Going grey

I suppose that, like me, most of my readers have not had a haircut in a while. My natural hair is certainly getting wilder and more tangled at the moment while I wait for hairdressers to reopen after the Covid lockdown. Worse, though, is the fact that the strands that were slightly grey, but merely gave a 'distinguished' highlight to the edges, now seem very prominent. I confess I am somewhat over age 18 now and cannot boast the lustrous coiffure of youth any more. Nevertheless this is getting disconcerting! More to the point, my eyebrows are heading the same way and there is now a contrast between them and my preferred wig colours.

It seems that "grandma brows" are currently a thing: https://www.byrdie.com/gray-eyebrow-trend-4772126 but, personally, I'd rather go for the "still young really" look.

It's not too difficult to remedy the brow problem with a good brow kit (which I recommend more than a brow wand, which is essentially just like mascara). Benefit's Brow Zings is pricey but very good, comprising a small compact with wax and powder, tweezers, and two brushes, one for each substance. There are others on the market and some are also good but the last brow kit I grabbed, Rimmel's Brow This Way, is useless. Beware of cheap products in this area. It's a pity because Rimmel is certainly my lipstick of choice. You should aim for wax/powder that's darker than nature and make sure your brows are well trimmed and/or tweezered and combed from nose bridge outwards before applying wax and powder. Your brows don't have to be symmetrical, just trim, neat and matching your hair (note this, blondes).

And if you have hairy caterpillars crawling over your browline (and indeed any combination of tufty nostrils, fuzzy sideburns and wiry ear hairs), then an all-round electric hair trimmer with suitable attachments is ideal for dealing with these unruly and horribly masculine areas. No trans woman wants to look like she's entering Crufts dog show, now does she? Oh, and for safety's sake, avoid using razors in your eye area. Hair trimmers vary a lot in price but my little kit from BaByliss was very cheap (about £13, that's $16 or €15) and works perfectly well.

The one advantage of going greyer is that my jawline requires less coverage with foundation than it used to, which is as well given my skin's reaction to contact with many products. Five o'clock shadow is more like evening mist.

I'll keep to my current hair colours of choice, but one day I can see having to get a greyer wig. Given how many natal women lose hair and have other hair problems in later life, the artificial hair industry certainly has a good range of products for the older woman. But let's not worry about that yet.

So overall, mixed blessings.

Sue x