View Full Version : the last of it is gone
My dyed hair that is, now I am all natural now and about 30-40% gray (don't let the girl in my name fool you, I am just young in the brain).
I have a super short cut and I think it is cute, hopefully styling it myself will still be cute. It took 10 months from the last time I dyed it to get rid of all dyed color. I hear I am part of a trend now too, gray is cool
One of my fav FB groups!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Going-Gray-Looking-Great/334857020776?ref=ts&fref=ts
Congrats! I bet you rock it... this is me, mostly grey. I love it.
I am about 70 percent grey/silver now. Lovin' it!! :)
Blackdog Lin
3-6-13, 5:09am
I kinda like my grey too - though I didn't know it was cool! :) Like you Zoe Girl, I'm at about 40%. What I adore is not having the expense of coloring, and the hassle, and the exposure to the chemicals. It's very liberating, being natural.....
I am so scared going silver/grey. I deeply admire all of you for being able to embrace it like you do.
P.S. Love the pic of you, Redfox!
I am 38 and ALL MINE..30% WHITE and a little grey. I love Going Gray Looking Great too. I have had 2 skunk striped down the sides of my head since I was 16. I stopped coloring 1.5 years ago after the last coloring left me with welts and a very itchy head that burned for a week.
I'm only 10% gray and I don't mind how it looks. What I think about though is how much easier it is to never start dying. I'm the only lady at my work in the 30s-50s age group who is going gray and not dying. So my co-workers get used to it on me.
However, for the ladies who dye, if they have too many roots showing it's kind of shocking how gray they are. And god forbid if they stopped altogether. It would be really noticeable and shocking to see how gray some of them are. Because they are getting used to my hair gradually it's no big deal.
I transitioned with some subtle hi lights. It broke up the "line" and kept everything fresh. I also cut off 9 inches when I started, so that helped. :)
Simplemind
3-6-13, 12:23pm
You are going to love it. It is so liberating and in every case looks more natural because it is the true you.
Mighty Frugal
3-6-13, 1:37pm
I'm not there yet-not sure I ever will be! I'm 47 and probably only about 7% grey-on my temples mainly and a few here and there on top. But I dye it..redfox you have such THICK hair!! lovely
Redfox......I love your hair! Mine is almost white and long, but thin. I wish I could wear it down more. Its just easier to pin it up with a barrette.
I began turning gray in my 30's. It was nice then......it sparkled when it started coming in. It does make me look much older though. But I'd never dye it.
I would imagine it would be a never-ending struggle to keep dyed hair from showing gray roots.
I'm really into being natural, and (trying) to accept whatever comes of it........wrinkles, sags, yellowing teeth, white hair. Let it be...........
DD is only 26 and has quite a few gray hairs. It must be genetic.
I suppose you should all do what feels right to you, but I definitely encourage you to just go with it turning gray. Its not like dyeing ones hair really makes you any younger. Just go with the flow! :)
You are going to love it. It is so liberating and in every case looks more natural because it is the true you.
+1
Maxamillion
3-6-13, 4:13pm
I don't have a lot of gray yet but what I do have has doubled just in the last year. And actually, it's skipping the gray part and going straight to bright shimmery glow-in-the-dark white. The rest of my hair is really dark brown so it shows up. I've thought about using some dark blonde dye to dye the silver so that it looks like highlights. Or maybe go wild and use purple dye. The white hair, the way it stands out, drives my OCD crazy.
I am so scared going silver/grey. I deeply admire all of you for being able to embrace it like you do.
P.S. Love the pic of you, Redfox!
thanks... What scares you?
I have alot but don't know what percentage. It hides in the blonde pretty well. My dad was silver by 28. My brother is almost all silver at 43. My mom suddenly became a redhead, said it was easier to color reddish blonde than brown to hide her gray. I just wish she'd go gray.
thanks... What scares you?Maybe knowing my youthfulness is gone (lost). An original part of me, gone forever. Depresses me just thinking about it.
I know what you mean Mrs. M. But I guess that happens to everything on earth........
I'm trying to find some comfort in knowing that its just the way of nature.
I think of it as I have what I was born with..it's kinda cool. After 20 years of coloring, it's been nice. I still think I am sassy and youthful, just more me and unique. ;)
After highlighting my hair from the age of 16 to 40 I finally stopped and it took 2 years to grow it out fully. I am 42 now and still have more brown than gray, but feel so free from the time and cost of keeping up the highlights. It is so nice to be able to just pay $15 for a haircut at Great Clips. I was joking my husband the other day that we spend more on his hair now than on my hair. So funny! BTW, I love your hair Redfox!
