BEAUTY:FEBRUARY IS A strange month. In theory we should be looking ahead and sticking to those New Year's resolutions – ending up a good deal thinner and fitter by the time spring arrives. In practice, we're emptying the freezer and coming up with unusual food combinations to avoid having to visit the supermarket. Barley risotto, anyone?

So how are you coping with your hair colour? When needs must, we eke out an extra week or two between salon visits, but there are ways to make the enforced wait less obvious. If you have your hair professionally coloured, don’t be tempted to do a home dye job to bridge the gap. It’s far too drastic and may take months to rectify. You have your hair professionally coloured for a reason, so instead, look at some methods to tide you over until your next salon visit.

Colour fade and root regrowth are most obvious at the hairline and partings, so even a simple shifting of the position of your parting will help the situation. You can blur the line very easily with a matte eyeshadow to match your hair shade. I must stress the word matte, as any sparkle will just highlight what you are trying to disguise. Try the Mac counter for an unbeatable range of shades and if in doubt, go a shade lighter than your – ahem – natural hair shade.

Tween Times is a crayon-like touch-up stick available from hairdressing suppliers such as Terry Sales, 71 Abbey Street, Dublin (01-8724700; terrisales.ie). It comes in a variety of shades and costs €8.50. Also good is Fanciful Water Rinse Temporary Colour (€9.95), which can be used all over hair to freshen up colour and lasts until the next wash. Again, err on the lighter side when choosing a shade as you’re just looking to give a boost to your existing tone, and the shade names can be deceiving (for instance, Frivolous Fawn sounds like a dark blonde, but turns out to be a mid-brown). If you’re a fan of hair mousse, the range also comes in a mousse formula (€8.50) which is easier to apply. Both are available from pharmacies.

The hair stylists’ favourite is Bumble and Bumble Hair Powder, which has a few strings to its bow for the €37.50 price tag. It comes in four shades. It also works as a dry shampoo and a volumiser, so will boost a flagging blow-dry. Available at Peter Mark salons nationwide (petermark.ie).