SOPHIE SAYS
ELLE’s beauty director on embracing grey hair
I’ve gone grey at 34 and actually love the colour. My problem is dryness – how can I boost the moisture?
Kathleen, Sydney IF you WERE AN IDIOT, like ME,YOU MIGHT HAVE STARTED
your GREY JOURNEY in FIRM DENIAL
I KNOW someone in your exact position, except she dyed her hair for years before letting her naturally beautiful silver-grey come through, and then suddenly she was blown away by all the compliments she received and women asking her who had coloured it. Difference is, she’s my mum. And she’s 71. It took her way too long to embrace the fade. So first off, I’m happy you got the good kind of grey you can wear with confidence. It’ll save you a fortune at the salon.
If you were an idiot, like me, you might have started your grey journey in firm denial, pulling them out in the lift mirror at work. This is what makes them feel coarse, because repetitive violent behaviour towards your pigmentally challenged friends damages the follicles, which makes the new hairs crinkly. But you’re not like me. You’re embracing the grey.
Let’s talk about dryness. It’s the hormonal changes. The ones that made your hair lose its pigment also make the oil glands produce less sebum, so it feels more brittle. Knowledge is power, and hair masks are sacred.
You treat dry grey hair as you’d treat dry pigmented hair: it’s probably finer than your ‘before’ hair, so volumising shampoo and conditioner could be good for you. If you give yourself a vigorous head massage while you do it, you’ll also encourage blood-flow and se- bum production naturally. To keep your colour crisp, try L’Oréal Professionel Silver Shampoo and Redken Graydiant Silver Conditioner.
And then, the accompaniments: I use a pre-wash treatment when my hair is particularly dry, such as Phillip Kingsley Pomegranate & Cassis Elasticizer. I shampoo, then I use a hair mask instead of conditioner — every time I wash it in fact. It is still conditioner, after all, just supercharged. If my hair is really bad and/or I’m in need of a haircut, I put a tiny bit on my palms and squeeze it through the dripping-wet ends once I’ve rinsed. So, in essence, I’ve made myself a standard conditioner and a leave-in conditioner from one hair mask. Three-in-one. Kinda. Which is also the universal justification equation for spending a bit more money on it, for purposes of luxury and quality (you’ve just saved yourself some cash by multi-tasking, see? This method also works for sales shopping, just so you know). In which case I highly recommend Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask with Rare Prickly Pear Seed Oil.
You could also supplement your hair — the key ones are omega-3 and vitamin B (some people go so far as to say they can slow the greying process). But don’t get bogged down in the details, just get a specific hair supplement that’s already been formulated for you, such as Ouai Thinning Hair Supplement.
Redken EQ Silver Gloss is the treatment to ask for when you do go to the salon – it’ll enhance and magnify your grey so it looks exceptional. And shiny. And wonderful. I’m kind of jealous right now.