant bulk.

If you have the opposite problem and find your hair has become coarser, then conditioner is key for you. Many women complain that they need at least three times more conditioner as their hair ages. I go through bucketloads of the stuff and am a huge fan of intensive conditioner. Good ones are Kerastase Resistance Age Recharge Firming Gel Masque, Pantene Pro-V Breakage Defence 2Min Strengthening Intensive Conditioner and L'Oréal Elvive Triple Resist Arginine Masque.

Twitter @aismcdermott; more at beaut.ie; beauty@irishtimes.com

PICKS OF THE WEEK

YSL Palette Collector Wild Edition

(€85) YSL has outdone itself here. Beauty junkies will gasp with pleasure at the pocket diary packaging and the shimmering shades of this palette.

Max Factor Luminizer Foundation

(€17.99) Medium coverage and with enough reflective particles to stop it from looking too matt, this is a good choice for combination to oily skin.

Emjoi Micro Nail

(€49.95) A misadventure with a harsh nail polish remover had left me with cracked and split nails. This gadget is really easy to use and buffs nails smooth in seconds. The relief.

Maybelline Great Lash Big

(€7.49) The bestselling original is more than 40 years old. Anyone who didn’t know what the fuss was about might like to try this plumped-up version. A thicker formula, but it would be great if it were “blacker”.

DATE FOR THE DIARY

• Brown Thomas is currently hosting A Galaxy of Beauty to celebrate the opening of its new, very swish Beauty Hall. There will be visiting make-up artists, product launches and men's grooming tips, all overseen by BT's new in-house personal beauty shopper Warren Dowdall. Runs until November 2. brownthomas.com/page/whatson