Help me w/ my gray hair - color?

[kbpaulie]

I'm a no frills girl - no make-up, haircut about every 6 months, and hair regularly pulled back. Plain Jane!

 

But at 41 I'm noticing SO MUCH GREY :drool: (OK, probably about 5-10%, but it feels liks SO MUCH GREY!) Is there an EASY to do solution??? Maybe do it yourself hair color? (My hair is mostly dark brown) If I do hair color how do I even do it? Like is it wash and soak or brush onto each hair and hope I don't miss any and look like a skunk? How often do I need to do this?

[OrganicAnn]

You buy a box of hair color that looks/sounds as close to your natural color as possible. Follow the directions in the box. The instructions will explain all. Don't buy a cheap brand.

[Parrothead]

Coloring at home is easy. I have to do do it every 6-7 weeks now as I'm prematurely gray. I'm only 46 but have a headful of white hair if I don't color.

 

Just follow the instructions in the box. Consider using a non permanent color the first time for practice. The kind that washes out in 14 washes.

[Skadi]

I started going gray at 22. Coloring at home is pretty easy, but be warned: you will become a slave to the dye if you go this route. If you go too long without coloring, it will look even worse as it starts to grow in at the crown.

 

I colored for years with an almost religious zeal. Then my DH pointed out that I was sabotaging myself in that I wasn't allowing myself to gracefully age. He named several women we know with varying degrees of gray who I look up to and whom I think are beautiful. He asked me if I'd stop coloring for at least six months and just try to embrace it.

 

Honestly, not coloring my hair has been so freeing. It saves money and time. I don't secretly feel like a fraud when someone compliments me on my hair...I know it's MY natural hair and I can take full credit it now!

[justamouse]

I waffle.

 

Some days I hate the grey. At 41, I have a LOT. And I know I look so much younger without it.

 

But I really, really hate dying it and keeping it up and I cannot stand white roots.

 

So I leave it.

[Laura Corin]

I decided to go with a good hair cut and embrace the grey. I haven't regretted it. I accessorise with silver to tone with it.

 

Laura

[milovany]

IF you do a box, Natural Instincts is the way to go. I used this for about a year, and it's great for gray coverage (and easy to use). Then I decided it wasn't worth the time and money, so I'm now in the camp of embracing the gray.

[Melissa in Australia]

I am embracing the grey.

It has a few upsides

1. It is meant to be a sign of wisdom

2. it is thick, so my very fine hair is starting to look a little thicker

[GailV]

I use a demi permanent (last longer than a semi permanent). That way I can be lazy and not get around to "touch ups" for several weeks -- it will sort of fade off and not have that skunk-stripe look. Full disclosure -- I have it professionally done. It is the only thing fancy I do, since I don't blow dry or otherwise mess with my hair, nor wear much makeup other than mascara. I think if I let it go grey I'd actually have to pay attention to some of that other stuff and care about my skin tone/use foundation and/or other makeup, etc., which I don't feel like messing with.

 

The guy who does it said he prefers to use 2 colors mixed, since that gives a more natural coverage. It is hard to actually cover the grey, since the structure of the hair changes and the way it accepts and holds color changes along with that (he gave me quite a long explanation about that when I asked him, most of which I've forgotten).

 

Also, there is an ingredient in many hair dyes in the U.S. that people have terrible reactions to ... gah, I can't remember THAT either, but I thought we discussed it here before since someone on the board had such an awful reaction. It's banned in some other countries. Anyone else have a clue what I'm talking about?

[MercyA]

I have medium brown hair with some gold highlights. If I dye my hair with a slightly lighter shade than my natural color, will it cover the gray without changing the color of the rest of my hair?

 

(Hope you don't mind me chiming in here with my own question, OP!)

[Swimtaxi234]

Thanks to this HIVE thread ... http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/427887-hair-color-tip-for-older-moms/ ... I went to Sally's and bought the Ion Creme. I love how long the color last and it is easy to use.

 

** Sally's has a military discount and it was either free or discounted to get a Sally's card for future discounts.

[PrairieSong]

I am 51 and have a noticeable number of grays in front and on top. I haven't colored since September so I could see what my real hair looks like. I may get a few highlights at some point. That is an option for you, to get highlights or some lighter colors woven in to blend the gray in a bit. I like gray hair, for the most part.

[Harriet Vane]

My hair is completely white, and I am complimented on it all the time. Strangers literally stop me in the street or the grocery store to compliment my hair. I also like the white better because it is thicker than my former mousy brown. I say embrace the gray and work with it, not against it.

