Andie MacDowell opens up about embracing her natural gray hair 'with no shame'

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By Nika Shakhnazarova

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Andie MacDowell has opened up about her decision to embrace her natural gray hair - something that is rare to come by in Hollywood.

While many stars are afraid of seeing one gray hair among a sea of their perfectly dyed locks, MacDowell takes a slightly different approach.

Speaking with InStyle, the Twilight actress opened up about her past red carpet looks.

Recalling the moment she debuted salt-and-pepper strands at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival in July, where she wore a mint Prada dress with a bead-covered bodice.

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"It was really important to me because my transformation helped me accept my authentic, true self," she said of the look.

Admitting she initially faced "some resistance" to wearing her natural grays in public, her daughters Margaret and Rainey Qualley had a different reaction.

"When I first started wearing my hair gray, my daughters kept saying I looked badass," MacDowell told the publication.

Not only did the actress say it was "heartwarming to see such a positive reaction," but it also inspired her to continue living "with no shame."

"I think it's badass to embrace where you are and be fearless. That is exactly what I am doing. I am stepping right into where I am with no shame, and it feels good," she added.

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While MacDowell didn't reveal who opposed her natural hair, she did say that the beauty industry overall has recently evolved so that "everybody has an opportunity to feel beautiful" - especially those in MacDowell's generation.

She did add, however, that women of her generation "have always been left out."

"In the past, it has been normal and acceptable to cut women off at age 40," she said. "I think young people today are very supportive of glamorizing mature women. We do have something unique to offer."

Echoing MacDowell's sentiments, actress Jamie Lee Curtis this month opened up about the pressure women face to appear more youthful.

Speaking on British morning show Lorraine, the actress, 62, said she's been a long-time advocate for natural beauty after succumbing to plastic surgery in the past.

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She said: "I have been an advocate for natural beauty for a long time, mostly because I've had the trial and error of the other part. I did plastic surgery - it didn't work. I hated it. It made me feel worse. I tried to do everything you can do with your hair.

"Personally it felt humiliating. I would go into the nail salon, the smell of the chemicals, the feeling of that color on my hair, the wearing the thing, sitting under the hairdryer. I was like, for what?"

Curtis has certainly experimented with her hair over the decades - going from brunette to a long blonde hairdo, before finally landing on her signature short cut.

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"Very early on in my career, I had a perm and then had to dye my hair for a movie and it burned my hair off my head," she explained. The first time I cut my hair short, I went, 'Oh! Oh my god. Oh, wow. I look like me.'"

Since then, she's also stopped dying her hair brown — pivoting away from her iconic look made famous in 1994's True Lies, alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"I've also been an advocate for not f***ing with your face," Curtis added. "And the term 'anti-aging.' What? What are you talking about? We're all going to f****ing age. We’re all gonna die. Why do you want to look 17 when you're 70? I want to look 70 when I'm 70!"

Featured image credit: Sipa US / Alamy