Gray is the new blonde?

[Maria D]

Has anyone transitioned from dyed to naturally gray/silver/white hair?

At age 58, I'm considering letting my natural hair color grow out. I started graying early (found my first white hair at 17) and have been touching up roots for the last thirty years. In the beginning it was every 6 weeks or so and now it's every 3 weeks - and that's stretching it by a week by using root touch-up powders. Needless to say I'm sick of it. According to this documentary, natural gray might be a trend...

Gray is The New Blonde documentary

I *love* the overall gray look, but not so wild about the transitioning skunk line!

 

[lyra]

I let my hair go grey many years ago. I hate it when people say "Oh, you dyed your hair (platinum) blonde!" No, I didn't. It's not brassy either. Also, it's considered "salt and pepper" because it's still brown underneath at the back of my head. Just a weird shade of grey that looks like blonde to some. Edit: forgot what I meant to say. I got highlights in mine to transition quicker.

 

[MamaBee]

Has anyone transitioned from dyed to naturally gray/silver/white hair?

At age 58, I'm considering letting my natural hair color grow out. I started graying early (found my first white hair at 17) and have been touching up roots for the last thirty years. In the beginning it was every 6 weeks or so and now it's every 3 weeks - and that's stretching it by a week by using root touch-up powders. Needless to say I'm sick of it. According to this documentary, natural gray might be a trend...

Gray is The New Blonde documentary

I *love* the overall gray look, but not so wild about the transitioning skunk line!

A good hairdresser should be able to remove the dark color and put in a silver/gray color to transition to your natural gray color..It‘s possible that your hair may not be gray all over. My 94 year old mother has white hair in the front and salt and pepper color on the back of her head. She can get it evened out at the hairdresser but she chooses not to..

 

[bludiva]

similar story here, dark hair and early greys, sick of dyeing... i tried lightning my hair and letting it grow out but it didn't look good

then i had balayage done with the idea of the outer/top layers all grey and that didnt work either but the layered effect let me grow it out

it looks like grey highlights now but i still tone it about 1x/month (i do it at home in the shower) and/or refresh with grey-blond dye about once a quarter

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

I've got it good/bad either way I've got it!!! Talked about this in another thread--leaving my hair alone. It is what it is and I love what it is. Lots of grey and natural lights and darks that is all looks choregraphed but it really isn't'. Yet I can see where transitioning from very dark colored hair to natural light growth may have its challenges. @Matata has a thread on what she did.

FWIW My Mother colored her natural blond hair blonde...and kept up the routine to keep the grey "at bay". When I went to look after her post-op, I asked when she needed to so go the "salon". She told me she stopped coloring her hair a year before...and it looked silver blonde and oh so natural as it always was. My hair is much darker than my Mothers ever was.

cheers--Sharon

 

[Ally T]

I would absolutely LOVE to not have to colour my grey, but I'm not sure I or my husband are ready for that yet. I am 45 now & my hairdresser 'plucked' my first grey at 15. My mother was completely white by 45. My right side is definitely more grey than my left, which is weird. Somebody told me that the side I sleep on will grey quicker, which just sounds odd. But we are a very dark bunch of females in my family & as much as I hate the upkeep, I prefer to not be grey.

There is a mother at my children's school however, who is younger than me, eternally glamorous & has totally white hair. She gave up the colour years ago & has this super thick, sleek bob which looks stunning. Each to their own!

 

[Maria D]

A good hairdresser should be able to remove the dark color and put in a silver/gray color to transition to your natural gray color..It‘s possible that your hair may not be gray all over. My 94 year old mother has white hair in the front and salt and pepper color on the back of her head. She can get it evened out at the hairdresser but she chooses not to..

It is definitely gray all over - silver white in many places. I've got a good half inch of regrowth right now and had my husband check with chopsticks. Reminded me of lice checks at school when I was a kid.

I have read horror stories about removing dark color and putting in silver/gray. The dye-stripping weakened the hair and then the gray color is actually that - gray - whereas there is no such thing as natural gray colored hairs; you get the appearance of gray by the blending of white with dark. So there is still a demarcation line and then breakage from the weakened hair. These tales are from women who regretted not just going cold turkey. If anyone has gone from dark to ~ 75% gray with an easy transition I would love to hear about it!

