The women who have embraced their grey roots

With hairdressers closed for much of lockdown, silver streaks started to appear in women's hair far more often. While most rushed for a cut and colour as soon as salon doors opened, others embraced the change and are planning to make it permanent.

Before lockdown Ellen MacLauchlan had her grey roots touched up every two to three weeks.

She says she saw her stylist more often than some of her friends and "everything revolved around a hairdressers' appointment".

Ellen MacLauchlan says she had a lightbulb moment

"If someone asked me if I wanted to go on a night out or if I was going to book a holiday, I would be working out if it fell within a two-week period of getting my hair done."

But two months into lockdown Ellen had a "wee lightbulb moment" and realised she suited her natural colour.

"As soon as I made the decision, I just knew there was no going back," she says.

"I actually quite liked the grey coming in. I was getting problems with my scalp and the chemicals probably weren't the best to be putting on my hair so often."

The 47-year-old housing officer, from Gartcosh in North Lanarkshire, is now planning to treat herself with the money she will save.

"It probably works out around £70 a month," she says. "I'm going to get myself a good cut and some new clothes to match my new look."

"I'm loving it. I think I quite rock it. I feel good. I feel 'me' actually."

Allison Gardner says she has had bigger things to worry about than her hair

Allison Gardner knows that image is everything on the red carpet and the chief executive of Glasgow Film Theatre can't wait to show off her new hair.

"I think women probably are judged on their age more than men. We do all get older and no-one is 21 forever," she says.

"I'm going to embrace my age. It's going to be grey and fabulous for me going forward."

The 57-year-old cinema boss worked throughout lockdown, barely noticing the change in her appearance.

"I had bigger things to worry about," she says. "But when it got longer, I threatened to get my children to shave my head in frustration. I'm glad I decided to sit it out."

Allison would encourage other women to give it a go.

"I would say grey is the new blonde," she says. "It's so on trend. The most important thing about it is how you feel, not what your friends and family think."

"This is nature's way of giving me highlights"

Sue Thompson says her husband Pete is not keen on her grey roots despite his own

There is nothing Sue Thompson enjoys more than the open road and the wind in her hair.

The 56-year-old motorcyclist lives near Thurso, the most northerly town in mainland Scotland.

She says people are surprised when she takes off her helmet.

"First of all, people assume you're a man," she says. "When I shake my hair out, it's like 'oh, it's a post-middle-aged woman who has just got off that bike' and I love that."

After a botched attempt to dye her roots at home, she decided to embrace the change.

"I bought a colour that was meant to be opal blonde but it was actually farmyard brown. It was horrible," she says.

"I think this is nature's way of giving me highlights without all that bleach so I thought I should really just embrace it."

Although her daughters have been supportive, Sue says not everyone in the family is convinced.

"My husband's less happy but then he's mostly white himself now and it looks great on him," she says. "I don't see why it should be any different for me.

"Soon I will be mostly grey, and that's the way I'll leave it. I'd say just be happy with how you look."

Kathryn Waite says people are becoming more accepting of grey hair on women

As a university academic, Kathryn Waite is usually most comfortable with her head in a book but she has found a new confidence since she stopped colouring her hair.

"I feel it's very authentic," she says. "I've really started to grow into my hairstyle and I feel quite proud of myself for doing that."

The keen walker, from Edinburgh, started to notice her grey roots in April but couldn't get her hands on the products she needed.

"I would have bought a dye if I could but they were as hard to come by as toilet roll at that time. There just wasn't any to be had," she says.

Curiosity got the better of Kathryn, who is in her late 50s, and she decided to let her natural colour grow in. She thinks the trend will take off.

"It's really fashionable - young people are choosing grey hair," she says. "When I go for a walk, I meet eyes with other women and see that they're doing it too.

"Historically, for women in the workplace with grey hair, it was probably considered that you weren't coming across as well groomed as you could be. But I think people are much more accepting of it now."