To Colour Or Not Colour Those Grey Hairs? That Is The Question. #FaceYourFirst

I am not sure when my first grey hair appeared since I started helping the blondeness of my hair along with dye years ago after it started to grow more dirty blonde than golden.

blonde madmumof7 with Gino D'Acampo
But a couple of years ago  I got sick of the colouring cycle which seemed to get shorter and shorter after menopause took hold and started to research ways to go grey gracefully.

You can read more about the results here but, long story short, I had my shoulder-length locks lopped to a number 2 on the sides and a 4 on the top. I loved it then, still love it and enjoy the freedom from straightening, blow drying and pony tail headaches.

madmumof7 with short grey hair


To my face I've had largely positive feedback. I've heard that behind my back some people wondered if I'd been ill and had short hair because of chemotherapy. One close (male) friend casually dropped it into conversation that he thought women should always dye their hair because in his mind letting it go grey equated to letting themselves go.

I actually think my cropped hair is smarter than my straggly blonde 'do and the change of colour and style reignited an interest in fashion and style and I believe I look generally better from my feet to the top of my head than I did five years ago.

If anything my grey is not grey enough - I'm hoping my pure white streak extends to the rest of my head soon.

But do I think everyone should abandon their colouring routine? Absolutely not!

Recently I attended an event with Clairol who make the popular nice 'n easy hair colouring range. I wondered why on earth a blogger with grey hair had been invited and was delighted to learn they are promoting choice in the #FaceYourFirst campaign.

The brand shared the results of a  survey which found 71% of women would not be happy about finding their first grey hair.

Clairol's special guest speaker Farrah Storr, author and Editor-in-Chief of Cosmopolitan UK asked us to remember scary firsts - and remember how they are all woven into the pattern of our life. First kiss, first sex, first job, first boyfriend, first driving lesson......often those scary firsts become beautiful memories.

Clairol said they'd launched this new campaign for this simple reason: 

"Our mission is, and always has been, to make every woman feel beautiful in her own skin, confident and help her live her own truth to the fullest!"

This is not a new philosophy with the brand which wants to promote body positivity, even if it means people don't use their dye.

Apparently decades ago many sectors of society felt it was less than respectable to dye hair. Back then Clairol was sending out the same message - colour or don't colour- it's your choice.

Fast forward to the new century and more women in the western world seem to think they have to cover their greys - I'm not sure which situation is more sad.

No-one should feel pressured to cover their greys or expose them. There is no right or wrong way to have your hair.  Only you know if you are the sort of person who rocks grey, want to hang on to your favourite colour for longer or have fun with bold new colours. Rainbow unicorn in your retirement years? Why not? Colour or don't colour - it's up to you. Whatever you do, OWN IT!

I've chosen grey but I love helping my teenaged daughter colour her blonde hair red, my ten year old's hair blue (a temporary colour during the holidays) and I've dip dyed my 12 year old daughter's ultra long locks three different colours with a temporary colour which proved rather more long lasting then we expected!

 I've respected their choices and I'm happy to support them whilst respecting school rules.


Clairol has written an open letter to the grey haters which I am very happy to share here.

#faceyourfirst open letter

#faceyourfirst open letter

#faceyourfirst open letter



So no matter your gender or age, throw away the worry and choose what makes you happy in life and with your hair. I promises you, it's liberating.

Disclaimer: I attended an event in London hosted by Clairol but am not being paid to promote the brand or their products.