That's it, I'm done. I'm going grey.

[justamouse]

It's a battle every day let me tell you. I go into a store and those bottles are only 7 bucks. But I've had it. I am so sick and tired of how great my Dh looks with silver temples and how every other woman I see my age with her hair colored. And I'm NOT old, 39.9. Hardly a wrinkle thanks to great genetics. But I have a ton of grey at the corners of my forehead.

 

But I want to be myself. I want to age gracefully. I want to teach my daughters that it's ok to be grey.

 

And then I go to he mall (which is almost never) and I realize I am the MOST unglamourous person there, even though I cleaned up nice. :D And I felt so OLD because even the 60 yo women had their hair dyed.

 

This sucks.

 

But I'm sticking to my guns, fercryinoutloud.

 

Have any of you gone grey gracefully? How did you do it?

[starwarsmomma]

I'm wiht ya-- will be 39 in a few weeks. Refuse to color my hair. I am what I am. Hubby would like me to color it, but it's not his head. He also wants me to wear heels too, and that's not gonna happen either! (snicker, snort!)

[Snickerdoodle]

Refuse to color my hair. I am what I am.

 

:iagree:

[Amy in NH]

Refuse to color my hair. I am what I am.

 

:iagree: I'll be 40 this year. I've never colored my hair, and I never will. DH is fine with it. He married me, not some perpetually-young plastic-doll. He's aging too.

[Mrs Mungo]

My sisters and I don't color our hair. Our mom complains about it because she does. :lol:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I'm reading this book, and seriously considering going gray myself!

 

Good for you!

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

I just give myself highlights most of the time, and the gray sort of gets hidden into them. :lol:

[mrsrevmeg]

I have a grey streak in the front of my head. I have no intentions of coloring it. I signed up for (and received) a free bottle of John Frieda hair color. I ended up giving it to my mom. I have decided that I have earned every grey hair and every wrinkle on my forehead. Three kids, a minister husband, and a youth group will do that to you. :D

 

Proverbs 16:31 Gray hair is a crown of glory;

it is gained in a righteous life.

Edited July 14, 2011 by mrsrevmeg

[milovany]

I made that decision a couple of years ago, too, mouse (I'm 44 and have been graying for about 10 years). I colored for a couple of years, but not very faithfully so it was back-and-forth which kinda defeats the purpose, right? I just decided I don't have time (or even desire, really) to keep up with it. I am what I am.

 

At least in the hair department. I still wear mineral makeup and mascara. I'm not that radical .... yet. :lol:

[elegantlion]

I'm going grey, but I'm not sure how gracefully. I still pluck if they hang out too far. My dh is almost totally grey and he told supports my endeavor to embrace the true me.

 

My greys quit taking the dye anyway. I don't mind the silvery so much as the fading color of what is still there.

[Kebo]

I'm with you! I quit several years ago (never liked coloring anyway). I may not look as young, but I look more like myself and that counts for a lot. My hair is healthier, and I've saved a great deal of money and time.

[ma23peas]

I'm there! My 95 year old grandmother still gets her hair dyed every 2 weeks!!! She looks beautiful but I often wonder what she would look like with white hair! :)

 

My sister went grey very early (late 20's) so she will probably never see her true color...my mom also colors her hair. My hair has solid white streaks of 'discolor' in my hair which is as dark brown as you can get so it shows up...but I don't mind it! I think it's just fine to have the white come in and get a cool hair cut...(I only get my hair cut 2x a year)...so now, that you've decided to give it up...let's see what you can get! :)

 

At home box (every 6 weeks) $10 x 9 weeks $90...I'll blow it on flowers for my garden/containers!

 

Salon (every 6 weeks) $80-$100 x 9 $700-$900....I'll pack it onto vacation expenses for a cruise! :)

 

Color does not mean that much to me! :)

[desertmum]

I've had white (I don't mean silver gray, I mean snow white) hairs since I was 6 yo. I've died my hair so much I have lost tons of hair (black and white both) and the doc has told me not to dye my hair anymore. However dh doesn't want me to go grey -although he has! I have done a Britney and growing my hair from scratch but this time I can't hold the grey back. Either I grow my own grey hair or I go bald :lol:

[Hoggirl]

It's not gray! It's "Arctic Blonde!" :D:lol:

 

I quit coloring my hair years ago, and I am so glad I did. I save both money and time. I have dark hair, and I felt like I was looking like Morticia Addams! I didn't want to go red or blonde, so I just stopped doing it.