[texasmama]

I am 45 and am 50% gray. I have longish, curly, difficult to color hair. I tried to color it myself at home and damaged it quite a bit so I now get it done professionally. If your hair is curly, dry or long, you may need professional help like me. However, many people successfully color their own hair at home. Get a hair color specifically to cover gray. Other dyes will not do a good job. I do dye my roots at home using a root dye solution from Clairol to stretch the time between professional dyes because I have so much gray hair. I have found that I have to leave the solution on for 10 minutes longer than the package says or it will not cover the gray. Be prepared to experiment with brands/colors to find one that works for you.

[Scarlett]

I have very dark hair....many people call it black, but at the least it is dark brown. So when the grey comes in it is very noticeable. I get it colored professionally about ever 2 months and do it myself in between at least once. It is hard to keep up but I am only 47 and my dh is younger than me and I can't be looking old! Ha. Not kidding.

[magnificent_baby]

 I would call around to price professional color or highlights/lowlights. They can be very reasonable when it's only a partial highlight on the front/sides (versus your entire head). Salons also sell something in a tube that resembles mascara to brush on new growth; that may be worth looking into.

[somo_chickenlady]

I like using the do it yourself temporary hair dye. It lasts for about 28 washes (but I think it lasts longer than generally), and it wears off evenly so you don't get roots, and if I don't like the color I'm not stuck with it until my hair grows out. I use HerbaShine, which is really easy to apply, and it makes my hair really shiny and soft. I use a color similar to my natural color, so when it wears off it isn't as noticeable. I just turned 35, and I have the Poltergeist mom's stripe as well as some overall random greys, and it takes care of it really well.

[TammyinTN]

I started getting large amounts of grey 2 years ago. I have my hair colored in the salon every 3 months and have it trimmed and styled every 4 weeks.

[Guest]

Chemically dependent, here. I have a partial highlight done professionally and then a toner applied. This makes the greys look like reddish blonde highlights. I used to use Natural Instincts (semi-permanent) at home. This was acceptable, but not perfect. The coverage would only last a couple of weeks and then greys would start showing up again.Also, my hair is very thick and somewhat long, so it takes a lot of dye to cover my head. Pretty hard to do by myself. I hate that it's expensive to have it done, but I am not willing to give up having my hair look the way I want it to yet.

[KrissiK]

I am 44, dark brown hair, started going grey in my late 20's and started coloring then. I did it at home until about 3 years ago when I started going to the salon. I go every 8 weeks or so. It's the best $60 I ever spent. Seriously. It is a pain to color your own hair, it's messy. I don't go to an upscale salon, just the neighborhood beauty shop, but I'm happy with the results and it's an hour away from the kids and I can chat with my hairdresser and she does all the work.

[bolt.]

I'm thinking about 28-wash home dye for the first time too, so I'll need to do the allergy test. I want to know: does it use up a whole box just to do the skin test? Or do you somehow save the rest of the dye for when/if you actually dye your hair?

[Guest]

You're supposed to save the dye after the patch test. I never did the test though, so I can't say from experience. :leaving:

[KrissiK]

You're supposed to save the dye after the patch test. I never did the test though, so I can't say from experience. :leaving:

I never did those allergy tests, either. Oops!

[kbpaulie]

OK, so if I tried the 28 day sort of thing, give me some more brand ideas, please. It sounds like I might like the idea of it washing out instead of growing out. And again, can someone tell me, (I know it's on the box, but sitting at home I'm just curious) do you put it in like shampoo and wait or you stand in front of the mirror and brush it in or something.

 

Also, while we're on the topic, what if I wanted to dye the mohawk on my white dog a cool pink, blue or green color? Tips on that one???? :) (And I'm serious! :) - OK, wouldn't that be sad if I color my dog's hair, but not my own?

 

Signed-

CLUELESS

[kbpaulie]

Oh, yeah, forgot to add the funny??? story.... Last time I got my hair cut (was it really THAT long ago?) the salon of 1 had hired this very young guy. While my stylist was cutting my hair they were commenting on some positive aspects of my haircut, it suited me well, etc. when the young guy chimes in "And the haircut hides your gray hairs well". Oh, it was a dagger. My stylist suggested to him that he may want to refrain from such comments. I sort of laughed it off at the time, but as I now have more (does homechooling create more gray?) it's sad. :(

[texasmama]

Google Koolaid hair dyeing for your dog. ;)