Anyone over 50 and still have dark hair ?

[NannyOgg66]

Hi ladies just wondering if anyone else has this problem, I'm in my 50s and have dark hair with a bit of grey, about 15 percent max. I've always dyed my mid brown very mousey hair a shade darker and chestnut or red/mahogany at various stages. I'm getting to the point now where I'm thinking I cant stay dark forever but not sure what to do. I had highlights a few years ago and i looked hideous, it actually aged me more than the brunette. I've got fair/medium caucasian skin. Most women my age are going lighter. I've spoken to my hairdresser about going blonde but she said I'm not grey enough yet and tbh when ive tried different shades of blonde or even light brown on an app it looks awful. My eyebrows are also still very dark. I dont mind the grey but hate my natural colour as it is so ashy.

My mother does, she is 72 and has a few grey hair round her hairline, like 20, totally unnoticeable. She has never coloured her hair either, my grandmother was the same. Unfortunately for me I got my fathers genes and found my first grey hair at the age of 17.

Sorry, totally misunderstood the thread title 😂

I am 44 and dye my hair dark warm brown, I look hideous blonde. Colouring is naturally olive with brown eyes.

I have dark hair at 56 with large silver streaks at my temples. I have bits of grey elsewhere..

My hairdresser started putting on the lightest colour she could without using bleach, and put it an ash rinse on it. This has worked fine growing it out.

If l put a purple toner on it, it looks fine. I’ll keep doing this until all the clout has grown out. I’ve got a cool based skin

Grey!!! What’s clout?

Yes, I’m in my 50s and have Dark brown hair with just a few greys at the front. I Don’t like it because it just make it look as if the hair at the front is thinner. I use henna on it as it doesn’t darken it but Just adds some red tones which works on me. I’m also very pale! I’d actually Be happy to Go grey now as I fancy having pink hair. But my grandad still had dark hair in his 80s and it runs in the family.

54 with dark brown hair and I'd say less than 5 per cent grey. I can barely see it let alone other people. I pinder this myself - at what point do I cover up? And if I don't, what kind of grey will it be? I suspect a dull steel which I won't like one bit

I'm lighter than you maybe but more mouse than muddy blonde. Over the years I've been every colour from ash blonde to dark brown. I'm 55 now with negligible greys. But the tones have left my hair, over the years. The natural browns and reds that my children have in theirs when the light catches it.
I'm booked in next week for highlights - half head or t section, if I have it cut short. I'll probably go for a mix of ash blonde, darker blonde and maybe a slither of cooler caramel ( that's a definite in winter months). A good colourist will be able to add highlights/lowlights to match your current skin tone and emulate your younger hair.

I remain light ash brown. It gets done once a month at home and keeps grey from showing. I often muse how much grey I would have now if not coloured my natural colour every month.

Why do people get to a certain age and think they must go blonde.
People seem to also jump on the short
Hair train as well.

@Marpan I've never had long hair but fluctuate between just below ears and just above shoulders
My skin tone has definitely changed as have eyebrows and lashes. I guess it's my version of greying. My skin tone doesn't work so well with darker and blocked colours anymore

@Marpan it’s generally thought that with skin tone changes during mid life, a lighter colour is more flattering.
Not a bright brassy blonde obviously!
Even a warmer brown helps.
I guess if you are very olive, it’s not so noticeable. :)

61, long dark hair, a few greys, Olive skin. Allergic to hair dye!

54. Long hair which is very grey, but I dye it dark brown which was my natural hair colour before I went grey in my twenties.

@AnnaNimmity yes I've seen loads of pics of lovely silver grey hair, as PP said I'm quite jealous, I actually think that would suit me, but at moment would have to bleach it then put silver on, far too much faffing about for me! My hair is quite long as well so would be worried about the condition. I think if you have darker skin it is less ageing having darker hair and of course Mediterranean skin ages less quickly.
@beenrumbled I have rosacea as well so always have pink cheeks unless I put industrial strength foundation on!
Not sure who mentioned about pressure to go short when older, I think a lot of women do this as hair gets thinner. I do agree there is a pressure to do so. I last had short hair when I was 15, i hated it my hair is heavy and dead straight and doesn't want to do anything. It is less maintenance for me being long I don't have to style it or use products on it. I have gone shorter last few years but it's still way past my shoulders. It needs a good cut now of course.