[BeckyFL]

I have never colored mine. It's gradually changing, but I really don't mind it at all. I had a friend suggest that I do something, but I just don't want to. Another friend starting going to the salon to color hers ($$) and I think it looks awful. When it grows out a little she has gray temples and reddish toned color on hair that used to be a very dark brown. Yuck!

[LaxMom]

My mother's been trying to dye my hair since I was in my early 30s. I flat out refuse. At 40, I'm gray at the temples & have gray mixed in randomly throughout.

 

I'm 40. I don't pretend to be 20, or perpetually "29". I refuse to send that message to my children. I also have a flop of extra skin around my middle from having regular sized twins (and all the extra stuff) stuffed into a 5'0" frame. Think extreme weight loss after pictures. That bothers me. But I cannot reconcile sending the message that our bodies have to be perfect to my children, either.

 

Natural aging? No brainer.

[justamouse]

:iagree: I yam whats I yam. :tongue_smilie:

[Fairlight]

I stopped coloring my hair a couple of years ago. It's very freeing AND I sometimes get senior citizen's discounts, LOL!

[twoforjoy]

I'm not there yet, but I really like how gray hair looks, and have no intention of coloring my hair when I start to go gray.

[HSMom2One]

I started to gray early when I was your age too, and so I colored my hair. It was fun for awhile, but then it was such a hassle that I stopped. Now all of my hair is natural and I'm amazed at how much gray I actually have. (I'm in my 50's now, so really I shouldn't be though...) Anyway, I now have a really cool streak at the top of my head that I swear I used to pay big bucks for in the beauty shop!! I love my streak. :) If I'd kept coloring my hair I would have missed out and wouldn't have even known it was there!

 

Going natural is the best. I don't care what the ladies at the mall do or what they look like. If they knew me personally, I bet there would be parts of my life that they'd be envious about.

 

Blessings,

Lucinda

[eternalknot]

I'm Asian and have always had coarse hair, but it's been straight and black; now it's getting frizzy and white. I'm having a total love/hate with it. I think I'll like the end result if it's a wavy, white thing; I'm not digging the half-this, half-that growing out process, though. Still. I leave it be.

 

I'm committed to growing it out (for now LOL). My hair has always been pretty long, and I like to keep it virgin as a measure of self-discipline. I'm not sure why, but I thought I'd start graying at the temples and it'd be obvious to everyone that I was intentionally growing out my grays. Well, didn't quite work out that way. I'm graying strand by random strand, and it just looks like I'm unaware or in denial about the grays LOL. Oh well, it is what it is.

 

I have people refer me to their salons, and a colleague even exclaimed: "Oh, honey! Let me help you, I've got the perfect color for .... that." I'm used to doing my own thing, though, so I laugh it off and share that I'm letting nature take it's course. My choice of clothing and make-up can be pretty eccentric anyhow, so few people are surprised to hear that. I've never been trying to look like the mall moms, but one still wants to feel attractive - I totally feel your pain!

[SonshineLearner]

I use henna; my daughter feels better not having a grey haired mom. I understand! My mom never had grey... she has other issues now... but no grey hair at 63:) (Oh, and not dyed, either)

[AnthemLights]

I have a grey streak in the front of my head. I have no intentions of coloring it. I signed up for (and received) a free bottle of John Frieda hair color. I ended up giving it to my mom. I have decided that I have earned every grey hair and every wrinkle on my forehead. Three kids, a minister husband, and a youth group will do that to you. :D

 

Proverbs 16:31 Gray hair is a crown of glory;

it is gained in a righteous life.

 

I love that Bible verse. ;)

 

And I agree with the bolded. Although, I have always thought gray was beautiful, so I don't think I will struggle with it. I am 36...a few gray hairs...blond hair...they are not very obvious and I kind of like them. :D

[Aggie]

I'm not there yet, but I really like how gray hair looks, and have no intention of coloring my hair when I start to go gray.

 

Me, too! If I were to color my hair, I'd go gray.:001_smile:

 

My mother's been trying to dye my hair since I was in my early 30s. I flat out refuse. At 40, I'm gray at the temples & have gray mixed in randomly throughout.

 

I'm 40. I don't pretend to be 20, or perpetually "29". I refuse to send that message to my children. I also have a flop of extra skin around my middle from having regular sized twins (and all the extra stuff) stuffed into a 5'0" frame. Think extreme weight loss after pictures. That bothers me. But I cannot reconcile sending the message that our bodies have to be perfect to my children, either.

