Rachel Fieldhouse
Beauty & Style

Five celebrities embracing their grey hair

More celebrities are staying away from the hair dye and embracing their natural colour in a move that is a particularly big deal for famous (and not so famous) women.

A sign of ageing adopted by silver foxes like George Clooney and Pierce Brosnan, it hasn’t been one that applies to celebrity women for a long time - until now that is.

“In the past, we have seen trends dominate fashion such as the perm era, the highlight decade, balayage, vivid colours and tonal work,” Robert Eaton, the technical director of Wella Professionals, told Glamour.

“Now there is a move toward natural hair enhancement, and grey blending (a style that uses natural greys as highlights) is the new movement in hair colour.”

Here are five celebrities that have proudly embraced their silvery locks to take inspiration from.

Andie McDowell

Image: Getty Images

The Groundhog Day star revealed how she embraced her “true colour” after she wasn’t able to touch up her roots during the coronavirus-induced lockdown.

“I went natural and embraced my true colour,” she captioned a behind-the-scenes photo from a photoshoot. “I want to be proud of where I am in my life! I don’t want to be ashamed of my age.”

She even went against the advice of her managers, sharing with Glamour how they said ‘it’s not time’ for her to go grey.

“And I said, ‘I think you’re wrong, and I’m going to be more powerful if I embrace where I am right now’,” she told the publication.

Salma Hayek

Image: Getty Images

Salma Hayek has become known for sharing her makeup-free selfies on social media, and has extended that openness to her hair colour.

Notable shots of her greys come from 2020, after she shared a snap of her hair before and after touching her roots. Later that same year, she shared another photo of her “white hair of wisdom”, which has reappeared in photos of her on-and-off ever since.

Jane Fonda

Image: Getty Images

After debuting a silver look at the 2020 Oscars, Jane Fonda spoke out how she felt “so happy” when she decided to go grey the following year.

“Enough already with so much time wasted, so much money spent, so many chemicals - I’m through with that,” she said during an interview with Ellen Degeneres.

The 84-year-old revealed she had begun to go grey at 82 and that her Oscars look - which took her stylist seven hours to achieve - was inspired by her salt-and-pepper roots.

Sarah Jessica Parker

Image: Getty Images

The Sex and the City star made waves by appearing on the cover of Vogue with grey in her hair and spoke to the publication about the ageism women face in Hollywood.

“‘Grey hair, grey hair, grey hair. Does she have grey hair?’ I don’t know what to tell you people,” she said.

“It’s almost as if they almost enjoy us being painted by who we are today, whether we choose to age naturally and not look perfect, or whether you do something if that makes you feel better.”

Dawn French

Image: @dawnrfrench (Instagram)

Dawn French first debuted her greys in June 2021 in a dramatic change from her classic Vicar of Dibley-esque brunette bob.

The 64-year-old shared that she was changing her hair colour to “happily welcome the grey”, and has continued to update fans on social media with her progress since.

Images: Getty Images / @salmahayek (Instagram)

Tags:
Beauty & Style, Grey hair, Celebrities, Ageism