As for your 94 year old mom - I'm amazed she still bothers with the hairdresser! If I'm lucky enough to live that long I'm pretty sure I won't.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I use to just have a few strands in the front and some at the back, then my wings went in the sides
When Gary got sick i think it went grey overnight
i reacon if i didn't dye it id be completly grey judging from the roots
but im not ready to look like my grandma ....and even though i only knew her as an old lady in her 70s some days i see her in the mirror even though im only on my late 40s

What has surprised me is my hair hasn't got course like i thought grey hair did ??
Its stilp fine and soft
but im just not ready

I think i remember the Queen doing it (letting the grey show) but she transitioned over her summer holiday

 

[Maria D]

HI:

I've got it good/bad either way I've got it!!! Talked about this in another thread--leaving my hair alone. It is what it is and I love what it is. Lots of grey and natural lights and darks that is all looks choregraphed but it really isn't'. Yet I can see where transitioning from very dark colored hair to natural light growth may have its challenges. @Matata has a thread on what she did.

FWIW My Mother colored her natural blond hair blonde...and kept up the routine to keep the grey "at bay". When I went to look after her post-op, I asked when she needed to so go the "salon". She told me she stopped coloring her hair a year before...and it looked silver blonde and oh so natural as it always was. My hair is much darker than my Mothers ever was.

cheers--Sharon

How did I miss @Matata 's thread? Will look for it!

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Let us know @Maria D how it comes along.

cheers--Sharon

 

[Maria D]

I found Matata's thread - that was the summer I was away for a month on vacation. Gee, if only I had stopped dyeing then I wouldn't be still thinking about this now!

Matata looks beautiful in the end but she does mention 6 weeks of orange brassiness and boy that's a lot of time & expense...decisions, decisions.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

What about eyebrows ?
Thats my real problems
I always shaped them into a mean almost gone line but they are naturally like Brooke Sheild
The 80s were good to me
The trouble is i know can't see to shape then as my glasses get in the way and the light isnt that good in this house
I tried very carefully dying them last time i did my hair but it didn't work very good

 

[Maria D]

I would absolutely LOVE to not have to colour my grey, but I'm not sure I or my husband are ready for that yet. I am 45 now & my hairdresser 'plucked' my first grey at 15. My mother was completely white by 45. My right side is definitely more grey than my left, which is weird. Somebody told me that the side I sleep on will grey quicker, which just sounds odd. But we are a very dark bunch of females in my family & as much as I hate the upkeep, I prefer to not be grey.

There is a mother at my children's school however, who is younger than me, eternally glamorous & has totally white hair. She gave up the colour years ago & has this super thick, sleek bob which looks stunning. Each to their own!

I couldn't do it at 45 either and I think my husband isn't ready for it even now.

What bothers me the most now isn't even the routine of coloring it. I've been doing it so often for so long that applying the dye from start to finish takes me only 20 minutes. What I hate is that even after a week and a half a slight part in my hair will look like a bald spot. The illusion of bald is far worse than looking older with gray!

 

[canuk-gal]

I found Matata's thread - that was the summer I was away for a month on vacation. Gee, if only I had stopped dyeing then I wouldn't be still thinking about this now!

Matata looks beautiful in the end but she does mention 6 weeks of orange brassiness and boy that's a lot of time & expense...decisions, decisions.

Decisions! Can you change your style/cut/blow out to mitigate your concerns? With hair there will always need to be some damage control with changes (no pun intended) : what are these options for you?

 

[Maria D]

What about eyebrows ?
Thats my real problems
I always shaped them into a mean almost gone line but they are naturally like Brooke Sheild
The 80s were good to me
The trouble is i know can't see to shape then as my glasses get in the way and the light isnt that good in this house
I tried very carefully dying them last time i did my hair but it didn't work very good

I remember hearing in my younger days that plucked eyebrow hairs might not grow back, wish I had listened. I do have a few white ones. Sometimes I pluck them but most of the time I just let my bangs grow over them.