 

Natural aging? No brainer.

 

 

:iagree:

 

It is sad, imo, that our society believes gray = old = bad.

[Ellie]

I'm going to hit the big 6-0 next week.

 

:blink: :ack2: :svengo:

 

I don't know how on earth that happened.

 

I only have a few strands of grey, in the front where my mother, my grandmother and I all had darker-color strips (hard to explain. Sorry. One of my dds also has it, the other does not.), not anywhere else. I think it looks kind of kewl. :D

 

My cousin, who is a year older than I, was completely grey by the time she was 50. Actually, almost white. She never colored her hair. She figured it was how she was, and she was happy with herself.

 

Personally, I think people should leave their hair the color God gave them. My hair-stylist dd wouldn't agree of course, lol, but there it is. :001_smile:

[abbeyej]

I started going gray at 21. I'm gonna keep coloring for a while. ;) *But* I think some women look just beautiful with gray hair. Unfortunately with my wild curls, I just end up looking like a hag from a medieval story... ;)

[abrightmom]

I am going gray/grey...no color here. I am 39 this year. DH does not want me to color and I don't either. Goodness gracious.... My prayer is that in this culture I will age gracefully and exemplify godly, gracious womanhood! Both of my moms (mine and DH's) color and I wish they wouldn't! Oh well. :001_smile: I do understand the struggle.

[Mrs Mungo]

I started going gray at 21. I'm gonna keep coloring for a while. ;) *But* I think some women look just beautiful with gray hair. Unfortunately with my wild curls, I just end up looking like a hag from a medieval story... ;)

 

:lol: We'll see what happens when my hair starts getting *more* gray. Right now it is just random strands. My hair is so curly that people don't really notice them. I had a neighbor who was always after me to straighten my hair because she wanted to see what it looked like. Finally, I straightened it and she said "wow, look at all your gray hair! You can't see the gray when it's curly." Yeah, that's the last time I straightened my hair. :tongue_smilie:

[Danestress]

It has been really hard. My natural hair is quite dark, and I think that makes it even harder. The whole "low lights to blend it" thing just simply didn't look great, and there was no real "graceful" to my greying.

 

At this point, I have a long bob - maybe an inch above my shoulders. I have about three inches of grey, and the rest is the remnants of previous coloring efforts. If I wear it down, it looks pretty bad, but I have started pulling it back off my face in clips or barrettes, and that looks ok - when you look at me, you just see a woman with grey hair because the "two toned" stuff is more hidden now when I pull it back.

 

I do like being grey. I joke that I wanted to look the way I feel:) I wanted people to expect less of me!

 

People are nicer to you when you look older. They think it's so awesome if you carry your own groceries out. I go to yoga and they are like, "Hey, just do what you can, it's so great you are here to try." lol.

[Britomart]

I'm only thirty and starting to go grey - but I expected it because I watched my dad (who has dark hair like me) go grey in his thirties too.

 

I like it. I'm hoping for streak (and it seems one is starting - very Rogue!).

 

And . . . this is the worst pet peeve in the world to have in the U.S. . . . I hate dyed hair. I think it looks silly. Blonde + wrinkles just seems ridiculous to me. Or red, or brunette, or perfect black. I don't even liked dyed hair on young women, except for the fun colors like neon pink or blue. It's just fake and it bugs.

 

No way I'm doing it myself.

 

(Yes, I know, terrible thing to say when most women in the States dye their hair. But there you go, de gustibus non est disputandum.)

[happygrrl]

I am 40 and no-color!

 

I used to color my hair all the time; what a hassle and expense! Not to mention as my skin gets older, I need that softer color to surround my face. I actually look younger with the gray than I do with the dark color.

 

You might not want to take my route to going gray: :D

I first cut off all my hair and sent it to Locks of Love. I then went to a salon and got a very modern short short cut, and dyed it bleach blonde (think Gwen Stefani- hey! when am I ever gonna do this again?). As it grew out with darker roots it looked great! I kept it short until all the blonde was gone, then grew it out (it is now back to 'normal' which is about 6" below mu shoulders.)

 

My kids hated it, my husband graciously tolerated it, but I totally enjoyed my last fling with color! I am totally satisfied to never do it again.

That's my story!

[Kalypso]

I'm 43 and I am starting to get more grays all the time. I haven't ever colored it. I always think that I will when I get more, but I don't know. Every time I think of the hassle and the expense I think gray is not so bad. My dh would prefer that I don't color it.

