Grey hair, don’t care

A sponsored post for Ecostore

I couldn’t really tell you the moment I decided to embrace my (surprisingly fast-growing) grey hair – there was no “moment”. It just sort of happened.

I had dyed my hair on and off for years, as you do – sometimes purple, sometimes blonde streaks, sometimes jet black, but mostly just darkest brown, as close to my natural colour as I could. Experimenting was fun, but I am the last person to remember to dye my hair regularly and keep on top of regrowth. And regrowth, my friends, on my head, is as obvious as Prince Harry’s pride in his new bride.

Enter my head’s grey hairs. First visible in my early 20s, highlighted by an offensive nightclub bathroom overhead fluorescent, a strand or two here and there merely the portent of things to come. Now visible from space, and multiplying faster than John Travolta’s Grease chills, I am helpless in their wake. In no universe am I ever going to be organized enough to dye grey regrowth before it hits the naked eye.

Grey hair, I assumed, happened to old people or that fella in the Crash Test Dummies song who had seen true terror. OK sure young Henry Bowers from IT went white overnight, but he was a character in a horror novel. I was a mid-thirties mum from Melbourne. This wasn’t meant to be happening to me.

I haven’t dyed my hair in years. This is part laziness, part frugality, and part accepting of my fate. If I keep dying my hair now, when do I stop? How do you manage the transition? But more to the point (for me, anyway): what does it matter if I’m grey? I assume people will get used to it. There’s no law against letting your grey hair run free, and truth be told I can’t wait to be a badass old granny with 10 cats and a sharp tongue. Getting a head start seems prudent.

Hair is one of those things you think is yours for life. I mean, it’s dead when it comes out of your head, how much can it change? I’ve had an interesting relationship with mine. It’s wavy when wet, behaves better when it’s long, can’t stand a hairbrush, needs a twice-weekly washing, is prone to dry ends, benefits from hair oil, and responds accordingly depending on whether I use quality or cheap hair care.

It rarely surprises me, except for two life changes: pregnancy (oh the lustrous, carefree locks of gestation! Oh the outrageous and incredible hair loss of the post-partum period!), and going grey. I found the texture of my hair was no longer so predictable, and so I went in search of hair care that catered for strands that are now more steel wool than silk.

My first stop is always to explore the brands I already use and trust, and that’s how I ended up with ecostore Dry, Damaged and Colour shampoo and conditioner, now that my hair’s stepped up a notch too far for any of the regular lines (but still loves the Dandruff Control Shampoo).  Ecostore is often our first choice for home and skin care around here, dating right back from when the girls were tiny babies.

Ecostore was created in New Zealand by a couple, Malcolm and Melanie Rands, who had been using sustainable and organic gardening practices, and who believe that everyone has a right to know exactly what’s in the products they use every day – especially if they could be harmful to your health.

As for me, I love anything that is produced with the environment in mind, packaged well, fully labeled, not tested on animals, and conscious of the impact it has on people and our world.

Ecostore uses sustainably-sourced plant and mineral-based ingredients over petrochemical ones whenever possible, and ensure products are suitable for septic tanks and grey water systems. You can check out their ethos regarding ingredients here – they’re pretty keen on ensuring their actions, large and small, add up to make a healthy home and a better world.

The Details

Dry, damaged and colour hair shampoo + conditioner

• 220mL will set you back only $9.99 from Woolies, and is concentrated so it lasts longer, saving you money.
• Both shampoo and conditioner are plant-based and use a unique blend of ingredients to nourish and protect dry or chemically-treated hair and help prevent colour fade
• Safer for you, your family and our world

The grey hair itself I can’t help you with – but nor would I want to! Embrace that badass grey, my friends.