To be or not to be - gray

[malkin]

My hair can be maniacally unruly.

The relatives' question "What's wrong with you?" reminds me of my kalabash granny who in her 90s, listened patiently as her doctor informed her of her blood pressure, cholesterol, lung deterioration, osteoporosis, etc., etc., etc., and then she calmly asked him,

"Well, Doctor, have you checked my age lately?"

[PamNY]

The relatives' question "What's wrong with you?" reminds me of my kalabash granny who in her 90s, listened patiently as her doctor informed her of her blood pressure, cholesterol, lung deterioration, osteoporosis, etc., etc., etc., and then she calmly asked him,

"Well, Doctor, have you checked my age lately?"

Your granny sounds cool.

[Miranda]

Sorry, being lazy reviewing this thread cos it's late & I'm tired from work, can't recall if I responded... but I'm going to turn gray naturally.

I have just a few white hairs coming in. I'm a natural redhead. I colored my hair once with highlights and end of relationship with the hair stylists was a disaster. No more color for me, ever.

The older I get, the less make-up and bling I've got going on too. Idk, I just feel better natural... still groomed though.

I read this book recently and enjoyed it, fwiw.
"Going Gray..." -Anne Kreamer
http://www.amazon.com/Going-Gray-Mot.../dp/0316166618

[emily_in_nc]

I'd been thinking about letting myself go gray for several years but never had the nerve to do it, mostly because of not wanting to look old at work. However, I had switched a gentler hair color a few years back that let some of the gray peek through between colorings, just to get myself ready. I used a color that was close enough to my natural color that I didn't even get serious "roots" with it, as I did with the heavy-duty level 3 permanent colors I used to use.

Last May, on our anniversary trip to Belize, I just decided then and there not to color any more. My hair was wildly curly from the humidity there, and I just decided I liked being natural and free. So, that's what I did. Haven't colored since.

My hair is a mixture of white, blonde, light brown, and very dark brown hairs, kind of a frosted look. I often think it looks blonde/frosted when I look at myself in the mirror, but when I see photos, it looks more gray. I can live with it, though. I used to have light ash brown hair when I was in high school/college, but after that I started coloring, so it's been interesting to see what it morphed into over the years. Here's what it looks like:



I feel very liberated!

[SheFly]

Emily - I think the hair looks amazing! It suits you very well.

Here is a pic of me taken a couple of years ago. My hair is more gray now, and shorter. I LOVE having it so short - no dryer, no iron, still looks good after being in a helmet or ski hat...

SheFly

[Crankin]

I'm with She Fly on the short hair; my hair is unbelievably unruly, frizzy, twisty, bendy. Not curly, just awful. The liberation I felt when cutting it really short and not having to worry about looking like a monster when I take my helmet or ski hat off is awesome. My water bottle is my styling implement!
I am a natural blonde; my hair has always been golden, not white, and many different colors. I started getting various kinds of highlights at around age 30, on and off, as my hair darkened. I can't even stand having brown hair, let alone gray. The dark color really washes out my face, as does anything silvery looking near my face.
So far, I have had a few periods where I seemed to get some gray near my temple, but I pulled them out and they haven't returned. The few wisps that are there look blonde. My stylist and I have found a great color that as it grows out actually looks like highlights; I only get it done every 3 to 4 months. Yes, I have to condition it and use a different shampoo, but I already buy really good products, as my hair as stated above is unruly. I don't ever put my head under the water, as I wear contacts, so I don't have to worry about that.
I guess that while my "regular" (non-cycling) friends would definitely put me in the crunchy category, it's more in the area of my values. When it comes to my appearance, my inner Jewish princess comes out! I don't care, because as Limewave said, going to the salon makes me feel great. In the next couple of months I will be going on job interviews, with 25 year olds as my competition. Enough said. It's a fact of life that most people don't see older people as active, like all of us are. The fact that my co-workers at my internship think I am in my early forties kind of amazes me. They just don't understand any of it.

[roadie gal]

Short, gray, wash and go, easy.

It's everything I want in my hair.

[wnyrider]

I started letting my grey take over last month. Had a monumental birthday come up when I was due to dye. Skipped the dye and downed a couple Tequila Rose shots in celebration. It is at an awkward stage right now. I just got it cut shorter, but the hairdresser wouldn't cut it as short as I dared, she was afraid I'd have remorse. So you can see the obvious color line. Ugh! With the age spots becoming more prominant and plentiful, plus finding some white hairs in my eyebrows, I gave up. I am an older mom, so the obvious signs of aging were not quite, how should I say, appreciated. The new growth actually looks more white than grey to me. I think it looks kind of neat. I am going to keep getting the ends cut shorter more frequently and see how it ends up looking.

[emily_in_nc]

Emily - I think the hair looks amazing! It suits you very well.

Here is a pic of me taken a couple of years ago. My hair is more gray now, and shorter. I LOVE having it so short - no dryer, no iron, still looks good after being in a helmet or ski hat...

SheFly

Thanks, SheFly! I actually like it better than my colored hair -- the color I was using was a bit darker (dark golden blonde, to be exact), and I think this is more flattering to my skin tone, even more so when I have a bit of a tan in the summer. Once I saw what color my hair was without haircolor, I wished I'd ditched the color 10 years ago. Just think of all the time and money I'd have saved!

I really like your short cut. I keep getting mine cut shorter and shorter as it's so much easier for cycling, running, getting ready for work, and I hate sweaty hair on the back of my neck. I sweat a LOT back there. So I make my stylist cut it really short and stacked in the back, and she even shaves my neck some b/c my hairline is a bit long back there. When we move to Belize, I'm going to cut it as short as yours, b/c with the heat and humidity there, I want even less hair than I have now! But where yours is straight, mine will curl like crazy at that length in that climate.

[emily_in_nc]

I read this book recently and enjoyed it, fwiw.
"Going Gray..." -Anne Kreamer
http://www.amazon.com/Going-Gray-Mot.../dp/0316166618

I read that book too -- it was great, and helped give me the courage to stop coloring. The author has the true "steel gray" hair I referred to in a post above, but with the great cut she has, it really does look nice! I loved reading about her emotional struggles with going gray. Interesting stuff.