[G5052]

I colored for awhile after turning 40, then I let the gray come in, and then I went back to coloring and probably will continue to do so. An hour of my time and $8 every six weeks or so is worth it for me.

 

I was fine with here-and-there gray, but when it came in unevenly and very wirey, I went back to coloring. It makes the texture even and my short hairstyle works better with colored hair. My aunt (mid-70's) has very similar hair and colors for the same reason. Going gray just didn't work for what she wanted her hair to do.

[Daisy]

I'm 37 and have plenty of gray. I don't care. I've never colored. My mom has never colored her hair either & she is beautiful.

 

I'm probably too granola for most folks though. I don't wear make-up either. :lol:

[heartosunshine]

I started coloring my hair at 30 when I started going gray. Now, at 42, I've almost got the last bit of highlights grown out & I'll be completely natural!

 

When I first said I was going to stop coloring my hair everyone told me not to. "Oh, you'll look old!" I just wanted to see what it would look like. First, I let the color grow out as long as I could stand it, then I went & got a really short haircut & a few highlights. After that, I've just been keeping up with the short haircut, the gray grew in & sort of blended with the hightlights. It's a pain in the neck to grow out color but this seemed to work pretty well for me. My hair is naturally all different colors (brownish, blondish, reddish) & the gray is almost white, so it really does look like highlights. Most people haven't even noticed the transition and I've saved a lot of $$ and time!

[learningmama]

I'm 33 and my temples have been going white since 30, with other misc. hairs turning white as well. It's not very bad, but if I pull my hair back in ponytail, etc. I'm careful to fix the sides so it's not too bad. I have thick, long brown hair and I plan to always go natural. I'm a cery simple person, but the early greying does bother me a bit. It's genetic, my dad had a full white head by his early 40's! People thought he was an "old man". My mom on the other hand is almost 60 and has retained way over 1/2 of her brown hair.

Coloring is nice, but it drives me nuts when those in their 20's constantly change colors. Enjoy your natural color while you can! Dh says if I'm 40 and look like my dad did, we may need to do something about it. ;) Hopefully it won't be too bad then. It's just part of life. I wish more women could except it, but vanity of vanities all is vanity.

[tex-mex]

I went grey years ago due to cutting out expensive things that did not fit our no credit card lifestyle. I also skipped on getting haircuts and let my hair grow long -- once a year, I donate the long ponytail to Locks of Love.

 

Now the grey roots are streaks at the top of my hair. Haven't gone down beyond the top of my ears, thankfully. Sure am tempted to color. But really hate the thought of coloring every 4-6 weeks and root touch-ups are just as pricey. I'm cheap. And embrace my inner old lady. ;)

[Haiku]

 

But I want to be myself. I want to age gracefully. I want to teach my daughters that it's ok to be grey.

 

 

I feel guilty dyeing my hair because I want to teach my daughters the same thing.

 

But ...

 

I dye my hair purple and black and blue and stuff like that ... so ... I'd be doing it even if I weren't going gray.

 

Tara

[Cindy in C-ville]

I feel guilty dyeing my hair because I want to teach my daughters the same thing.

 

But ...

 

I dye my hair purple and black and blue and stuff like that ... so ... I'd be doing it even if I weren't going gray.

 

Tara

 

Love it!

[Caitilin]

Tara, I love the noms you have given your dc! One of my favorite books.:D

[FO4UR]

I am only 32 and I have some serious gray streaks at my temples. It's not so noticeable when my hair is down, but it's WAY noticeable when I pull it back.

 

I too have good genetics/very nice skin...well, if you don't count the acne!!!:tongue_smilie: I look like a chunky teenager with gray hair.:lol: (Being *almost* 5ft tall makes me look younger than I really am as well...)

 

I've seen some very beautiful women with long (shoulder length) gray hair. I hope mine turns a shiny gray. I don't like the looks of dyed hair...I can do some light highlights (mine naturally "highlights" anyway), but I haven't had the money for it since I started going gray...maybe that's WHY I'm going gray....hmmm...

[Wildiris]

I recently cut my long hair short and in doing this I also cut off what remained of my original hair color. My son keeps asking me when I'm going to color my hair, and my mother-in-law who swore she would never color her hair does in fact color her hair. What is a woman to do?

 

Going Grey:

 

Some women look remarkably beautiful with grey hair. Some men find "mature" women with grey hair sexy--at least my significant other thinks so. I think I'd rather pay for an excellent hair cut and quality makeup and take in the results before I venture into being chained to the beauty parlor every few weeks for a dye job.

