Grey is the new blonde: Granny chic and the other surprising hair trends that actually caught on…

It used to be the bane of every woman’s life, looking in the mirror and noticing a few stray grey hairs amongst your locks, and it was straight off to the salon to get it fixed. But 2015 has seen the birth of a surprising new trend. Women the world over are rushing to the hairdressers, completely intending to go grey. ‘Granny Hair’ is officially on trend, and with celebs like Rihanna, Lady Gaga and Nicole Richie rocking the look, it’s tipped to be one of the hottest styles of 2015.

The unexpected look amongst models and stars started with a Jean Paul Gaultier catwalk show at Paris fashion week in early March, and now it’s not just celebrities donning the look either. Proud Instagrammers the world over are uploading their grey selfies- whether it’s dyed or they’re embracing their natural locks – with the hashtag #grannyhair. And you know something’s made it when it gets its own hashtag.

To celebrate this wacky but wonderful new trend, we thought we’d take a look at some of the other daring hairstyles that have started small but made it big over the past few years. Feel free to get in touch if you have any of your own to add to the list!

1.Shaved side/long side

A few years ago, this was a go-to look for edgy women who wanted to make a statement. Shaving one side of your head whilst leaving the other side long showed femininity whilst having that punch of power and attitude. Celebs like Ellie Goulding, Ke$ha and Avril Lavigne sported the punk-inspired hairstyle and it soon became a mainstream trend. It was a daring style, a bold move, and must have been a nightmare to grow out.

In 2014, the trend experienced something of a renaissance when Game of Thrones star Natalie Dormer adopted the look for her role as Cressida in The Hunger Games franchise. Although now the style has been adapted into a simple braid down one side of the hair close to the scalp, leaving the other side long and loose- a much more temporary solution!

2. The Pixie Crop

It all started when actress Emma Watson – keen to shed her ‘Hermione Granger’ persona from her time starring in the Harry Potter series – lopped off her thick brown locks. The world was shocked by the transformation, the long brown hair had always been something of a signature look for Emma.
But soon all of the fashion magazines were applauding her for the daring move, and other celebs started to crop their hair, and then it went mainstream – with hairdressers everywhere being asked to copy the look on their clients.

3.The top knot. Man style (AKA the Man Bun)

Arguably the most controversial of all the styles that made it onto this list. First it was the undercut, Robert Pattinson style (e.g. longer hair on top with both sides shaved), but then Hipsters took it one step further.

Think Made in Chelsea’s Proudlock, and his distinctive hairdo, and you’ll know what we mean. Men adopting the style are growing their hair just long enough to be gathered in a knot on top of their heads, and then cropping the sides short. It’s shabby chic gone wild, the greasier and messier the better. We dread to think what that looks like when they first wake up in the morning.

ASOS even used this style for their April fools day joke this year, when they announced their new ‘clip-on man buns’- much to the bemusement of people everywhere. Although, it probably won’t be long until something like this actually catches on!

Have you tried any of these styles over the years? We’d love to see pictures! Tweet us or send them our way via Facebook!