Ditching the hair dye and embracing the grey

[needagoodnightsleep1]

So 8 weeks ago I decided to give up dying my hair to cover the grey. The last root touch up didn't seem to take on my roots and i just felt it was a waste of time. Im 46 and been dying my hair every 2 weeks to cover the grey since i was 20. Excited and apprehensive but determined to see it through. Had a good haircut last week and had about 6 inches cut off, so it’s shoulder length now. I thought this might help. Anyone else currently embracing the grey and want to keep me motivated and share some tips?

Thank you. It doesn’t feel like its growing quickly tbh but probably because i wake up and check every single day haha

I finally got the last of my blonde highlights cut out today when I got a haircut to just above my shoulders. Would have been 2 years in November since I stopped colouring it.

Blonde till my dying day here

This is mine today after being at the haidresser

@dementedpixieyour hair is a gorgeous colour . Excited to see what my final hair colouring will look like

embracing the grace isn't for everyone. Some do, some don't. Its ok to do whatever you want with your hair

Same.

Keep going OP. It is incredibly liberating not doing root watch every couple of weeks. My hair was just a shade away from black. Well, everyone called it black. It started going grey in my late teens and I started colouring it. By the time I was in my thirties it was about 50-60% grey and the tell tale stripe would start to appear within a week. So then it was root spray or a temporary colour to keep me going until the next colour. I honestly felt like half my life revolved around what stage of regrowth I was at. I finally grew it out when I was 52. I discovered it was much wavier than I thought, so I keep it quite long and usually wavy, with the odd straighten for a change. It’s a decent silver grey. My MIL hates it🤣 She’s 83 and still has her hair coloured regularly. That’s up to her. I don’t comment on it. When you let your grey grow out before the age of 70-80, EVERYONE has an opinion about it. Sometimes positive. Sometimes negative. But it’s certainly a talking point!

My mum was 81 when she died and still had a lot of her own colour. Some grey, yes.

Ive done it! The worst part was growing it past my ears in all honesty it took determination to not dye it. Once I could tie it back and I looked grey from the front I could forget about it.
Its all now my natural colour. I did have a big chop into a bob to help me along the way but I'm so happy with and get lots of compliments. It suits my skintone so much better than the constant dying it dark.

I dont recommend the method but I lost my hair to chemotherapy in April.
Ive dyed my hair since I was 14, always brunette with various tones of red. I was very resistant to letting it go grey. Im 61.
My hair started to grow back about 4 weeks ago so Ive basically got what looks like a buzz cut. It's mostly white with a few dark hairs creeping in so its a bit hard to tell what colour it will be when its filled out and got to a decent length.
I abandoned my beanie hats last week and bumped into a couple of people Id not seen for a while and didnt know I had cancer. They were very complimentary on my new radical haircut !
Its a huge adjustment for me, I don't like it but not sure I'd want to go back to colouring it either. I'm not able to work so won't be able to afford hairdresssr prices for colour.

went for it in 2014, aged 43. It took 2 years to grow out, hated it but knew I had to do it. Best decision I made.

@MargaretMeldrewoh yes ive heard all the opinions! Both negative and positive but luckily I'm not bothered by the negative ones! My great grandmother and grandmother dyed there hair religiously till they both passed away and would be horrified at my hair right now lol

@CillianMurphyhasbeautifuleyesi have much more grey hair than my mother, grandmother and great grandmother ever had ! Thanks Dad- they all went grey very young on his side

@SlazengerTennisClubi actually found the first couple of months the worse, when it looks like you just need your roots doing. Now it looks more deliberate and I actually don't mind it. I had a big chop in May and going this week to get it cut into a bob. Im excited to see how it comes through

I have curly shoulder-length blonder hair (highlights for 25+yrs) and stopped dying it about 4 years ago as I'm now allergic to PPD. I won't lie, it's aged me a bit BUT for me it was a no brainer as even allegedly PPD-free dyes seemed to be irritating my skin. Also it saves me a fortune! I still have a lot of dark blonde underneath, so it's a kind of mix of platinum/ash, darker honey blonde, and grey, which sort of works with the curls (I get a lot of comments on it because it's quite unusual).

I will say that I struggle with frizz and condition now - I think that's partially my age (45) but also partially because I don't have the conditioning effect of the stuff my hairdresser used to mix with the dyes any more.

I also need to wear a little more bronzer and blusher than I used to, as I can sometimes look a bit more washed out/cooler-toned than before.

Overall though, I'm fine with it. It sort of feels like I've accepted something that a lot of my friends are going to find harder and harder to accept as they get older!

@Ted27im sorry you have gone through that. You might love it when its grown back fully and a lenght you want. I hope your feeling ok and make a full recovery 💐

@FunPreventionOfficerthats amazing, I cant wait to be in the same position 😀

@HillyHoneyyes ive read some people said they felt their complexion and skin tone changed with their hair colour! Thank god for makeup! Ive bought some hair masks and leave it conditioners so hoping these may help with the frizz and over all condition of my hair. Although I am struggling with the wiry white ones at my parting on the top of my head. Not sure what to do with them tbh

@needagoodnightsleep1

Im doing ok thank you for asking.

2026 not exactly the best year of my life and the future is a bit uncertain at the moment BUT I have made every milestone I set for myself and will see my son graduate in 2 weeks.
The hair loss was very hard, I think I need to grow into the grey in more ways than one !

Your grey hair in these photos all looks fab. Mine is grey in random tufts and I would look like a skewbald pony if I let the grey stay. At the moment I blend in the clumps with a semi permanent colour and it seems to work so far…