For those of us going grey

[SilveryFoxyMe]

Forgive the name change, but I reckon this post makes me fairly recognisable.

Anyway, last year I posted my dilemma as to whether to continue dyeing my hair or let nature take over and see what was really lurking under there

I bit the bullet after yet another hair dye ending up brassier than I had hoped and not lasting at all, and decided to grow it out.

Eight months on (I do have short hair) it's all gone, and I am almost completely silver, with a few smattering of darker.

At just 47 I appreciate this is not the societal norm, and in some people's eyes has aged me. One friend pretty much commiserated with me and my hairdresser is horrified.

But in the past month I have been for two job interviews, been offered both jobs, and been invited out in a date (long story, I am happily married and he mistakenly thought I was single).

Several people have told me it looks fab, a neighbour came up to me to say I had inspired her to go for it.

My face still looks fairly youthful, I think, but at first glance people might think I am much older. Yet I still got the job offers and the date! More attention that I have had in years!

So if you are swithering, I would heartily recommend it.

getdownshep my two teenage DDs are absolutely horrified and have said they'll refuse to be seen in public with me - I'm just hoping it looks better than they think and will accept it.

My hairdresser is my age but has very different ideas on looks to me and was equally appalled!

But I'm braving them for now - helped by this thread and the FB group.

Sudden I think it must vary. I got my first grey hair when I was about 18 but it wasn't bad enough to dye it until I was about 33. And even now there's still a lot of dark underneath and at the back but silver in the front. So for me it's been slow but steady. But people who are pure white must go more quickly.

I think I take after my mum - she had a 'Mallen' streak in her 40s. Obviously I missed that bit as I was busy dyeing it!

wood - I do some volunteering with young people and I think it would be a good example to them.

Sudden - I think I got my first grey years ago, and only just had enough of a handful to attempt a home dye job a few weeks back. My thinking was "hide even a few greys so people don't think I'm going grey" - then I thought, screw it. Now I am being more observant it's pretty obvious who has dyed hair, even expensive salon hair, which looks like....expensive salon hair.

I think it's fine to dye your hair if that's what you want but I just think a lot of people are doing it because they feel they should and that's a shame.

I also know of people who have quite a change in texture on their hair as a result. I don't faff with product, my hair is very soft and I would like to keep it that way.

I won't be able to have a sleek bob either, my hair is curly. I will be committing all the fashion crimes!! But partly I thought, I really can't be arsed doing this every month - my hair grows really fast - and then have to deal with the "how to go grey from dark" when I want to stop. Then I thought, stuff it, just don't do it in the first place.

Mine seems to be really slow. I found a long grey hair in my early 20s but only now in my early 40s do I have anything like a smattering of grey, and although I do have quite wide grey streaks at my temples they came in 'underneath' and took ages to show which annoyed me as I had quite looked forward to a streak.

I am far too lazy to dye my hair, and this way I don't have to take a decision whether or not to stop dyeing and go grey (vivid memories of a very pale faced old lady with jet black hair in the village I grew up in put me off) and besides, it is just hair. Hair goes grey. I keep it clean, I brush it, I just don't bother colouring it.

Sudden - it varies, I found my first grey around my 30th birthday and I'm 48 now with still only maybe a dozen individual ones, no patches where they are all grey yet. I keep feeling that any day now they are just going to proliferate and I'm really not sure what I will do then, I don't feel ready for grey hair if I'm honest, but I don't want to start dying regularly either. I do henna my hair, but only about twice a year, close to my natural dark brown so regrowth doesn't show.

Listmaker Yes - I'm not loving the blonde but I am loving the fact that my roots are not so noticeable now. Mine grows really fast and the white hairline was visible after just 2 weeks - horrendous. Roots are about 1" now and you can't notice them so I'm trying to look on the bright side. DH and pretty much everyone else says it looks better now than it did dark brown. DS15 is the only one that's not keen - he said I look older (he's always thought I looked really young for my age before).

how about a competition?
grow out the dyed hair and let the grey stripe show, no attempt to soften the impact with highlights, lets see who can front it out the longest:o

I've got level 6 golden brown lengths with level 5 natural roots and about 30% white hairs.
I'll post a parting shot if this thread is still going when I have a bit more regrowth

I started to go grey at 18 and by 21 I was getting bday pressies of vouchers for hair salons to dye my hair! Now at 42 I'm told I am 80 per cent grey and I'm sick of dying it at a cost of ££ per month !