Interesting thread. I have some gray coming in, in the front, not much. I tend to tint my hair every six to eight weeks using a shampoo-in type temporary tint that is one shade lighter than my normal hair. I'm a natural blond and my ends will naturally bleach out to be quite light over time, so the tint darkens the ends and blends the gray at the same time. It's a subtle difference and it fades over time, so no roots. I'll get comments, such as "your hair looks shiny" or "you look rested," things like this, so I'm not even sure people can tell what I've done.
awakenedsoul
3-6-13, 8:16pm
I use henna, and I get comments like that, too. It's subtle. I like that it's all natural. I wish I was comfortable with going grey, but I just feel better with the henna. It's giving me a little more mileage. I'm 48. I'm impressed with all of you who are going natural. I get a little lax about my roots. The fish oil I take has really helped to condition my hair, though. (It used to be dry.) That, and eating a handful of nuts at every meal. I did it to stop the perimenopause symptoms; the fats really have made my hair soft and shiny. It was so dry and coarse for most of my life. I wish I'd known this sooner. I drink green tea, too. I hear it can help delay grey hair. Vanity...
I'm not there yet-not sure I ever will be! I'm 47 and probably only about 7% grey-on my temples mainly and a few here and there on top. But I dye it..redfox you have such THICK hair!! lovely
Yeah I'm like you - just a little white (no grey) at my temples but it blends in with my naturally light blonde hair and it is covered up by my bangs (I still have that long Stevie Nicks hair-do although I keep saying I'm going to cut it shorter). But I think women look great with grey or white hair. I always loved Redfox's hair - very beautiful - and if mine grew out like that I'd probably keep it natural. But, once it gets more gray or white, I probably will color it. It's pretty bleached out whitish blonde by the sun anyways so for all I know it is more gray or white then blonde already!! I do think it's easier to take care of blonde hair turning gray then dark hair turning gray. Not as much of a contrast when roots grow out if you color. Probably why alot of women with dark hair go blonder once they start to color their gray hair.
Kudos to you Zoe Girl! I have been trying to figure out how to go silver/white for the last two years - I should have stopped dying it when I cut off all my long wild curly hair almost two years ago in May 2011. I ended up not liking having the short hair because it was such a PITA to style it every morning but I kept dying it. My hair is now almost as long as it was - it grows really fast! It only took 1.75 years to go from spiky short to long wild curlies)!
I would have to say I am pretty dang white at the top now, at least 70%. That somehow all happened over the last two years or so! Well, now I am experimenting with growing out a white streak in the front. Every time I go to get my hair colored I have them block it off with a foil so it doesn't get the dye. Instead of the wild red/burgundy color I had for my blues giggin' days, it is now a little darker (had to go dark to cover up all the red tones) than my natural color, which is a dark brown with coppery highlights (I think). It's been so long I've been dying I am not really sure what the natural color is!
Anyway, I think the white streak will look pretty cool once it is more pronounced. It'll stand out good against the dark hair. I am planning on keeping my hair long as long as I can keep it looking good. I figure maybe in nine more years when I am 60 I will chop it all off and not dye it ever again.
as a side question - do those of you who choose not to color your gray hair go au natural with other cosmetics? I look at dying your hair the same as putting on make-up, just something that changes (enhances?? or not) your looks and eventually grows out or you can remove the color if you don't like it anymore. I rartely wear make up or any beauty products or have my hair styled, etc... but don't think coloring my hair would be a big deal once I started doing it. Especially if it's only once every couple of months.
My process may be a littel different because I have been patiently waiting to go grey, okay I really wanted the silverywhite stuff. If I could have been total white before 40 I would have been thrilled. However about 5-6 years ago I got some silvery white hair and the rest of my hair lost the medium brown color and became that steel/nothing color. I think it looks fine on others but I really hated it. I started with highlights and then moved into dying it. Over a year ago I knew I wanted to take teh summer to grow out my gray hair since it seemed more silvery white so I started dying it lighter and lighter each month. When I dyed it I ended up with natural highlights because the white hair dyed lighter than the hair with color still in it. Then 10 months ago I stopped coloring at all. I did use a toner from manic panic that can make the very lightest blond dyed hair go white (artic white). This does not work on natural hair but I found it made the blending even easier. I also use a shampoo for gray hair that keeps it from being more yellowed. I seriously never had a skunk line doing this.
