How to help clients transition to their natural grey hair

Grey hair has been a trending look since early 2018, but why do older clients feel ashamed about their natural grey streaks, when celebrities like Rihanna, Cara Delevingne and Lady Gaga have styled the look in the past. From pastel to icy grey, this hair colour is in demand more than even in salons, so why is natural grey hair so frowned upon? Women in society are under a lot pressure to be perfectly presented, from a narrow body image that all women are expected to occupy to a flawless hair colour. There is a stigma surrounding the topic of naturally grey hair. When a woman woman has grey hair they are suddenly viewed as old or no longer beautiful anymore. When the formidable streak is spotted in between the stands of a client’s hair, they instantly panic and book a salon appointment the next day. Yet, grey hair is a natural process our hair goes through and people can start finding grey strands from the age of 18 or younger. In fact, a person is not automatically old because they have grey hair, but it’s merely due to the loss of the hairs natural pigmentation. Clients who have grey or white hair should stop or reduce the amount of times they dye their hair. While some women may feel anxiety about fully embracing their natural grey hair, but the prolonged use of hair dye can cause damage such as dryness, dullness and dandruff as the scalp becomes irritated. In fact, Robert Dempsey, owner and director of ROKU salon in Edinburgh shares the benefits of growing out grey hair: “When a client decides to stop dying their grey hair, there are lots of perks to not colouring it. First off, it saves money – lots of clients come in every six weeks to get their greys covered. It saves time – each appointment can take up to two or three hours, so freeing up this time can be liberating. Most clients say they get far more compliments when they grow out their hair colour, their hair looks and feels healthier because their natural skin tone also changes with age.” However, growing out your clients grey hair can be more difficult process than it seems. Alessandra Ferrara, director at Ross Charles Hairdressing shared: “In the last couple of years we have noticed an increase of clients requesting to go back to their natural grey colour. In their mind this is an easy transition, believing their natural colour is still underneath the dye. Yet, from the colourist’s perspective, the process is much more complicated than that, especially if you been colouring this clients hair for years. It is vital that as colourists, we have a solid plan of action and communicate the step by step process including cost, timescales and the condition of the clients hair.” “Another option” she continues, “is to work the highlights with pre-lightener in a few appointments until the desired result is achieved. This is, in my opinion, the best transition from coloured hair to grey; the client will have a gradual change and it will be easier to reach their natural grey colour.” https://www.instagram.com/p/BfIUsDHlQR0/ An Alternative way to Bring Clients into the Salon Instead of suggesting clients to dye their grey hair away (temporarily), stylists could instead offer alternative in salon treatments to keep older clients loyal to their salon; persuading them to use a purple shampoo or toner to sharpen up their grey and white shades, giving them healthy glossy hair. Robert said: “Tips I give my clients when growing out their hair, is to avoid a strong parting, as it can make the roots look even more obvious, so try a root cover up. These can be powders like Colour Wow, sprays or creams, they’re only a temporary fix, but can benefit the client in the early stages of growing out artificial colour. Alternatively, Alessandra shared: “I always suggest a glossy colour service to clients who have gone grey. By using a grey maintenance shampoo, this will keep the hair white and in a moisturised condition. When hair ages it loses its melamine and the scalp will produce less oil for lubrication, meaning that hair will feel more dry. Hairstylists can also offer treatments such as serums to strengthen and put moisture back into the hair. Or simply, encourage clients to come back for a regular hair cut (every six weeks), to keep the hair filled with vitality and body. https://www.instagram.com/p/B4xeLilFtL1/ Go for the Chop Another option to suggest to your clients is to style their hair in a timeless pixie crop. This will shorten the time it takes for any artificial colour applied in the past to grow out. Robert commented: “This is a great shortcut to growing out colour, cutting off the bulk of your clients old colour and leaving their own beautiful natural hair in a cute shorter style. Although this is not for the faint hearted and must be considered before the chop.”