'Never ever!' Hair colourist tells older women to avoid 'very harsh' dye mistake - 'it brings out your wrinkles'

A hair colourist weighed in on the worst shade for mature women

GETTY IMAGES / YouTube / Megan Graham
Anna Barry

By Anna Barry


Published: 18/09/2024

- 12:41

When colouring your hair, avoid going for shades that are darker than your natural hue

While some ladies embrace their silver strands as they get older, others decide to dye their hair well into their 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond.

Hair colourist Megan Graham weighed in on the best and worst hair colours for older women. She encouraged them to avoid going for hues that are darker than their natural shade.


On her YouTube channel, Megan advised mature women to avoid a shade that "brings all their flaws forward".

In a follow-up video, she stressed the importance of colouring your hair around two shades lighter than your natural shade - and definitely avoiding darker hues.

Megan Graham

'Your hair colour should never, ever be darker than your natural colour as you age'

YouTube / Megan Graham

While the expert explained that there aren't go-to hair colours for women of a certain age, there is an easy way to find the right shade for you.

Megan said: "At the salon, my general rule is that it should have some kind of connection to what your natural colour was when you were four years old.

"If you were really blonde as a four-year-old, you're probably going to look great really blonde when you're older as well.

"One rule that I do find to be true is that most women as they age look good with a little bit more warmth in their hair colour."

She explained that warmer tones "add a little bit of glow and radiance" to your skin, which may be looking a little "drab" with age.

Megan also strongly advised mature women to avoid going darker when choosing a new shade.

"I would say, your hair colour should never, ever be darker than your natural colour as you age," she revealed.

"It's very, very harsh. It brings out all of your skin imperfections, your wrinkles, any of that stuff."

Woman with long, blonde hair

The expert recommended going for a 'soft', 'warm' colour

GETTY IMAGES

While Megan's advice was specifically for older women, the same rules can be applied to younger ages.

According to the expert, harsh looks "are just really hard to wear". On the other hand, a "little bit of softness" benefits women of all ages, whether you're 25, 45 or 75.

She advised going for too much softness, though. If your hair is black and you dye it platinum blonde, that may look "too harsh" - "it's all about finding a comfortable middle ground".

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