I know it can be hard, I never thought I woudl have a hard time but when I started I just thought I looked dumpy.I wanted to look good for work and possibly a relationship. I am fine with having dyed it, I stopped when I was ready and it is all good.
as a side question - do those of you who choose not to color your gray hair go au natural with other cosmetics? I look at dying your hair the same as putting on make-up, just something that changes (enhances?? or not) your looks and eventually grows out or you can remove the color if you don't like it anymore. I rartely wear make up or any beauty products or have my hair styled, etc... but don't think coloring my hair would be a big deal once I started doing it. Especially if it's only once every couple of months.
I do use makeup 5 out of 7 days pretty much. I don't really have to for work (not an environment that I feel odd not wearing makeup) however I just like having fun with it. Maybe it is from all those years being home with little kids but I enjoy doing extra to look nice. Letting my hari go natural is more about how I want white hair than being natural. I even bugged my hairdresser to look into dying it white, but I swim so there is a chance of it turning green.
Blackdog Lin
3-6-13, 9:52pm
Spartana: I think I see what you're saying. Is it all or nothing? Do you embrace all the "encumbrances" of being stylish, or go total hippie?
For me, it's a mix, and one that I've refined over the last 10-or-so years. And it's been a large part of my journey toward more simplicity. First I gave up the eye makeup; then I stopped coloring my hair; then I minimized my face makeup to a tinted moisturizer (with dabs of powder and blush). And that's where I am now. For me, every simplicity I can get used to, well, it fits in with my tiny life's philosophy. Simplier=better. But I've never thought it was hypocrytical or anything to do what you want to do cosmetically with what you have. If you can't handle going grey, or have the need for full makeup, do what you feel comfortable with. But maybe, just maybe, you could be happy with what you look like, maybe you could embrace what you are today, using less of today's "essential" womenly cosmetics.....
I don't think it has to be all or nothing. Just tiny steps that we can.....embrace.
So before I lost my house I went through a simplfying deal that was a HUGE project. I took my master bathroom stuff and pared it down to good sized travel bag. I do full makeup out of this same travel bag 3 years later. I think the deal that get makeup so cumbersome is that often we buy many different colors and products and then settle on a couple things and keep it all. I found the basics and just threw away the other colors, 2 sets of eye shadow, mascara, eyeliner, lotions, foundation and primer don't take up much space. My daughter came and felt my face and asked why it is so soft. It is partially just genetics but some basic good lotion and cleanser works wonders.
I agree with just doing what you are comfortable with, no reason to stress about meeting a standard of makeup or no-makeup.
as a side question - do those of you who choose not to color your gray hair go au natural with other cosmetics? I look at dying your hair the same as putting on make-up, just something that changes (enhances?? or not) your looks and eventually grows out or you can remove the color if you don't like it anymore. I rartely wear make up or any beauty products or have my hair styled, etc... but don't think coloring my hair would be a big deal once I started doing it. Especially if it's only once every couple of months.
I'm all hippie. Have never worn make-up or dyed my hair. I don't use hair products. It's only been really "styled" twice. Once I let my sister straighten my curly hair for fun. And she put it up for my wedding. I've probably paid for a hair cut less than 10 times in my life, including when I was a kid and my mother paid. I did the mani-pedi thing once, before my wedding, just because. I see no reason to do it again.
I've only ever dyed my hair once -- and that was when I was 20 and i put pink in it. :)
It's always been natural. I have (or did have) two white hairs, and as is typical to blonds, I have muddied a bit. I un-muddy it with natural honey peroxide (honey + water + 45 minutes = natural peroxide that doesn't destroy hair), and it looks blond. With apparently TWO white hairs. DH can find them on me. I can't see them at all. :)
I'm 36.
Also, I go off/on with make up. Currently, I'm not wearing any and I haven't for years. but I go in phases where I want to wear them, so I go out and make or get some organic/real stuff make up, and then wear it for a bit until I decide that I don't want to anymore.
Spartana: I think I see what you're saying. Is it all or nothing? Do you embrace all the "encumbrances" of being stylish, or go total hippie?
For me, it's a mix, and one that I've refined over the last 10-or-so years. And it's been a large part of my journey toward more simplicity. First I gave up the eye makeup; then I stopped coloring my hair; then I minimized my face makeup to a tinted moisturizer (with dabs of powder and blush). And that's where I am now. For me, every simplicity I can get used to, well, it fits in with my tiny life's philosophy. Simplier=better. But I've never thought it was hypocrytical or anything to do what you want to do cosmetically with what you have. If you can't handle going grey, or have the need for full makeup, do what you feel comfortable with. But maybe, just maybe, you could be happy with what you look like, maybe you could embrace what you are today, using less of today's "essential" womenly cosmetics.....
