Jeanette Friis Madsen photo by Acielle at Style du Monde

One of my most stylish friends recently bought a hair claw and suggested I write about fancy hair accessories. Mmm…I thought to myself, I’m not sure about that! Ever the minimalist, I’m happy with a hair elastic, I’ve never owned a hair claw and the last time I wore a scrunchie was in the 1980s. But, it’s quite easy to stick with what you know and rule stuff out before trying it.

While I may be cautious of the claw, I’m also a firm believer in not limiting options. And I do quite like hair slides, particularly when worn in a Gentlewoman Style a la Jeanette Friis Madsen (above). The Girl with the Pearl Hair Slide and the Pearl Earring.

Of course, my cool friend is on the money. Over the last few years Gucci has gone big on glitzy hair accessories, but this isn’t a look reserved for Millenials or Gen-Z’rs, women of all ages are enjoying hair decor.

See J.Lo in Monaco and super-influencer Grece Ghanem in a scrunchie, for proof.

Photo: Tegen

Going into the Christmas season there are plenty of sparkly options in the shops, but my preference is for less flashy styles; pearls, resin and tortoiseshell hair clips, grips and barettes offset grey hair beautifully. My friend buys hers at Brighton-based Tegen Accessories (where you can shop by hair type), while slightly posher Alexandre de Paris clips and claws are available from Printemps, Feel Unique and Fenwick; both Oliver Bonas and Madewell have a good selection, and I’m thinking of buying a couple of modern hair slides from Black Colour, a Danish accessories brand I spotted in the lovely Collen and Clare boutique in Southwold (also available from Trouva).

Whatever your age or hair length, you can wear fancy hair accessories. See Joan Bakewell’s colourful hair slides from lockdown 2.0 for inspiration – and even shorter hair below:

Photo: Acielle at Style du Monde

And there’s no need to shell out lots of money on a designer merch; affordable and chic accessories can be found at H&M, Hush, Accessorize, Anthropologie, Boden and &OtherStories; as well as the local pharmacy, supermarket or street market.

Jayne Mayled founder of White Hot Hair during lockdown

Er, thank scrunchie it’s Christmas….

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