Going grey - how?

[WitchWay]

I'm 48, very dark hair (dark brown/slightly auburn, not black) some grey all my adult life, permanent dyes for the last 15 years, last 3-4 years allowed a grey streak to grow though my fringe as the front is v v grey (like Cruella says DH), pretty grey behind my ears & just sprinkled through elsewhere but steadily increasing. I'm happy with the dark-with-streak look (& the streak stops the grey roots showing IYSWIM) but at some point will need to go grey all over. How though? Massive roots then a crop? Switch to semi-permanent dye & let it fade out? Gradually change to blonde first (still v dark brows however & DF & DGMa had dark brows till mid-70s - we have the same colouring). Keep dyeing it forever? It's a worry!

Watching with interest. A few years off this maybe...but am not sure if I want to be a slave to retouching roots forever..

Watching with interest.....

I just bit the bullet, had a short bob and stopped the dyeing. Took about 2 1/2 years to grow out. Was painful but happy that I did it now. My hair is very dark brown, or was :)

I don't have the dark brows issue but my approach is to go lighter first - I've had some much lighter highlights put in which make the grey seem less obvious (at least in my head, if not in reality). My plan is to go as light as I dare and then merge seamlessly into grey - dunno if it will work.

I had big roots and then a really short crop to cut it out. I have since grown it to shoulder length.

I'm the same. I lightened my hair with colour b 4 a few weeks ago and now have 2 inch mostly white roots ( although my hair isn't so white at the back). My natural colour was dark brown, I have olive skin and very dark eyes and I've been dyeing it since I was early 20s, now 40. The ends are a sort of pale brown with a hint of copper and the regrowth isn't too noticeable, think I can live with this for a while. My hair is shoulder length and I'm trying to concentrate on the condition of my hair, making it look really healthy, rather than the colour.

I don't want to go short as my hair is curly and will adopt, I fear, an old lady bubble look very readily. Hairdresser stripped back intense built up dark brown abd then applied a lighter mid brown, so the contrast is not so evident. She then gave me Balayage colours through the front and underneath. Now as my grey streak at the front grows in it meets one of the lighter sections. Google it - it can be subtle.

I stripped my hair with colourb4 three times, then bleached the front sections where I could see I was white.
Then I wore my hair up till the worst of the dye affected hair could be cut out. Fortunatly my hair grows very fast, so it only took a year.

I went grey at 39 btw, having been permanently dyeing my hair to cover up since 27. I get lots of compliments on my hair

I'm doing it the drastic way. Shaved my head in January and am letting the natural virgin hair grow through.

3 months in and the colour is great (about 70% white) - i just want my length back now! I'm "only" 33 so can't face the grey + short look for the rest of my days!

Omg eyeliner queen, I soooo want to do that but am not brave enough. I'll probably just go for a shorter cut when my roots are longer.....

I'm 18 months in, going from dark brown to white (at the front, more salt and pepper at the back). I still touch up my hairline around my face with dye but choose a medium brown now. My long hair is nearly always tied in a ponytail at the moment which hides much of the grey. Once the bulk of it is white I'll start wearing it down again and work on growing out the brown streak at the front or bleach it platinum or something. It's shorter at the front so should in theory grow out more quickly.

I am another one who just bit the bullet. It was a while back, our was embarrassing for a time but I just explained myself to those I cared about and brazened it out to the rest! I now apparently look dignified!

For those of you who have gone grey, what kinds of hair styles do you have or are you aiming for? I'm intent on avoiding the "mad cat lady" look but my hair is wavy and shoulder length, I have a long fringe that I can nearly tuck behind my ears. It looks smart straightened or blowdried properly but otherwise not really and it's a bit meh. I think that i might need a "younger" cut, something a bit edgy, to take away from the ageing factor. Or is this trying too hard? What do you think?

Watching with interest. My hair is curly and frizzy and the grey hairs are multiplying daily. Not sure whether to dye it or not and what style to go for, it's below shoulder length at the moment.

I have a longish, blow dry, with flicky up bits.

butterflies Pre-grey my hair was very dark, long and had a blunt fringe. It was gorgeous .

I don't think that style will work with my new lack of colour so I've created a side parting and am aiming for something like this.

I love that hairstyle!

OP I am giving the grey hair another go after quite a few attempts. I have tried the head shave and wearing scarves/hats thing but dyed it again ( it was the style I didn't like rather than the grey as I quickly discovered). Whenever I see women with short groovy grey haircuts - I think they look wonderful - ESP if they have red lipstick and bold jewellery. It doesn't have to look like you've given up.

I have really resistant grey hair which will probably look great when grown out but that process is, let's be honest, grim. Mine isn't all over either so I struggle with that.

There are several ways of doing it. Some people do bleach and have it toned grey. The problem with this is it doesn't stay true for long before it looks brassy. Others opt for highlights they tone ash and gradually have less and less put in so it is a more prolonged but subtle transition. This is expensive and again can be irksome in terms of keeping the brass at bay.

Another way is to buy a touch up pen (such as Roux) and keep doing that until you have enough to pixie. After eight weeks you will have an inch to work with and by 12 weeks -one and a half on average.

Some people opt for a wig and others if they have long hair tie chiffon scarfs around the badger and work a 1950's vibe.

Others just brazen it out. It is harder though if you have naturally dark hair but usually the silver that comes in is more stunning.

There are sites that offer support. One of them is 'going gray guide' on Facebook and they post loads of photos of people transitioning or that have transitioned. There is also 'cafe gray' but that is a wee bit American Christian 'mom' in places so if you can get past that vibe it is a great resource for advice. Some of the women on there have blogs too.

The Highland Fashionista is out there with her grey hair and really works it as does the woman from 'how bourgeois' blog.

I think it really helps if people don't bang on about you being too young to go grey. Nobody in my circle gets it but then none of them went grey at sixteen and has been dyeing their hair every two weeks to keep on top of the roots. I am not yet forty and role models are slim on the ground.

I'm thinking of going grey too, I was going to ask my hairdresser for advice.

Sauvignon be prepared for a lot of teeth sucking and comments about how old you will look.

Hair colour is what they make their money on. Very few are grey friendly.

My hairdresser doesn't colour it, I do can't afford his prices!

Love the highland fashionista's blog Milmingebag, added it to my list of follows. She's written a really good post about the stages of growing out grey with lots of pictures. It's given me a boost to continue. Might do another colour b4 when I get halfway towards having a chop.

Just starting this myself.. again. I got a few inches in last time and chickened out, but I am fed up of colouring my hair and I'm never happy.
Usual scenario.. have it coloured (professionally).. always seems a bit too dark, two weeks later.. perfect..week after that..grey showing!

I have a grey streak at the parting an a few other streaks underneath (I'm 46) and this time I am going to persevere, while it's not grey enough to have a full on badger stripe as I think growing that out would be worse.

Currently a bob with a long side fringe but wondering if a full fringe would speed the stripe!