So you found a grey hair. Then it turned into two. Then ten. Now ALL your roots have a silvery sheen and keeping them in check has turned into some kind of regular clandestine financial agreement between you and your local hairdresser.
Studies show that women are going grey earlier than ever before and while genetics are the most likely culprit, there is also evidence to suggest that air pollution could also speed up the process. In fact, if you’re a smoker you’re more than four times more likely to see your hair turn silver much earlier than your non-smoking mates.
A permanent solution is to embrace it, Jamie Lee Curtis style, but if dove-hued locks don’t suit your colouring or you’d just rather stick with your normal colour, you’ll need to learn the tricks of the trade.
Here are three of the very best last-minute touch-ups, each one designed to disguise roots while you eke another week or two out of your salon appointment.
Natural Brow Shaper & Hair Touch Up, Bobbi Brown
This is a cream-gel formula that covers grey and fills out eyebrows temporarily. The brush offers precise application with no mess so you can use it on the go and it comes in six natural shades, all boosted with hair-strengthening wheat protein and B5. Available at €23 here.
Colour Wow Root Cover Up
If you’d like your camouflage effort to last for two days, plump for Colour Wow, a shade-matched powder palette of water-resistant make-up for your hair. This formula goes on like a dream and covers greys seamlessly without feeling hard or “crunchy” and they even do one for blondes to disguise dark roots between highlights appointments. €38 here.
Josh Wood Blending Wands, M&S
If it’s something a little more pocket friendly you’re after, Marks & Spencers’ Josh Wood Blending Wands are the business, frankly. Invented by the guy who has tended the greys of Kylie and Gwyneth to name but a few, these little “pump and paint” wands make application easy. After your offending hairs are disguised, simply blow-dry your hair to seal the colour for three shampoos. €17.50.
Vidal Sassoon Salonist
At-home hair dyes tens to be messy, awkward and difficult to judge tone wise, but Vidal Sassoon might just have come up with a version that corrects all our complaints. The new Vidal Sassoon Salonist Colour treats roots and lengths separately in two steps, so you don’t get any nasty build-up from repeat colouring. It’s a similar process to that used in the salon and results in a seamless blend with depth and tone. For best grey coverage, choose a neutral “/0” shade. From €10.99 at Boots.
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