We often associate grey hair with getting old, but grey hairs can start appearing at any age. No matter what age you are when your first grey appears, don’t panic! There are plenty of options for covering them up. At Hair Associates, we know a thing or two about covering grey hair. It’s a bit of an art. So, in this article, we discuss the dos and don’ts when it comes to covering up those sparklies.

What you need to know

Before we discuss covering grey hair, let’s discuss the science behind it (boring, we know- but bear with us). Your hair is made up of two parts; the shaft (the coloured strand that you see) and the root (the bottom part hidden under your scalp). The root of each strand is surrounded by a tube of tissue known as the hair follicle.

The follicle contains pigment cells that are responsible for your hair colour. As we go through life, these pigment cells slowly die. When there is little to no pigment left, our hair loses its natural colour and becomes silver, grey or white. People often say that their greys feel rough or coarse in texture. This is because the hair follicles also produce less oil that naturally hydrates our hair.

Covering grey hair

While we love to see people rocking their natural grey hair, most of us decide to cover them up. It may be tempting to colour them yourself, but it’s always best to seek professional advice first. This is because hair colour grabs onto grey hair differently. If you only have a few greys coming through, and you use an all-over colour you could end up with a stripey or patchy result.

Your hairdresser can recommend the best colouring method for your specific circumstance. This may be a quick root touch up or a combination of lowlights to blend the greys in. You’ll end up with a more natural result and healthier hair.

Colour choice

If your hair is grey all over then your hairdresser may suggest an all-over permanent or semi-permanent hair colour. When deciding on a colour it’s best to pay attention to the tones in your skin. Your hairdresser can help with this, but basically, you’ll be deciding between a warm or cool tone. Warm tones have more reds and yellows while cool tones have more blues and greens.

Don’t forget that grey hair coverage is also for men! We use a special Keune product that processes in just five minutes. A lot of men think they will end up with an obvious blanket cover finish. We’d like to reassure you that this isn’t the case with Keune colours. You can feel confident knowing you’ll leave our salon with natural-looking coloured hair with a translucent finish that’ll have you coming back for more.

Maintenance

No matter what kind of hair colour or technique you go with, your hair will require maintenance. You may notice grey hairs poking through after a few weeks, depending on how quickly your hair grows. Most people require colour maintenance for grey hair coverage every 5 to 8 weeks.

Grey hair myth

You may have heard people say that if you pluck your grey hairs, more will grow in place. This is just an old wives tale and isn’t true, however, we don’t recommend plucking your grey hair. Another grey hair will simply pop up and grow standing straight up. This means spikey grey hairs along your hairline- no thanks!

Another reason to avoid plucking your grey hairs is that it causes trauma to the root. This encourages the next hair to grow back thicker and stronger, this means coarse grey hair. Or even worse you’ll develop a little patch on your head. It’s best to colour your greys instead of plucking them.

What products do we recommend for covering grey hair?

Here at Hair Associates, we use Keune products which are free from ammonia and sulphate to ensure the health of your hair. Keune offers more than 100 mixable shades meaning we can find the perfect match for you. All the colours are 100% vegan and not tested on animals.

For grey hair coverage, we usually recommend Tint Colour. This range offers 100% grey coverage and adds shine to your hair. This is so important for grey coverage, as we need to add that moisture back in. It also contains ingredients specially formulated to reduce fade. This means fewer trips to the salon and a happy wallet.

If you’d like to know more, give us a call today!