 

An unscientific connection: My mother is a breast cancer survivor and I tell myself her breast cancer had something to do with her weekly devotions to the beauty parlor and hair dye. I still do not know what my mother's true hair color was or is now.

 

To Tame the Grey:

The beautician sold me Moroccan Oil (a more natural alternative). I thought I'd been had, but this stuff keeps those unruly greys under control. This stuff is great for curly hair or straight hair.

 

 

[butterflymommy]

I used to say I would go gray naturally... assuming I wouldn't get gray hair till I was 50! I started get small amounts of gray in my 20s and by mid 30s it was bad enough to affect how I look.

 

I tried permanent dye and hated it so much I was ready to just accept being gray, then I started experimenting with temporary dyes like herbashine (which isn't, technically, a dye I don't think). Let me tell you, I am so hooked on this stuff I would use it even if I weren't gray! It leaves my hair so silky, shiny, with interesting, soft highlights. And because it's not permanent, if I hate it (which I never have) no big deal, I just wash my hair a little extra for the next month and it's gone.

 

I usually wait until there's a sale and buy a few bottles at once. My daughters also try different shades. It smells nice and you only leave it on the hair for about 10 minutes.

[butterflymommy]

I was fine with here-and-there gray, but when it came in unevenly and very wirey,

 

This is my biggest problem with the grays I get-- they grow in a completely different texture and thickness from the rest of my hair. It sticks straight up like little alien antennae (the rest of my hair is straight and smooth). The gray hairs grow very slowly too, making them even more noticeable. I've often wished herbashine sold a "clear" color that would just smooth those suckers down!

[LibraryLover]

I just give myself highlights most of the time, and the gray sort of gets hidden into them. :lol:

 

 

That's what I do. Except I don't do it myself. lol That would be scary. Amazing what a few flats of foil will do. I am lght- haired and eyed, so it works. I don't have much grey yet. I'm fine with blending it in. :tongue_smilie: I'll do that for a while longer. Of course I am also starting to wear heels when I go out with dh because he likes it. I might not be a good person to ask re these things. lol

 

I won't color my hair because I am not good at maintianing anything like that.

[OLG]

I do like being grey. I joke that I wanted to look the way I feel:) I wanted people to expect less of me!

 

People are nicer to you when you look older. They think it's so awesome if you carry your own groceries out. I go to yoga and they are like, "Hey, just do what you can, it's so great you are here to try." lol.

 

 

:lol::lol::lol:

 

I never thought of that angle but I like it!!!

[cassiemc]

I've had some white hair since I had a traumatic birth with my dd. I was 23. I'm 34 now. I have never colored my hair. I am who I am. My DH loves me and find me attractive, what more do I need? I don't care what anyone else thinks about my hair :)

[laundrycrisis]

I started going gray at 11 and my natural color has been salt and pepper since I was about 25. And I am allergic, very allergic, to chemical hair color. So I henna. Which is not recommended for gray. My grays turn some odd colors - green, pink, orange...oh well - I'll take technicolor over gray !!! I will stop coloring it and give up and age gracefully....when I am 100 !!!!!

 

I think if I had started with the gray at a more normal age then I would not be so unwilling to go with it.

 

I don't do it for anyone else and I don't care what they think. I do it for me. I would rather see any color on my head other than gray.

 

I am considering burgundy for my next henna order......

 

BTW I also hate the natural color of my hair that is still brown. It is a dull dark mud color. It looks terrible with gray mixed in. There is nothing about my natural hair color that is nice looking at all.

Edited July 14, 2011 by laundrycrisis

[Cindy in C-ville]

That's what I do. Except I don't do it myself. lol That would be scary. Amazing what a few flats of foil will do. I am lght- haired and eyed, so it works. I don't have much grey yet. I'm fine with blending it in. :tongue_smilie: I'll do that for a while longer. Of course I am also starting to wear heels when I go out with dh because he likes it. I might not be a good person to ask re these things. lol

 

I won't color my hair because I am not good at maintianing anything like that.

 

This is me too!

[Mynyel]

I am not gray (yet) but I can tell you when I do I probably will not dye it. The only reason being is it is expensive. I have to use 4-5 boxes of store bought hair dye on my head and that equals out to at least $40 in dye.

 

So I am unsure :001_smile: I would like to think I can go gray gracefully though.