If you dye your greying hair

[riperhubarb]

Then what is your routine? I'm 40 and all
Of a sudden 4 weekly box dye isn't enough and doesn't last so I'm having to introduce root touch up at 2 weeks. Is this normal. How grey are you and what is your routine?

I was doing my roots every two weeks but by the time the dye residue had fully washed out (about three washes), the grey would already be poking back through! So within three days of dyeing it I was using root sprays and powders to cover up the new grey. My hair never felt clean because there was always crap in it.

Which is why I've given up dyeing! Only two months in but I love the colour that's coming in - it seems to be pretty uniform pale silver all over. When it's all grown in I intend to occasionally put rose gold/lilac wash in/wash out colours in it. Can't wait.

I'm 47, btw, and have been completely grey for at least 17 years. 26 hair dyes a year, over 17 years... Nearly 450 times I've dyed my hair to cover grey. The whole process took almost two hours each time, so that's over a month spent dyeing my hair! And in all honesty, it looked unnatural and ageing.

So glad I've stopped!

@cacklingmags, try the Adore brand. There’s no rub-off at all.

I think a lot of how much you can “get away with” has to do with the texture and style of your hair, as well as your own aesthetic.

I’ve got tons of fine, wavy, shoulder length hair that I wear in a top-knot or occasionally down with hair bands, scarves or clips. I’ve decided to just stop dying it, and my grey/mouse/dark regrowth just blends in to the general “intentionally messy” look. Whereas someone with a sleek, dark, heavy fringed, shiny style is in a lot more of a difficult position. The default answer on here is “hack it all off pixie” but that’s not everyone’s look. I think the answer probably lies in binning the box dyes and learning to mix the tubes of professional-style colours in very small quantities, so as not to go over the same hair multiple times

I do feel these threads bring out an undercurrent of... something. I don’t know why one has to want to go grey, nor why it’s suddenly “aging” (getting older! the horror!) to have the same blond or brown or red hair you’ve always had. I don’t like the idea that a number dictates what colour my hair should be, especially as decided by...who? Someone I don’t know and who means nothing to me?

Why do people think highlights are the answer?

I see so many people with highlights + the usual layer of grey roots coming through.

Highlights is no better or worse than block colour.

Grey is grey. Silver is silver. Highlighting your hair doesn't slow the re-growth, nor make it any less visible.

I have my roots dyed every 5 ir 6 weeks. I have dark blonde hair which has lots of different colours in it but my roots are white. It looks very natural when dyed. Costs a fortune though

I used to dye mine, and yes after 2 weeks a touch up was needed. I got fed up and stopped. I've had so many compliments my hair since I stopped. I love my grey now and would never go back. Completely liberating.

Semi permanent or permanent hair dye?
Any advice please?
Doing at home - how to choose the right colour from the pic in a box - any advice?

Stopped the two weekly dye at home cycle 3 years ago and went pure blonde. I am not yet 50. I like my hair long so no pixie cut for me yet. Was a shock at first but it works for me.

My hair is already pure white on top (with an inch wide stripe of 70/30 grey / dark brown right at the very front ). The back is also 70% grey.

The centre patch of the pure white hair has a much thinner diameter and it looks like I have a large bald patch. Hairdresser assured me i have same amount of hair there . When I was dyeing it brunette it really looked noticeably bare though as I have very thick coarse hair and lots of it .

I went to a hairdresser who refused to do just highlights as it would have looked very uneven etc. so I took the decision to go full blonde. Wasn’t easy as it took two ‘lifts’ over 6-8 weeks but so worth it.

So now I get half head of highlights every 5-6 months with my haircut (they have a Thursday special) I used to put off haircuts for 12-18 months out of embarrassment for the home dye jobs. So this is a good compromise for me.

I have been growing the back of my head out with just minimal highlights. And am about to get the last blonde tips cut.

However, If I was going a nice even salt and pepper, I would have pixie cut a decade ago.

Oh and purple a salon type shampoo is my friend.

I just have a half head of mixed honey and light browns put through every three months. Looks natural because I would look ridiculous at my age with a box dye.

I have professionally done roots (light/mid brown) 4 weekly and highlights every 3 visits

Hides the grey nicely. In the final week I use a root spray. My hair is slow growing though. I did used to go 3 weekly when it was darker

Highlights definitely help hide the grey as there’s less differential between roots and hair.

I would say dark brown done at home is the worst combination for roots. I had to use a bought dye for one root touch up earlier this year and the colour faded quickly too even though I bought the most expensive off the shelf

To answer how grey question probably 40% grey was originally chestnut brown

My true colour is mouse brown. It's been highlighted since I was 17. Am 58 and iver the last 5/6 years highlights have morphed into blonde, gold and brown so it blends it in and looks relatively not too dyed. Every 6 weeks in rotation : full head, t bar, half head t bar, full head.

Oh and I am going grey from the front. Back quite dark still. Wouldn't mind so much if it was evenly distributed.

Highlights done at the hairdressers every 7 weeks.

I do roots religiously first Monday of the month and full head colour every 3 visits.