I don't think it has to be all or nothing. Just tiny steps that we can.....embrace.
I agree - it isn't an all or nothing thing at all from my point of view and I wasn't saying it was hypocritical either. I was just curious if those who didn't color their gray were doing it because they wanted to be more natural or just because they liked it better or just because it was a hassle or for some other reason. I don't really do anything much in the beauty dept unless I'm going out but coloring hair seems like an easy thing - much easier and less hassle then putting on make up or styling your hair everyday. Seems cheaper too if you can do it yourself from a box. So I was just curious "why" people did or didn't color and if it was to be more natural looking - and if that then do they shun other beauty products as well. Enquirering minds want to know :-)!
Maybe knowing my youthfulness is gone (lost). An original part of me, gone forever. Depresses me just thinking about it.
Oh honey, I get it. May I re-frame this? Your youth is the foundation for your wise woman. We're evolving. Layer upon layer upon layer... Each moment is woven into the beautiful, soft, flowing, colorful garment that is YOU right now. The you your children & husband love IS your youth, your early marriage & motherhood years, and your current self. Nothing is gone... it has unfurled into the Now.
Grey hair is an emblem, a signifyer, that we are to be listened to, respected, honored; for our knowledge, our survival, our wisdom. It's the earned crown of glory of life's most challenging and rewarding circumstances, that we have survived to tell the stories of. It says: Listen to Her.
Hugs, from one Wise Woman to another.
I'm all hippie. Have never worn make-up or dyed my hair. I don't use hair products. It's only been really "styled" twice. Once I let my sister straighten my curly hair for fun. And she put it up for my wedding. I've probably paid for a hair cut less than 10 times in my life, including when I was a kid and my mother paid. I did the mani-pedi thing once, before my wedding, just because. I see no reason to do it again.Yeah I let my Mom curl my waist lenght hair for my wedding. Curlers stuck to it and had to cut alot of it off before the ceremony. Never again! Too much of a hassle. Although it did look cute! Oh and I just remembered I curled my hair for my prom. Again looked cute but way too much work for lazy me.
Oh honey, I get it. May I re-frame this? Your youth is the foundation for your wise woman. We're evolving. Layer upon layer upon layer... Each moment is woven into the beautiful, soft, flowing, colorful garment that is YOU right now. The you your children & husband love IS your youth, your early marriage & motherhood years, and your current self. Nothing is gone... it has unfurled into the Now.
Grey hair is an emblem, a signifyer, that we are to be listened to, respected, honored; for our knowledge, our survival, our wisdom. It's the earned crown of glory of life's most challenging and rewarding circumstances, that we have survived to tell the stories of. It says: Listen to Her.
Hugs, from one Wise Woman to another. Great words and vibe redfox. I'm going to use that for my wrinkles and bags too :-)!
I have salt and pepper hair. I don't color it now. Before I turned 50 I did highlight it using kits from Sally's Beauty. It was slightly fun since I'd never done anything to my hair, but gads it was hard on the hair, stripping out all of the natural oils and protective layers. Back then I imagined that it sort of covered the grey streaks. Now I don't bother since I'm old enough to have grey hair, but it's not that pretty silvery grey, it's just mottled.
I don't have much gray hair, maybe 10%, but I've highlighted my hair three times now and it's so damaged. In the past when it was short I would have just chopped it shorter and let the damage grow out, but now it's down to my mid-back. My gray is mostly around my hairline and right now my roots are showing about 2" of natural color.
Part of my would like to let it go gray, but I'm 46 and am told I look like mid-30s. The gray makes me look haggard and older. I work in a salon so I've lots of professional advice available to me. So far I'm thinking of cutting off 4" and maybe coloring with a demi-permanent color to match my natural color. I only use color-safe shampoo once a week and wash with conditioner two times a week, so the color should last.
My mom, who is 77, has a cute pixie cut and it looks great with her salt and pepper gray hair. She's always thinking of coloring it, but the whiter parts of her gray look like highlights.
Oh, I do pull out the kinky gray hairs that show up in the back, when I spot them. I don't want to be a slave to my hair. It's enough that now there's just more maintenance involved at my age---I don't want to worry about haircolor too!
I think maybe the reason people think grey or white are not good colors for hair is fear of the problems of aging and fear of death. A good video about this is Look Us in the Eye.
awakenedsoul
3-7-13, 12:20pm
I wear light make-up. Sometimes people think I don't wear make-up, but I wear just enough to enhance. The henna is kind of a pain, but I really like the highlights and how it bumps up the color. My mom is in her seventies and she still has long brown hair. It looks really pretty!
