As many mature beauties reach their fifties, they often find themselves dealing with natural hair concerns such as thinning, graying, and loss of volume. To explore potential solutions, we turned to experienced professional hairstylists and also consulted with celebrity stylists.
Our aim was to gain insights into various haircuts, styles, and coloring techniques that can help camouflage grays, add volume, and create the illusion of fuller, more luxurious locks for those with thinning hair.
Read on for tips, suggestions and insight from Adriana Tapia, color specialist at Pierre Michel Salon, Ghanima Abdullah, hair expert and cosmetologist at The Right Hairstyles, Janine Jarman, celebrity hair stylist and founder of Curl Cult, Gina Rivera, celebrity hair stylist and founder of Phenix Salon Suites, Krysta Guerrero, owner and stylist at Base Salon Chicago and Lauren Udoh, hair stylist and hair creative director of WigReports.
9 Haircuts, Styles And Coloring Techniques That Stylists Say Are So Flattering For Women Over 50
1. Bobs With Deep Side Parts
Flat hair makes gray hairs more noticeable, Abdullah explains, and creating volume is an instant way to detract from this. “Create volume at the roots to help mask the gray,” Abdullah advises. “Try using a curling iron at the roots of your hair up top to create more body and volume,” she continues.
Side parts evoke not only Old Hollywood, timeless glam— they also provide immediate volume. As Abdullah points out, "in this manner, you can move the hair from one side to the other, as you wish." Depending on where your gray hairs are, there are many ways to conceal them with volume.
“For whatever reason, gray hairs like to hang out where they are most visible,” she adds. “So that can be right in the front of your head or on either side of a part. You can defeat those little fellas by changing your part to a different area of your head where grays aren't yet as visible.” See Charlize Theron's deep side part above as an example.
2. Herringbone Highlights
Herringbone highlights are all the rage with mature beauties on TikTok and elsewhere as of late, for the way they seamlessly blend graying strands with the rest of your tresses. The highlighting technique— as seen on stars like Gwyneth Paltrow — helps us embrace our gray hair while also trying out a fun new trend (it can also provide an instant refreshing update to your typical ‘do!)
Herringbone highlights, Tapia explains, are a “combination of warm and cool toned” highlights. Herringbone highlights intentionally include “natural gray hair into the hairs’ overall color” when coloring it to create a more natural overall look, she adds. Tapia stresses that it’s “not really covering or eliminating gray.”
This highlighting technique, she says, works great for women who are “starting to go gray,” and who want to “ease into the new color,” because it’s much lower maintenance than trying to fully cover up gray hair. “The highlights are blended into the natural color to make graying hair stand out less against someone’s original natural hair color,” Tapia continues.
3. Lobs With Curtain Bangs
Jarman points out that layers can instantly enhance your facial features and provide volume, and adding bangs to a textured lob (as seen here on Goldie Hawn), can also conceal forehead wrinkles and draw more attention to your eyes.
"Pair your lob with fringe to cover any wrinkles or receding hairlines and highlight those gorgeous eyes of yours," Jarman says. She adds that "many of us have hair that gets thinner with age," so adding "texture will help give your look lift and life."
4. Pixies With Sideswept Bangs
One specific short 'do that can highlight your eyes, cheekbones, and face shape is a pixie cut with side-swept bangs. "Ever seen a pixie cut where the bangs steal all the attention? This is what you're after: long, side-swept bangs," Abdullah explains. Robin Wright's look above is a great example.
"The rest of your hair should be piece-y and angled. She adds that "the cut should swirl around your head to hide hair loss." Abdullah stresses that a pixie cut with layers still maintains volume that is both gorgeous and easy to manage. That way you can give off an effortlessly chic look!
5. Voluminous Italian Bobs
If you're looking for a haircut that can make your best features pop while giving your mane an extra boost of volume and bounce, look no further than the Italian bob cut. This style is inspired by Old Hollywood and is a 'do that stylish stars like Salma Hayek opt for.
The Italian bob takes the traditional bob cut to new heights with chunky blunt ends that create an airy, voluminous look that's never heavy or bulky. It also has just the right amount of length to allow for easy styling options as it's long enough to tie up, but short enough to be worn as is.
Udoh says that a medium bob like this is "a sleek and stylish choice for many occasions." She adds that "it's a versatile cut that looks great on almost any face shape and hair type." The length can be "adjusted to complement your features and create an attractive silhouette," she notes.
"This ever-popular bob provides volume at the crown, with textured layers that frame the face nicely while still maintaining an easy-to-manage style," Udoh explains.
6. Long, Feathery Layers
"Longer side bangs" and "face framing pieces" a la Jennifer Aniston can "also result in a more youthful appearance by drawing the eye to the appealing facial features," Rivera explains.
"In general, this provides for a fresher and more youthful look." If you want to keep your hair longer over 50, Rivera says it is imperative to add layers and/or or face-framing pieces to avoid looking "weighed down" and dull.
She points out that "an added choice is to shorten the hair up a bit to the collarbone or above" to create some texture by "adding subtle layers to soften."
7. Asymmetrical Bobs
A textured asymmetrical lob or bob is a "terrific choice" for mature beauties," Rivera explains, since it's a perfect blend of classic yet still modern and trendy. "This style is so hip that it’s perfect for making our ladies in their prime look super chic," she says.
"Removing a bit of length from the hair, [adds] movement and creates a youthful appeal." A deep side part (as seen above on Rose Byrne) is added "to create more volume on the top of the head by literally pushing more hair to one side of your head," Abdullah says, and this hairstyle is great for hiding thinning on top if you have any.
8. Shaggy Layers With Wispy Fringe
A shag is an "amazing cut that is well-recognized for being versatile," Rivera says. A quintessential shag, as seen on Halle Berry, offers "nice variations for both longer and shorter hair." Like the bob, "adding a bang can add a fresh surprise to this look," Rivera suggests.
Abdullah adds that bangs like these are "often used to frame the face and specifically, to give it a youthful appearance." She notes that they also "make your hair appear thicker and are a great way to add volume to thinning hair." The style also "works well for women who want to hide thinning hair in the front."
9. Bixies
If you can't decide between a bob or pixie, we have good news. You don't have to! A 'bixie' (or bob-meets-pixie) like Jane Fonda's is very in for spring, and can be a very flattering and chic choice, Guerrero explains. There are elements of both styles to play with here in this social media-fave cut, and now is a great time to find what works for you.
"The bixie is a traditional bob haircut that’s combined with a pixie," she says. "The nice thing about a bixie is its versatility — not only can you adjust the length and opt to have it a little longer, but there is no one way to do it when it comes to the style. The cut is totally customizable based on your preference."
The more you know!