So my question is this - are there any tips for going fully grey that's me it look semi respectable in the grow out phase?

I work in the beauty industry so my appearance is important and I am dreading reactions as I've got very dark brown hair and pale Irish skin!!

Love any tips from those of you who did it - I'm ready to go for it but wonder should I wear a head scarf for an initial period??

I decided last week to stop dying my hair. I'm 30 and got my first greys at 21, I've been dying it from a box about every six weeks. It's just past my shoulders, thin on top (have pcos) and thick at the back. I was a dark ish auburn, but now have two big patches at my temples and a smattering across the top. My roots are probably about an inch at the minute but my temple greys just seem to repel the dye anyway!
Fuck it. Let's go grey

I'm going to follow this way of growing out my dyed bits, by dying my hair grey all over www.buzzfeed.com/augustafalletta/here-is-every-little-detail-on-how-to-dye-your-hair-gray#.yaEmVBRwZ

I'll update with photos when I've done it...

Sewing, that looks like a lot of hassle?

I know butterfly133, but I'm no good at waiting and I currently have an inch of 80% white hair at the roots, and the rest is brown... I'll end up dying the lot brown again which takes me back to the start.

maybe this period of history could be marked by women just growing out grey and having 2 tone hair for a while

like the crinoline defined that era...only more convenient!

When I was at the hairdressers a couple of weeks ago, I was staring in the mirror at my white roots, and noticed a woman sat behind me, with her 2 inch white roots and dark hair. She was growing it out too! We're on the cusp of a revolution

I went on o Waitrose today, but couldn't find any purple toned shampoo. What should I be looking for and where?

I booked an appointment for next week to have my long hair chopped off but am debating going to a local walk in hairdressers tomorrow so I don't have a few days to dither!!

Photo shows the greys so far and I wonder how grey it will seem once it's cut?

daisy it's hard to say from that photo, but it looks like you've already grown out a fair amount, so the more you have off, the closer you'll be to all grey. I have to say, yours is a wonderful even steely grey: love it.

I'm in my mid 30'd have several grey hairs dispersed throughout my jet black hair so they are really very obvious. There aren't enough of them to bother dying my hair but the number of greys have increased quite a lot over the last couple of years that I don't think I'll be much beyond 40 until I am very grey.
Anyway...my skin colour is dark brown and so a full head of grey will be much more striking than on someone with fair skin, who's skin tones are already more suited to lighter hair. Add to the fact that I know no-one female (and only very few very old men) of my skin colour with grey hair (as they dye it). makes me feel a bit reluctant to try it out.

Anyone out there with dark skin, un-dyed grey hair and under 45/50y who can give me the confidence to go for it??
(sorry if this has been covered but I have only discovered this thread and 12 pages is too many to trawl through to check!).

Thanks Bonzo! I've never dyed my hair but because it's long, I've always found the grey diluted. It's only the last few months that suddenly it seems more noticeable. I think having the length off will make a huge difference!

GreyReaction, I have an exceptionally stylish friend who has dark hair with grey and she looks great. She manages it because she dresses really well and has a sharp cut.

Whattodo you can buy it in Boots. Look for Pro-voke Touch of Silver, Bristows also do one and so does Lee Stafford, John Frieda and L'Oreal. They are usually in silver or purple bottles.

Thanks dancelikenooneiswatching!

ridinghighinapril have you tried a google image search for women with your colouring who've gone grey?

Ok ladies, this is me (namechanged from Fishandjam). Demonstrates both my wiry grey hair and my under-eye hollows . Can I get away with leaving it grey? Or will I just look haggard? No amount of makeup or face cream sorts those hollows, BTW - I've tried everything. Am seriously considering tear trough fillers...

Touch of Silver shampoo and conditioner is always cheap in Home Bargains.
I let my hair go grey befote Christmas but then bleached it.
It was very short and very patchy. Pure white around the hairline but gradually getting darker towards the back.
I think it would have looked better longer.
Its about 3 inches long at the moment and I'm considering not dying it again, but will maybe wait until after October because my brother is getting married.

Two people in work let theirs go grey after seeing mine