What do you do to disguise the grey?

Skymist

My jet-black hair started going grey at 18, and by twenty I was on the hair-dyeing treadmill!!!

I hated the white roots growing through, which I think look a lot worse than dark roots on blond hair....so about 4 years ago, after nigh on 38 years of dyeing, I took the plunge and let my shoulder length hair grow out a couple of inches and hacked the whole lot off!!!

Because I still have swathes of black, I can't go blondish...which I think would look a bit silly with my black lashes and eyebrows!!... or anything else.

It is now back to a long layered style...and I'm SOOOO glad that I abandoned the dye!!! I'm now completely used to it, even if it makes me look oldish...well I am 62!!.. and I wish I'd made the decision years ago as my hair is in much better condition now than it was with all those years of immersing it in chemicals!!

S

Ms_Chocaholic

As a temporary measure between dyeings, if I notice a few grey hairs coming thru I put eyeshadow on them with a sponge; it covers them enough to disguise them until you wash your hair again.

pineapple

I'm 61 and I'll be dying mine for a while yet! Oddly I found that semi permanent lasts as long as permanent on me. I think you have to be careful with colours. Some shades of red can look very aging on an older woman. As can black. Lighter is usually better.
Or just put subtle colours on streaks throughout the hair to give it a lift.
My main concern with hair dye is possible carcinogenic effects. At least the latter avoids putting it on the scalp.

Talking of which is it my imagination or is Alfie's hair in Eastenders suddenly looking suspiciously dark?

the_devil_made_me_do_it

Oh I'm far from 60 years old lol. However, my mum is & I watch her dying her hair almost every week :eek:

The problem I feel is the sprinklings grey that I have for some reason make me feel dowdy. Also, they are not isolated to one area, there's numerous sprinklings.

ellies_angel

pineapple wrote: »

I'm 61 and I'll be dying mine for a while yet! Oddly I found that semi permanent lasts as long as permanent on me. I think you have to be careful with colours. Some shades of red can look very aging on an older woman. As can black. Lighter is usually better.

As we age it's not just the pigment in our hair we lose but the pigment in our skin which is why it is more flattering as we get older if we are going to colour our hair to go lighter rather than what was our natural colour or darker

McKneff

the_devil_made_me_do_it wrote: »

If I grew the dye out I wouldn't be fully grey, just got a lot of "sprinklings" of it.

If my roots were completely grey, I would certainly consider going fully grey or even go blondish.

I'm in the mid throes of doing this, i hate this transission period and its the first time I have seen my grey hair proper for donkeys years.

Its longer on the top so still have brown there but short at the sides and bottom and of course these are fully grey.

My hairdresser says just persevere. and if you dont like it when its full grey, just dye it honey blonde so that when its growing out its not so noticeable. I cant wait for either

Grow it out now, and see what its like, it may just look like highlights, its much harder mentally when all the actual roots are fully grey

Mrs_Arcanum

A hairdresser recommended a lighter shade than normal & if dyes have a tendency to go red, stick to ash shades. I was chestnut brown, now I use light ash brown or dark ash blonde (both end up brown but seem to blend in with the grey really well after a couple of washes. Been going grey for 20 years and only 52. Did stop the dyeing for a while but someone referred to me as an old person so back to dyeing for me.

McKneff

Mrs_Arcanum wrote: »

A hairdresser recommended a lighter shade than normal & if dyes have a tendency to go red, stick to ash shades. I was chestnut brown, now I use light ash brown or dark ash blonde (both end up brown but seem to blend in with the grey really well after a couple of washes. Been going grey for 20 years and only 52. Did stop the dyeing for a while but someone referred to me as an old person so back to dyeing for me.

I think thats precisely what I will do to be honest.

The greyer I get, the more I look like me mother.

I sometimes see her face staring back at me in the mirror.

Ash or honey blonde its going to be but I darent at the moment as Im scared it wont cover the grey and brown I am now.
It would probably turn the brown orange and the grey blonde, that would make it even more of a mess:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
So I guess I just have to keep on growing the grey out.

I'm 62, but i dont want to be referred to as a pensioner lol (even though I am)

glowgirl_2

I die my hair (light ash brown) which turns out a mid-dark brown with no red tones and then add the same colour long extensions, my grey is not even and not a lot either so I'm nowhere near letting it grow through, as we are talking about grey could anyone help with this odd situation, I have recently had a lot of changes in my life and removed a lot of stress and worry from myself, I have noticed that my grey is growing back much more slowly and less of it, instead of dying it every 3/4 weeks when I can see the odd ones coming through I can easily get 2 months before anything appears:D has anyone ever had anything like this happen before? I had a lot of stress when I was in my late 20s and my grey got worse then, it improved once things had been dealt with but I'm 43 now and this seems a bit of a drastic change, sorry OP to hijack:) opinions welcome:)

jillymit

Letting it all go grey / white is OK for some. I personally dislike my grey so my vote is for the new John Frieda range.http://www.johnfrieda.co.uk/homecolour/
Precision Foam Colour 4R. I buy it when it's on offer and having saved the empty bottles from my first box and using my electric kitchen scales I'm able to split each box in two (prior to mixing) This still gives me enough foam to cover my hair full and it leaves the hair lovely and shiny.
I still have to dye it every 4 weeks but at least it's quick, easy and relatively cheap.