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Turn back time with hair colour

Legendary hairdresser Jo Hansford offers invaluable anti-ageing advice

They said she’d never last. ‘The industry gave me three months when I started the business,’ recalls Jo Hansford. Why? ‘Because I was a woman!’ Thirty years on and the now leading hair colourist and beauty legend employs 90 people across her three salons and, she says proudly, is ‘doing very nicely’.

That success also includes being the colourist in chief to two of the world’s most famous heads: actual royalty Camilla, Queen Consort, 75, and screen royalty Elizabeth Hurley, 57, who plays Queen Helena in The Royals. And, while you certainly wouldn’t say that these women only look good because of their hair, there’s also no denying that their crowning glories make all the difference to their youthful glows. That is largely thanks to Hansford’s skills and belief that if you get it right, hair colour can give you an optical facelift.

A key part of this is the overall look of your colour which, says Hansford, should get lighter as you age. That’s what she’s done with Camilla, surely one of the most elegant-looking heads around – particularly in her demographic (and, by the way, she and Hansford are a similar age).

‘I‘ve changed her over a period of time as obviously everyone’s skin tone changes as they get older, so you have to soften the hair colour. I’ve made Camilla’s much warmer now, more honey than white blonde.’ Also, says Hansford, the prior hue, which was akin to Marilyn Monroe’s colour, ‘used to look grey in photographs and I hated that’. Camilla’s current shade though ‘really complements her skin colour and it was a mutual decision between us because that’s how it has to be. The colour really suits her and if you see it in real life it looks much softer.’

According to Hansford, the biggest hair mistake women make as they get older is when they say, ‘“I used to be this colour when I was 20…” But you’re not 20 any more, darling, and you have to realise that your skin tone has changed completely. You need to soften things, which, of course, doesn’t mean having to go blonde. There are other ways of working with skin tones,’ she says.

‘Everyone’s natural hairline is lighter than the rest of their hair because it grows finer there, so we always keep it a shade or two lighter as there’s nothing worse than having a horrible hard line that shouts against the skin; it’s also really ageing. So it’s all about bringing light to the face.’

However, that doesn’t have to mean doing a lot. Elizabeth Hurley, for instance, says Hansford, ‘has her own base colour that really suits her so all she needs is just a few wheat-coloured highlights to break up the texture and add a bit more glamour’.

Hansford is not a fan of grey, though – ‘I’m probably the only colourist in the world who hates grey hair. I just think it’s ageing unless you’re 20 and incredibly beautiful and then it’s a statement.’ If you’ve gone grey and don’t like it you could opt for what Hansford calls ‘tortoiseshell hair: a mix of lowlights and highlights that takes the onus away from the grey by having a mix of light browns and honeys alongside it. And that’s an easy type of hair colour that you only need to re-do every three to four months.’

If your budget won’t stretch to salons but you still want the facelift effect of a good hair colour, Hansford isn’t against a DIY job – she’d rather you embraced the upsides of colour than do nothing. But she advises heeding her lighter colour advice – and also bearing in mind that you’re not the woman pictured on the side of the box.

Equally, if you’re happy with your base shade then consider simply incorporating a gloss treatment – ‘shiny hair is so important’ – or investing in some dedicated colour-protecting hair care (see far right). ‘Ours are all paraben- and sulphate-free,’ she says, ‘as why include salt in there when it will only strip colour?’ @edwinaingschambers

The right hair shade can give you an optical facelift

A gentle, natural formula that will keep colour safe for up to 30 washes.

EDWINA INGS-CHAMBERS

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2023-01-29T08:00:00.0000000Z

2023-01-29T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://mailonline.pressreader.com/article/281599539631476

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