I'm 56 with medium to dark brown thick wavy hair- I have some white hairs round my temples and hairline like a halo but very little else where- my mam and dad still had mostly dark hair into their 80's/90's. I do not suit lighter hair and def not blonde so def not going that route

@Gatekeeper yes that's where mine are but strangely just on one temple there is a patch of them and then a few at very top of my head where my parting is annoyingly. I have really straight hair so I feel the ones at top are quite noticeable. I was hoping for a Cruella De Ville streak

Mine has only a few greys and I am 56 in September, my dad’s hair gradually faded to blond and then silver as he neared 80. My aunt (dad’s sister) didn’t go grey till she was in her nineties, and another aunt (mum’s sister) still has no grey in her eighties. I don’t think I will dye, unless it was some grey highlights to break the colour up a little as my maternal aunt’s hair looks rather flat.

I’m 52 my almost black hair is about 10% grey now.

That’s fine but my hair is getting lighter - very dark brown with reddish tone and doesn’t suit.

Sticking it out - my hair is long a dark and frizzy with white bits and I’m liking the odd look. Will not cover the grey but not liking the reddish hue.

I'm dark brown hair with lots of natural reddish highlights especially when it fades in the sun - it's a golden brown at the bottom (longish), it's only the temples are going a bit grey and the odd few here and there on top.
I have done warm reddish brown shades before now , but my hair doesn't 'take' dye very well (spent a fortune once on magenta highlights, saw a friend 2 weeks later and she said 'oh I thought you said you were getting magenta highlights , have you not had it done yet?')
So I just leave as is.

I have mid length dark hair and a fairly pale complexion. Probably 20% grey. Mostly at temples and a good, noticeable amount through my hair, especially around my parting. I thought I would brave it out but noticed that I was looking more and more washed out as the gray became more noticeable.

I've just had some foils put through it, largely based on my natural shade with a softer caramel shade as well. I didn't want to go down the blonde route and I specifically said that I wasn't looking for all the grey to by covered so I can still see some sparklers in there but the contrast is no longer as harsh. The regrow won't be as noticeable either compared to a full dye job.

Wish I'd had done it sooner. It's taken years off me and I look so much brighter. The good cut helped too. Must remember this next time I am feeling too idle to get it sorted!

@toomuchlikemyusername that sounds good. I was thinking about similar for myself last year, although mine was previously coloured so had to grow it out a bit. I asked for low lights to be put through it to deepen my natural colour but the hairdresser decided to do lighter tones which am pretty sure are highlights ! She also couldn't understand that I wasn't bothered about the grey showing, I guess this is due to most people wanting the grey covered up. But I didnt want to be I there every month getting roots done.
@howrudeforme there is a shampoo by Aveda that is called black malva that stops reddish tones in dark hair. I haven't used this one but have heard good reports. My hair wasn't quite dark enough for it. I think its aimed at people with black or very dark hair. Aveda also used to refund any shampoo you bought that you didnt like as they didnt do samples. Not sure if that is still the case now though as was a while ago.

Dark brown/black (did have an auburn tinge when I was younger). With about 15% grey salt/pepper hair 59 years old.
Didn’t have a grey hair till I was in my 40s

I started off with a sort of pale sallow (think quite pale Middle Eastern) type skin which has gone paler and not aged well. (sister got the coffee coloured skin colour which I was so jealous of).

I am allergic to all hair dyes.

Would love to die my hair red or pink. I have looked on the try on hair colour apps and might look ok with peroxide blonde but the caramel blondes that look nice on other people look absolutely terrible on me.

I live in hope of one day trying a hair dye I am not allergic to

Am naturally blonde but started dying my hair dark brown in my late 30s - it suits me much better so I'm still doing it at 57 years old 🥴

@Oliversmumsarmy I'm not a hairdresser but i understand that most people who are allergic react to chemicals called PPDs in hair dye. These are found in higher amounts in darker colours. I've read stuff on here about people having highlights or low lights and the fact that it doesn't touch the skin means they have been ok. But obviously hair dye allergy can be really serious. I tried something called Arctic Fox (like crazy colours from the 80s) which is a semi permanent and they say it doesn't have harmful chemicals in, they dont have PPD in. The colours are mostly aimed at pre bleached hair but they have a few that can be used on brown/dark hair. I used one called ritual which was a really burgundy purple red. It did work but turned my grey quite pink. It might be worth doing a skin test. Have you tried red henna? You need to be careful with henna though that it is pure and not mixed in with other hair dyes.

The only hair dye I have ever been able to use was a 3-5 day wash in type by Schwarzkopf that used to last about 6 weeks. It was one tube and it came in packaging shaped like a mini handbag.
I think it got discontinued in the late 80s/90s
I have tried all sorts and even actually went to a hairdresser who did a patch test on me of some super hyper allergenic hair dye.

I passed the patch test and I had my hair dyed (a blonde colour) at huge cost only for part of my scalp to be completely clear and a larger part was really thick psoriasis. It is a creamy, white crust that looks like cradle cap.

I have tried a lot of hair dyes over the year that supposedly don’t have harsh chemicals, ammonia, PPDs in to pretty much the same results.