blue-rinse

[ bloo-rins ]

adjective

1. of, for, or composed mostly of elderly women:

   the blue-rinse matinee audience.

blue rinse

noun

1. a rinse for tinting grey hair a silvery-blue colour

adjective

1. denoting or typifying an elderly, well-groomed, socially active, and comparatively wealthy woman

Word History and Origins

Origin of blue-rinse¹

First recorded in 1975–80; so called from the bluish tinge produced by certain rinses used on gray hair

Example Sentences

“We taped it at about 6 in the morning, and the studio audience was full of elderly ladies with blue-rinse hair,” Miller recalls.

From Seattle Times

“They send out Holly, we blue-rinse the place and stroll in to reclaim the ransom. Simple.”

From Literature

This effectively meant that Foaly could tune the bio-bomb to blue-rinse only Fowl Manor and not one blade of grass more, plus the building would be radiation-free in under a minute.

From Literature

But many stereotypes about the famous "blue-rinse brigade" simply don't hold, according to Professor Bale.

From BBC

A mayor once joked Bournemouth is where "hedonism" and the "blue-rinse" set peacefully coexist.

From US News