To be or not to be - gray

[kmehrzad]

I don't mind it.
When the subject comes up, I call it "going platinum."

Speaking of platinum, have you seen Emmylou Harris' hair? That's one gorgeous head of 'platinum' hair. It used to be gray, if I recall correctly.

[five one]

I'm soon to be 58 and began getting gray in my mid-thirties. A natural dark brunette, I made the decision to go short and layered (from a chin-length bob) and not color my hair. I've never regretted it. It's about 30 - 40% gray in front and a bit less in back. As fast as my hair grows, I'd have to do the roots about every two weeks to combat the halo effect of the incoming gray. I have better things to do with my time and money. I get compliments from both men and women and my DH loves it. That's good enough for me .

Joan Baez is my role model for going gray.

It's certainly a personal decision. Do what makes you feel good.

[Chicken Little]

Do whatever you want, but I am just ignoring mine. A good cut can make any head of hair look good.

[kmehrzad]

Joan Baez is my role model for going gray.

It's certainly a personal decision. Do what makes you feel good.

I agree, Joan Baez does have beautiful hair, even when it was salt and pepper, the blend was lovely.

[marni]

My mother dyed her hair red for most of my adult life. When she was 78 she went into the hospital for emergency open heart surgery. I flew in from Atlanta with a 6 week old baby, arriving just minutes before she went into the OR. She hadn't told me that she had let her hair go gray in the last few months so I sttood there confronted with this frail old old woman hooked up to machines and two thoughht running through my brain "oh my God she is going to die" and " don't faint, you'll drop the baby".

Based on that experience I am never going to dye my gray. I am 61 and have some flecks of gray in my medium brown hair, mostly around the temples. Some days I can't tell if it's my hair turning white or my hair line is receding. I also wear my hair in a very short buzz since it suits me and I can't be bothered with messing with my hair, so perhaps my gray doesn't show much. I am the only one of 5 sisters who iis not either completely slat and pepper or white. must be all the biking.

marni

[azfiddle]

I seem to be in the minority... I started going gray in my 20's and started coloring my hair in my 30's.

I'm 53, and have not figured out how I will eventually switch to gray, but I've been reluctant to do it yet, because I teach middle school and also I perform regularly with a band. In both of those arenas, there are advantages to not looking too old... and I would definitely look a lot older with the amount of gray I have.

[Crankin]

Nope, AZfiddle, I'm totally with you...
I do agree that Joan Baez looks great. Too bad my skin isn't like hers!

[GLC1968]

I'm 41. I tried to go natural last summer and it was too uncomfortable.

I lived grey for about 5 months. It was beautiful and I got compliments from strangers. I cannot wait until I'm 50 so that I can go back to that. Why did I start coloring it again? The world treats you vastly differently when you are THAT grey and I wasn't ready for it. I had women my mother's age treating me like I was their friends and people my own age 'maam-ing' the hell out of me. I was totally invisble to young people. No one could tell if I looked really good for 55 or was prematurely grey. Honestly, I couldn't take it and I still can't really adequately explain it, either.

I hate that I now color my hair because of how society treats me, but there you have it. I'm a conformist. Or vain. Whatever.

When I turn 50, I'll go back to my natural grey again (of course, by then, I'll probably be totally white!). It was liberating and attractive...I just wish it was more acceptable.

Check it out - first photo was taken last summer - second one in October...

Society doesn't know what to do with a 40 year old woman who is this grey.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I honestly can't tell you for certain why, but nobody ever treats me like I'm invisible, grey hair or not! LOL

[kmehrzad]

GLC1968, I love the photo of you with gray hair, absolutely love it!! It's a great cut for your face and hair texture. If there was some guarantee I'd look like you with gray hair, wouldn't have a second thought embracing it.

[lph]

GLC, you look(ed) fantastic with grey hair, but I know just what you mean. I suspect I'd be almost that grey if I let it grow out completely, and I'm just not ready to "change my age" that fast. I'm 40. I certainly don't want to look 25 or 30, and I don't want to hide the grey, but I highlight my hair instead so that it's visibly both brown and grey, and feel that I look my real age that way.

It's strange, isn't it. It's probably a lot more common than we think to be that grey at that age, but most people don't know it, not even the ones carrying that hair!

[GLC1968]

I should also mention that part of my annoyance with the grey was that I had to keep it cut very short for it to look good.

As much as coloring my hair now is a pain, getting a good cut every 3 or 4 weeks was also a pain. At least I have the option of coloring my own...I can't cut it myself.

(and thanks for the compliments you guys )

[OakLeaf]

GLC, you look fantastic either way!

I've definitely read that baldness is almost as common among women as men... probably LPH is right about premature greying. I had a friend in law school who was almost completely grey in her late 20s. It didn't help her that she had pretty dry and sensitive skin too, so she really did look much older.

[shootingstar]

I'm 40. I certainly don't want to look 25 or 30, and I don't want to hide the grey, but I highlight my hair instead so that it's visibly both brown and grey, and feel that I look my real age that way.

It's strange, isn't it. It's probably a lot more common than we think to be that grey at that age, but most people don't know it, not even the ones carrying that hair!

Having hair colouring that allows some natural integration of greying is blessing, lph.

Yes, the irony of how prevalent hair colouring among women has become that we no longer know what is "normal" in terms of aging and greying.

GLC you look great in either hair 'colour'. I appreciate the hassle of frequent haircuts for a very short styled cut.

I don't know ...maybe I'm warped..but from a cycling perspective, to see women who cycle lots and have visible grey hair..it looks impressive! I don't have grey hair yet, but yes I never worried much about helmet hair when I walked into workplace to change:

I secretly do want to challenge others to rethink that mid-life women can be consistently physically active and look more alive than their sedentary peers. So I put myself forward, slightly messy with my helmet removed.

[five one]

I honestly can't tell you for certain why, but nobody ever treats me like I'm invisible, grey hair or not! LOL

I am a graying baby-boomer who is a quiet unassuming person and a conservative dresser. I tend not to attract attention to myself. For this reason, I am invisible to 20-30 something sales associates in the retail world. Most of the time I don't mind because I like to be left alone when I shop. When I'm ready to pay though, they had better not ignore me. I got really loud once in Tiffany when I was passed over in favor of a couple looking at engagement rings.

That said, this is not a good enough reason to try and shave a few years off by coloring my hair. I don't have a lot of wrinkles, so I probably could pull it off. It's just not worth it to me. My work environment is filled with people of my generation, so I don't have the pressure of fitting in with younger co-workers. But I can understand your reasoning GLC, since you are much younger. I think your hair looked great gray and wondered if you'd kept it that way when you cut it short awhile back. It's a very flattering cut.

I resent that this is not an issue for men. Is anyone telling George Clooney he would look younger/better if he dyed his hair?