Princess Kate shifts from blonde highlights to new 'grey blending' hair

The Princess of Wales' hair has been baffling me this month.

I know, I know, there are bigger things to think about in the world, but when you write for HELLO!, Princess Kate's hair is pretty high up there.

Last week, the future Queen's hair looked super shiny and dark when she dropped Prince George off for his first day at Eton. Two days later, she was blonder than ever during an engagement with Prince William.

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Then, on Thursday, during a visit to the Isle of Bute in Scotland, Princess Kate appeared to have changed her hair again, this time leaning into the ultra-current trend of 'grey blending.'

If you have eagle eyes for hair (and I mean mega, mega zooming in), you'll notice the ultra-blonde face-framing strands of last week are gone, with a new "soft and seamless" approach to blending the greys at her roots taking centre stage.

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Princess Kate's grey blending

According to John Frieda creative ambassador Andreas Wild, the hair world is "seeing a massive surge in clients coming in for grey blending."

Andreas adds: "The desire for harsh, high-maintenance roots is fading, and people want a softer, more seamless result that doesn't demand a salon visit every two to three weeks."

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With such a busy schedule, I can see why this would appeal to the Princess of Wales. She's in good company with the natural hair approach.

Sarah Jessica Parker also uses strategically placed highlights to effortlessly melt away silver strands, with Andreas noting that the modern look is "shifting toward low-maintenance, luminous hair that celebrates natural tone rather than masking it," because clients simply don't want the constant pressure of full coverage."

Embracing grey hair

By subtly blending in her grey hairs, the Princess of Wales is working with her natural hair, enhancing it rather than covering it.

"Softly adding depth and lighter tones can make the grey sparkle, giving the hair dimension without taking away from what’s naturally there," says Hershesons Belgravia colourist Hannah Gayle.

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As we see with Princess Kate, if you're leaning into your grey hairs, you don’t have to go from full coverage colour to fully embracing your grey overnight.

"You can soften the transition and still have that feeling of beautiful, polished colour," she says. Grey blending allows the hair to grow out seamlessly, creating a soft transition.

"It gives you the time to get used to seeing your natural grey, understand how it works with your colouring, and most importantly learn to love it. Grey blending doesn’t have to be all or nothing. It can be a gradual, beautiful transition that feels completely right for you."

The Middleton manes

Princess Kate's mother, Carole Middleton, still has a head of chestnut brown, glossy hair – matched almost perfectly to the shade of her daughters, Catherine and Pippa, so it's difficult to picture how Princess Kate would look fully grey.

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As for other royals who have gone grey, the late Queen Elizabeth II is the best example, who embraced her silver hair in her sixties, in the 1990s.

Queen Camilla remains blonde well into her 70s now, with her never-changing silky blonde hair part of her identity – perhaps the Princess of Wales will follow in her footsteps, forever with her trademark mane in place.