Going grey? How to care for hair as it transitions to silver

Many women are ditching the dye and letting their silver strands shine. Ready to join the club? Here’s how to care for your greying hair.

There’s no doubt grey hair has always been a look — actor George Clooney has made it his trademark for decades.

But more women are now proudly waving the silver flag.

Grey hair was front and centre at designer JW Anderson’s autumn-winter show at London Fashion Week, while the Batsheva show at this year’s New York Fashion Week featured real women walking the runway, many showcasing their grey locks.

Dame Maggie Smith has fronted an ad campaign for fashion brand Loewe with silver hair, and actor Jamie Lee Curtis accepted her first Oscar last year while sporting a silvery white pixie cut.

Actor Andie MacDowell, whose signature curly locks are now grey, is L’Oréal’s longest-serving brand ambassador.

Why women are rebelling against the status quo

While the list of women embracing the shade is growing, the transition to grey has often come with a stigma attached.

Gendered ageism frequently places an impossible standard on women, with looking youthful put on a pedestal; and women are often expected to downplay the signs of ageing, such as greying locks.

As the Gendered Ageism and Gray Hair study published in 2022 noted, “older women report that as their appearance ages, they find themselves invisible, ignored, irrelevant and discounted”.

But these antiquated standards are being challenged as women rebel against the beauty status quo and no longer want to hide their grey locks.

“I think people are feeling more comfortable and confident in their skin and embracing whatever that looks like, including going grey,” Kate Lane Salon hairstylist Kristle Jones says.

There’s also a pragmatic element to it. Hairdresser Victoria Degioia, co-owner and director of Sir Fletcher Hair, partly attributes the grey trend to busy lifestyles and people not keen to deal with the upkeep required with hiding grey hair.

Cost-of-living concerns also mean some budgets may not stretch to regular colour appointments.

What to know about going grey

Going grey is an entirely natural phenomenon and most of us will experience it at some point in our lives.

“In most cases, hair goes grey due to the loss of melanocyte stem cells in the hair bulge, which are pigment-producing cells,” Australian Trichology Centre trichologist Chelcey Salinger explains.

If you want to let your grey locks shine, expect it will take some time to achieve an even result, particularly if you choose to abruptly stop colouring your hair altogether.

Kristle recommends finding a stylist who specialises in grey hair transition, as “they’ll be able to create a custom colour to help walk you through this process”.

One thing to note is that grey hair is going to look and feel a little different.

“The condition of hair changes quite significantly when it goes grey,” Victoria says.

“In most cases, it can feel dry and coarse and sometimes can appear frizzy; it can also become harder to manage and is usually quite resistant to hair colour.”

Adopting the right hairstyle to complement your new hair type is important, she adds.

“This helps keep your hair low maintenance, easy to wear and care for.”

Given grey hair can already be quite prone to dryness and frizziness, Kristle says a silver lining in not dyeing your hair is you’re no longer exposing your hair and scalp to chemicals from the colouring process, which can benefit your hair health.

How to care for greying hair

Choose the right products

Victoria often advises her grey-haired clients to invest in products such as an anti-frizz shampoo and conditioner, moisturising hair treatment and hair serum, to tame frizz and flyaways.

Tone it down

Victoria says adding a purple-toned shampoo to your haircare routine is also a good idea.

“By using this occasionally it will tone down any unwanted gold hues that can naturally occur in grey hair from the sun,” she explains.

Hydrate your locks

“Adding a moisturising product to your daily styling routine is essential to keep your hair looking healthy and shiny,” Victoria says.

Try a little heat

It may also be worth investing in a heated styling tool.

“Heated styling tools can be a saving grace for unruly grey hair,” Kristle says.

“Just be sure to use a heat protectant product prior (to using them).”

Hold that shape!

When you’re styling your hair, Kristle suggests using a leave-in cream or conditioner to prep your strands, then a styling cream, gel or serum to hold the style in place.

Finish with a hair oil or humidity-resistant hairspray.

If you’ve been thinking of joining the grey hair club, there’s no better time than now to get your membership underway – you will be in very good company indeed!

More on hair care:

• How to avoid and correct brassy hair
• Can the viral ‘sandwich method’ actually transform your hair?
• 6 ways to fix damaged hair for a lustrous look
• How to prep your hair for bleach, according to hairstylists

Written by Tania Gomez.