I let my hair go gray at age 50. I had dishwater blond hair and I used to get it highlighted/foiled to make it look better. But in my late 40's the foiling wasn't covering the gray. Then I started dying it all over. Since mine is whitest around my face, I'd have a white ring around my face before I knew it. I couldn't keep up. Finally decided I wasn't kidding anyone and that I had gray hair. Growing out is rather painful. But I've been happy with it. It is white in front, silvery and some dishwater in the back. Even my hairdresser tells me never to dye it because she thinks it looks good. It is so absolutely freeing. I don't really care it if look younger. Just not a priority for me. It is straight and I wear it in a long bob. Easy, easy.
Also, do you (all of you here) think you'd color if you were single and in the dating world? Or in the "looking for a job as an older person" world? Would either of those things make any difference do you think? What if you usually dated or worked with younger men and/or women? I'm of the "take me as I am" school of being single and dating so probably wouldn't dye my hair for that reason (only if "I" liked it better myself) but might dye it if I felt it made me look younger to a potential employer (there does seem to be a lot of discrimination against those over 40 in the hiring world).
awakenedsoul
3-7-13, 6:23pm
I'm single and yes, I think that's part of it. Also, in show business a lot of being hired is how you look. I think that's stayed with me, trying to look my best. I worked at a theater in Germany with a woman in her 50's who wore her grey hair in a French twist. It looked so elegant! She was very classy and beautiful.
Eventually I'll let it go, but for now I'm still kidding myself.
as a side question - do those of you who choose not to color your gray hair go au natural with other cosmetics? I look at dying your hair the same as putting on make-up, just something that changes (enhances?? or not) your looks and eventually grows out or you can remove the color if you don't like it anymore. I rartely wear make up or any beauty products or have my hair styled, etc... but don't think coloring my hair would be a big deal once I started doing it. Especially if it's only once every couple of months.
I still wear makeup but I had to adjust. I wear a cool tone pink blush, mascara, smokey eyeliner in dark violet and some lip balm. I feel fresh. :)
Also, do you (all of you here) think you'd color if you were single and in the dating world? Or in the "looking for a job as an older person" world? Would either of those things make any difference do you think? What if you usually dated or worked with younger men and/or women? I'm of the "take me as I am" school of being single and dating so probably wouldn't dye my hair for that reason (only if "I" liked it better myself) but might dye it if I felt it made me look younger to a potential employer (there does seem to be a lot of discrimination against those over 40 in the hiring world).
I will talk about the hiring thing. Because I look a very young 38..most people think I am barely 30, my white works to my advantage. I tend to be quirky though and go against the grain. Maybe it's my positive attitude but only once has someone said something about my natural color in a negative way. It's ok. I am happy as me.
Having said that, I do try to remain fresh, as in what I wear, glasses, attitude and smiling a lot. I am not trendy but I taking better care of myself. Over the past 5 weeks, I have been eating to servings of as close to fresh vegetables with lunch and dinner and 2 servings of fresh fruits with breakfast and 1 serving at lunch. I have been drinking water like a horse. I gave up coffee and can I say, I think it's showing positively in my skin and actual "age." I also use oils on my skin instead of lotions and creams. I think it really helps plump up the old skin. :) Ok..rant over.
I stopped dyeing my long, very thick hair about two-three years ago. I'm 45, and was so tired of the dye lines in my hair. I was starting to go silver/white...maybe 5%, not a lot, but I noticed it. My hair isn't brown...more of a dark non descript blonde. I had been dying my hair blonde since I was a teen.
I just got tired of my hair altogether. My husband likes me with long hair, so for now I'll stay long. But one day it will go much much shorter.
I like my new, natural look with its strands of silver. My husband also loves my natural hair and he's really the only person I care to impress.
As for makeup, I use very little. I use Olay to moisturize, a little powder, eye liner, mascara and a soft rose lipstick and light blusher. That's if I use any at all.
I find it very freeing! It DID look awkward as I grew my hair out at first, but I'm all grown out now!
I definitely understand the drive to dye. So far, I don't think I will, but I reserve the right to change my mind later. :) I have some grey, in the front, but it's mostly in the under layer of hair, so not too noticeable. I think I am too thrifty and lazy to bother to go to the trouble and expense of dyeing, but again, I may feel differently when there is more grey than brown. I also know that it's easier to just never start than to try to stop after years of dyeing. That is a big factor in my not wanting to do it.
Kara
Love your words, Redfox.
I have some growing to do, growing inside...
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2025 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.