 

[marymm]

I transitioned to my natural gray/silver/white hair a few years ago - I really really love it - I love that my hair is its natural color, I love that I don't have any upkeep other than hairwashing/conditioning (and I do play with purple shampoos), and my hair is quantitatively more healthy and shiny than it was when I colored it.

I did the transition myself over a long weekend - I used Color Oops to remove the brown hair dye on a Thursday night, used a toner and did some deep conditioning right away, and then Sunday afternoon I bleached my hair blond, and toned it again. It was rather brassy which didn't make me happy and I definitely was creative with scarves and knit hats for the couple of weeks I made myself wait before bleaching one more time (I wanted to make sure my hair stayed healthy so didn't want to re-bleach too soon). Three weeks later I bleached & toned it again, and this time it turned out the very light blond I wanted. Then I just lived with it over the next months, kept conditioning, using purple shampoo sometimes, kept my hair about shoulder length but regularly trimmed off the ends. Finally my hair was all natural, and then I started growing it longer. Now it is mid-back length. I do get compliments on it, and I (and my DH) are very happy with how it looks and how healthy it is.

Kind of like you said, the time will pass anyway whether or not you start transitioning now ...

 

[lyra]

My hair was a medium ash brown, and when the grey became an every 2-3 week problem, it really looked like it was going to come in bright white. It was just the contrast though. The finished product, like others have said, will have natural dark hairs and other highlights. It was a scary prospect to think I was going to have just bright white hair. The actual result is much softer. I had dark eyebrows, but they're also not white, not dark. They look natural.

 

[Snowdrop13]

How about a really radical short, choppy haircut with no parting, then just letting it grow out?

 

[dk168]

I used to toy with semi-permanent hair colour in my mid 30s, and had to go to my usual salon for cut and colouring every 4 weeks.

I had a bob with a side parting at the time.

Being oriental and started to go grey when I was 14, I had quite a bit of white hair by the time I was in my 30s. The semi-permanent colouring brought some colours back to my hair without completely covering the greys which was nice as it did not look too solid and harsh to me.

I never liked the smell of chemicals though.

One day, close to my next appointment, I looked in the mirror and could see new growth of grey hair coming through at the parting. I did not like the look, so I decided not to have colours in my hair there and then.

Being semi-permanent colouring, it faded over time, and with my fast-growing hair, it did not take long for the colour to fade or being cut off. Therefore, the growing out process was not too dire for me.

Never looked back since then, and I am happy to go grey naturally.

People had asked where I had my colouring done as they did not believe my white hair is natural.

Some friends had commented I looked like a badger at the back and I thought that was funny to this day.

DK

 

[Ally T]

I couldn't do it at 45 either and I think my husband isn't ready for it even now.

What bothers me the most now isn't even the routine of coloring it. I've been doing it so often for so long that applying the dye from start to finish takes me only 20 minutes. What I hate is that even after a week and a half a slight part in my hair will look like a bald spot. The illusion of bald is far worse than looking older with gray!

My hair is very dark, well, it was before the grey hit, and I know exactly what you mean. My grey grows in so fast that if the wind catches my hair, it looks thin at the roots. I already struggle with thinning hair & have battled to keep my curls for a good 10 years now, so having the grey accentuates the scalp areas, but I have learned to embrace them, as at least there IS hair there! Plus when I colour it my hair looks much fuller. Have you tried those brush in root powders? I use one & it's great. It allows me to colour every 6-7 weeks rather than every 4, by disguising the grey. I just brush it through any obvious areas, like part line & temples.

 

[missy]

My hair is not greying in an attractive way but I wear it back or in a pony tail so that helps disguise it somewhat. But I think I am done coloring though I did highlights to try blending the grey. It did not work.

IDK if grey is the new blonde but I say and have always said you do you and what works for you is what is right (for you).

This is my dream hair color. If I had the energy for the upkeep and if my hair was healthy enough this is swoon worthy hair (IMO).

 

[MarionC]

I love not having to color my hair anymore. About ten years ago I went in for highlights and my hairdresser advised I go natural.
I love grey hair, it’s so pretty.
But mine was blonde to start, so the transition was not drastic.

