Anyone using lockdown as an excuse to grow out their grey?

[SelfIsolatingBeforeItWasCool]

I have shoulder length dyed dark brown hair which is naturally 100% silver underneath - I know this because every couple of years I start to grow it out, then chicken out after a couple of months. Last time was just before Christmas - I caved in partially because I wanted to look decent over Christmas but also because I had a few events this spring which I didn't want to look skunky for. Of course now I'm kicking myself because everything's been cancelled anyway!

I also seem to have suddenly become allergic to absolutely everything I put on my face. I think it might be the SPF in my moisturiser/foundation because plain Nivea doesn't hurt, everything else leaves my face burning and red for days after. I'm concerned that as it's come on so suddenly, hair dye might also cause a reaction and I know how serious they can be.

I haven't dyed for 2 months and honestly, I'm not sure I'll bother again. One reason I usually cave in is that there's always something coming up I want to look nice for - wedding, party, etc - not an issue for months, so no temptation. Only fly in the ointment is DH who really doesn't like the idea of me being grey. I'm 47 and he's 36 so I can sort of understand it on one hand, on the other I think he's being silly - after all, he's going grey and I have absolutely no desire to see him dye it, which he has no desire to do anyway!

Anyone else considering doing this?

“ I just don't believe women nearing fifty all have heads or original colour.”

I’m over fifty and have a head!

I presume you meant to say ‘head of original colour’. My hair is still predominantly original colour, although have grey hair as well.

Mercedes that's truly stunning hair! Imagine the price/ time/effort you'd have to invest to replicate what nature has given you for free. Gorgeous

@Noeuf

I am 48 this year and I have a couple of random white hairs at the front only noticeable if I peer closely and that's it.

I am a redhead though so I think I read we are less likely to go grey but may be imagining it!

@Mercedes519 wow, wow and wow. That is the loveliest hair colour I've seen in ages. It's so shiny too! What an inspiration. Can I ask what colour you were before you went grey? I'm naturally mid blonde but I've dyed it dark since I was 18. I think mine might be a similar shade of silver to yours when it grows out, though I can't imagine it being as gorgeous!

@justchecking1 I've tried that route before and sadly all it did was make the dark dye go orangey, so I had to dye the whole thing again. Sadly I think that skunkiness and patience is the only way to go

@islandofdoom it's nuts how long it takes to grow out isn't it. The first two inches or so seem to be more noticeable (especially against my dark hair), then you feel like it's going nowhere - this is where I usually crack. Longest I've gone is 7 months, but that was about 10 years ago and I wasn't fully grey then. It was very patchy, lots of blonde bits, not the dramatic silver I hoped for. It's certainly all silver now!

@Toomanycats99 I think red hair fades slightly rather than goes grey - I'm sure I read (no pun intended!) that somewhere. I envy your red hair so much, being a natural redhead would be top hair wish!

I was using it as an excuse to grow out my grey ... but am currently typing this with hair dye on my head. Couldn't stand it!

I'm leaving mine to grow out so far. I figured it's a good time to see if I like it. I'm about 50% grey with the rest a not very nice brown so I'm not sure I will like it.
And I've got a patch of all grey by my right temple so I think it's going to be a bit patchy.
My dp wants me to dye it but it's my hair so I'm ignoring him on that one.

I had already embarked on the painful process from about November. Lockdown has meant I can hideaway with my two tone locks. I have chopped bits off myself this week to hasten the process so I will definitely need a good cut when we come out of hibernation. I guess I just got fed up of the monotone boxed dye look as I near 60. I would say now that I definitely have to style or blow dry to avoid the Brillo look.

I have long hair so growing it out I am two years in next month. My hairdresser has helped it along, natural brunette by putting in some blonde highlights. I could cut it to chin now I suppose but am loathe to do so. It is shiny in good condition dark and silver mixed. It really needs a good trim so roll on lifting the lockdown. Mercedes picture shows it can really look good it is all about style as much as colour.

www.boredpanda.com/young-women-natural-gray-hair-grombre/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

@SelfIsolatingBeforeItWasCool I was originally a brunette and my hair was a mid-brown before I grew it out although there wasn't any of the original colour left by that point.

Last thing I dyed was to have some highlights to break up the line on top and then gritted my teeth. The first bit is the hardest but if you stay strong you end up with an ombre effect which someone asked me who had done for me

@justasking111 so much inspiration there! Don't they all look fantastic? I can't imagine that any of the ladies in that piece would look better (or younger) with dyed hair.

I've just had a gander on Instagram as I do when I'm looking for more grey inspo - how well is this lady rocking the skunk stripe?! If I could look this cool mid-transition I'd have no qualms whatsoever about doing it, lockdown or not!

I grew mine out a few years ago, and it did look horrible for a while but I much prefer it now. Plus it's so much easier. People still consistently underestimate my age even though I'm grey, so I think the fear of being seen as an old woman if you're grey (that my Mum expressed when I first went grey) really isn't a thing except by the over 70s.

@Mercedes519 I've considered doing the highlight/lowlight/whatever bit in the past to ease things along. But the great thing about lockdown (there's a phrase I never thought I'd use!) is that nobody apart from the staff at Aldi will see me for weeks! By which time hopefully that awkward bit will be over and it will look intentional, not like I just haven't bothered doing my roots. And all my spring/summer plans have been cancelled too so no worries there. I'm hoping that by Christmas I'll be at the ombre stage - we have a night out planned for the 22nd December (we like to plan ahead ) so by then I'm hoping I can look convincingly cool and edgy rather than badgery!

I'm not in "LockDown" lockdown , I am out 4 days at work and I have to wash my hair daily with the Infection Control guidelines (at least until we can get coverings)

I use a Semi-Permenant dye ( 7.74 a gold/brown) so no obvious re-growth, haven't used any for ages .
I'm sporting a fair amount of grey now, probably loads at the back too. But I have just though now is the time!
Once we're out of lockdown I'll have some off the length and go from there .

I'm currently rocking 2 or so inches of grey roots. I'm mousy brown naturally but with lots of grey, intact pretty white at my temples and parting. But still fairly dark underneath.
I had in the past put in my own bronde streaks which took rather well and made me more blonde than brown. And as its lighter I've got away with longer roots before re dyeing.
I get an intensely itchy head after dyeing with all but 2 brands and would rather give up if I can. So I'm definitely embracing the grey.

Dh is nearly 50 and doesnt a single grey hair on his head. But does have a few white eyelashes abs eyebrow hairs.

I tried the highlights - really wish I'd just gone for a crop and gritted teeth approach as I think it would have been quicker. TH ash highlights just eventually end up brassy no matter what purple shampoo (cheap to high end via hairdresser) I through at them. So now I have all natural bar about an inch of highlighted hair.

@noeuf it was definitely an option on the list to go short- I could have gone grey overnight but I wanted to keep some length so I literally ‘styled it out’.

Hang in there @SelfIsolatingBeforeItWasCool it doesn’t take too long before you’re past the ‘not been to the hairdressers’ look. And let’s face it, everyone is styling that right now!

Interesting thread. So, Mercedes519, when you say you styled it out, what exactly did you do to look presentable? 2 inch grey roots are quite difficult to " style", so any tips would be much appreciated!
I've got shoulder length hair with a fringe, currently dyed mid brown, which was my natural colour.
I'm quite grey at the temples but don't know about the rest. My younger brother is silver all over now, but I don't think I am. Also bottom half of my hair had permanent dye, but I've been using semi permanent on the roots for a year or so, with a view to making transition to grey easier. Who know s if it will work, or if I'll end up multicolored?

@delphiniumBlue I’d love to say I had a neat trick but no, I just held my head high and got on with it! I didn’t have quite such a stripe because of the highlights but other than that I just plowed through. I also told people what I was doing which meant they weren’t wondering but not wanting to ask.

I also took lots of pictures to remind myself of how far I’d come. About three inches was when I contemplated going short the most - hang in there, it will be worth it.

Do you see the difference between the permanent and semi? I understood it didn’t make much difference in grey as it absorbs the dye so well anyway?

I haven't put a dye in my hair since July last year. I wanted to give my hair a break from the dye build up. I'm late forties but lucky enough that I have very little grey. I either pluck the odd one or the ones I leave are either well hidden or look more light brown then grey. The biggest surprise for me is how dark my natural hair is, I thought my hair was medium dark brown but it's more a brown/black, I've been dyeing it since I was in my teens. I'm going to grow out the dye now, I find it hard to see where the natural hair ends and the dyed hair starts. Don't know if I could stick it if I had more grey though.

I am in my 60th year, and have wanted to do this for such a long time, having been a slave to the box dye for close on 30 years!

Seeing that glorious head of hair on @Mercedes519 I am inspired to do so once an for all. My natural hair colour is pure white with silver highlights, and it grows at such a rate that I have need to refresh the roots every 2-3 weeks, which frankly is quite ridiculous!

I have 2 boxes of light brown dye to use, and will do so by running fine streaks through my hair but only the top 3 inch or so of layers. As my hair is shoulder length, I hope that this will allow the underneath to grow out to a fair length before taking the scissors to it. ....depending on how brave I feel.

Otherwise ponytails, plaits and twin bobs are my go-to stylee outee!

Thank you OP - and good luck to all!

I’m seriously considering it. I’m not even 40 but I’m very grey, I’m not sure if It would make me look older than I actually am so I wouldn’t have contemplated it but I’m nearly four weeks past my cancelled hair appointment and whilst my hair is looking pretty scary, I find I just cannot be arsed.

My hair is very short and dyed plum/purple. I love the colour and get loads of compliments including “ I wish I dared to do that”. Huh? Just buy a box of hair dye. job done. Underneath it is silver white, all of it. My mother has an amazing head of snowy white hair and mine is clearly the same, as are my two sisters .( we are all in our 50s - the sisters). However, they have both embraced the grey and they both look considerably older than I do - and I am the eldest. So, I will tolerate the white stripe at the roots during lockdown but have two boxes of dye ready and waiting for when I go back to work.

I have short hair which is about 95% grey. I got fed up covering it every few weeks (was a brunette), and in September started the process to get rid of the brown. I did it with my hairdresser though, I wouldn't know how to approach it myself. She stripped out the old colour, then I had some steel coloured bits put through, and some bleached and then dyed silver, so I had 2 tone silver and steel hair. It was ok as a transition while I got used to the idea of losing the brown, and then just before Xmas, I went full silver (with a lavender tint). Now I get more irritated by the small amounts of brown that grows in rather than my grey roots!.

This was me just before a hairdresser appointment, I have about 1.5cm of (natural) grey at my roots, but blends loads better now! Hard to see the lavender on this picture, but it's there. I maintain that via a colour depositing shampoo (so am still purple in lockdown!). has this photo worked?

Oh sorry, I can't seem to attach the photo, you'll have to take my word for it!

I asked DD to take some photos of my hair , not as bad as I thought but quite patchy where the old dye is hanging on.

I reckon a VitC mask is worth a go again . I used one before when a mahogany dye made my hair pink/purple and too dark. It's a faff but doesn;t smell (which I'm told Colour B4 does)