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

My mil used to colour for 35 years and tried to mimick her original very dark colour. It was a problem because at some point it didn't look natural anymore. She got stuck, because her hair was damaged, so taking the colour out wasn't an option, colouring the roots lighter didn't work either. I took her to my excellent colourist and she had a lot if highlights put in ( REALLY a lot and everywhere). She only had to do it twice (cost an arm and a leg and took hours) and transitioned smoothly to her natural salt and pepper. It barely noticeable and she was happy to ditch the chemicals

 

[Austina]

I’ve been colouring my hair for over 40 years, and because it’s thick and strong, the colour hasn’t caused any damage at all.

I have a Pepe Le Pew skunk stripe, rather than all over grey problem. Being dark, I have to touch up my parting at 3 weeks, and have my roots done every 5 weeks. If I could go grey overnight, I might consider it, but there’s absolutely no way I could live with growing my hair out, even though it grows quickly. I also don’t think grey hair would suit my colouring.

I read that Sharon Osborne spent 8 hours at the salon having the colour stripped from her hair before going with the grey now.

I‘m not sure what I’ll do if/when I get greyer, I honestly don’t see myself ever being grey all over.

 

[dk168]

My hair from the back.



It is still quite dark in the front, and I wish it would go completely grey faster!

DK

 

[missy]

My hair from the back.



It is still quite dark in the front, and I wish it would go completely grey faster!

DK

Your hair looks great! Love it! You have the best of both worlds. It's so lovely and white in the back and still dark in the front. Just lovely.

I’ve been colouring my hair for over 40 years, and because it’s thick and strong, the colour hasn’t caused any damage at all.

I have a Pepe Le Pew skunk stripe, rather than all over grey problem. Being dark, I have to touch up my parting at 3 weeks, and have my roots done every 5 weeks. If I could go grey overnight, I might consider it, but there’s absolutely no way I could live with growing my hair out, even though it grows quickly. I also don’t think grey hair would suit my colouring.

I read that Sharon Osborne spent 8 hours at the salon having the colour stripped from her hair before going with the grey now.

I‘m not sure what I’ll do if/when I get greyer, I honestly don’t see myself ever being grey all over.

Your hair is beautiful @Austina and honestly it works for you. You are very fortunate that you have such healthy hair and it can take the dye. Keep doing what makes you feel beautiful because ultimately you are the only one you have to please. But from an objective viewpoint your hair is beautiful.

 

[missy]

I love not having to color my hair anymore. About ten years ago I went in for highlights and my hairdresser advised I go natural.
I love grey hair, it’s so pretty.
But mine was blonde to start, so the transition was not drastic.

I love your hair. So natural and so effortlessly glamorous too.

 

[missy]

I'm back to add more thoughts.
I am obsessed with gray. I have always loved white/gray hair. Always. From when I was in my late teens and was telling my hairdresser please make me a platinum blonde. To which he replied (and he is still my hairdresser to this day if you can believe it 35 years and counting!) no way. He always told me (and had to repeat himself every time I saw him because I kept asking the same question hoping the answer would change haha) that my hair cannot physically handle the procedures necessary for that dramatic color change.

To that end I have played a bit with going gray as I have gotten older. I wish I could go gray naturally but at this rate it will always be a mess of brunette with gray mixed in for good measure but never quite enough to look finished if you kwim. According to Tuey (my hairdresser) I will never be as gray as I want to be. And am envious of the lovely ladies who can change their hair color however they like or even better yet who have gone naturally white/gray. Beautiful color white gray.

These are all different wigs.






This one is not white gray but grayish/blonde.



And my hair the way it looks now. Brown sprinkled with gray.



To be clear I do not care for my hair but I take the path of least resistance mainly because my hair is weak and thin. And I would rather have my own hair if I can keep it despite the color.


@Maria D I look forward to seeing what you decide to do.

 

[missy]

Speaking of hair- my niece just went purple.

LOL that expression.



Times have changed. When I was her age no way would my mom and dad let me color it!

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

I rarely color my hair and when I do it's just a gloss. I'm 34 and a very good chunk of it is grey