Colouring your hair

[Possegal]

hmmm, edna, see my post above about my mother starting to go at 11 and being 100% gray at 15. her name was edna. coincidence?

you look wonderful with the gray hair, i'm just not so sure i will, hence the coloring.

[Bad JuJu]

I keep it short and natural because I'm lazy and don't want to mess with it anymore. Here's a picture from my birthday party last July.
Edna

Great hair color! I wish mine would go that color. It's getting there, but not there yet. I'm with you on the short-and-natural-because-it's-easy approach--I've got better things to do with my time than fool with my hair.

[Muddyfox]

Just thought I'd add one more to the thread. I'm 41, brunette and very slowly going grey (well, white actually). Like a few of you on this thread my hair grows quickly so the thought of having to dye it every 4-6 weeks depresses me - got better things to do - like cycling! I also actually like my own natural colour which there is still a lot left of so I'm sticking with it and see what the outcome is. It doesn't bother me and because I don't make an issue of it friends and family don't tend to notice it either. Only one person has ever said to my face that I should dye it (a female colleague) and I congratulated her on her honesty but thought that it was a shame that it bothered her so much.

[shootingstar]

Evangundy, you look great in your hair. Lucky you. You also have a natural, glowing complexion that complements grey hair well.

It's been interesting reading the responses here..a world that I don't inhabit..hair colouring. In all honesty, I can't imagine conditioning my hair if I damaged it...it goes dead flat and dull 'cause my hair still has sufficient natural oil and is naturally straight. 'Course as a teenager eons ago, it was alot more.

I get a haircut every 3-5 months...yea, I try to make it stretch. But I appreciate a highly skilled, versatile hairstylist and will retain same one for years. So in terms of 'fashion' money that's what I do spend instead of pedicures, manicures, spas, etc.

But I hope that's all I will end up spending money and time in the future on my hair.

And when hair gets longer, I use a curling iron for touching up...that's the absolute limit of time for me...since I also wash my hair daily.

Personally I rather spend more time on my fitness..than on hair... I worry more about my teeth falling out when I get old, rather than my hair colour.

And I hope my father's genes help me...he doesn't have grey hair...at 79. But mother does.

[posagirl]

I had my hair colored for about 4 years. I decided to have my hair dyed back to my "roots" and when the final color was out, my hair was lots darker than it was 4 years ago! Funny thing is, a lady walked in the shop and said "I want her color, what is it?" LOL! I have a little bit of gray highlighting, but I am 50, I don't care and I earned it. I LOVE being free of coloring. I am now growing my hair out more so I'm not a slave to the hairdresser. I think I am heading into a "natural" phase.

[Tokie]

Hi Andrea! What inspired you to clip your hair off? Do you like it short? I'm always tempted to buzz mine, but I don't think it would look right. In fact, I just finished growing it out to cover my ears, which my dermatologist said were showing rough skin and signs of sun damage. Maybe I'd better just keep my longer greying hair. Tokie

[Andrea]

Hi Andrea! What inspired you to clip your hair off? Do you like it short? I'm always tempted to buzz mine, but I don't think it would look right. In fact, I just finished growing it out to cover my ears, which my dermatologist said were showing rough skin and signs of sun damage. Maybe I'd better just keep my longer greying hair. Tokie

Honestly, my hair was just annoyingly long (I keep it pretty short already) and it was going to be another week & a half before I could get an appointment to get it cut. So, while Mr. Andrea was cutting his hair, I stole the clippers and tried a #8 (1") guard on the blade... didn't look much different, so I went #5... then it was patchy red & black because my roots had grown out, so I wanted to see what it would look like shorter & red... so VIOLA... #3 shave!

Not a great picture of me, but you get the idea...

[michelem]

My hair is very dark brown and I am getting close to the big 4-0 and just started to see the grays these past couple of weeks. For about a week it seemed I was finding one each day! My hairdresser told me NOT to pull them out. She said that by pulling them out at the root, it will cause them to grow out in a "sticking out" fashion. She said that instead, I should clip them very short with scissors. This way they will grow back in more naturally like the rest of my hair, rather than poking out like beacons. We'll see how that works . . .

[Possegal]

gray hair by nature has a different texture. i don't think your hairdresser's advice will make much difference. i've never pulled mine out, and when my hair started going gray, the gray ones had a mind of their own, sticking up in all sorts of directions.

[GLC1968]

I'm 40 and probably 65 - 70% grey. My natural hair color is a dark brown that easily bleaches out by the sun into highlights of red and gold. It was gorgeous while it lasted! I used to have strangers stopping to ask me who did my highlights when I was a teenager - it was always fun to say "mother nature".

I've been dying my hair since I was 21. My hair is also super thick and grows very fast. If I had straight hair that laid flat, I'd have to color it every 3 weeks to keep the roots at bay. Since I started wearing it curly, I can get away with 4 weeks. I used to have it done professionally, but I've gone back to doing it myself because I can't bring myself to spend the money. My hair is in fantastic shape though - home color or not. I only shampoo my hair once a week or so but I condition it daily. It's super strong and healthy partly because I no longer use a hair dryer, too.

I am so looking forward to the day when I can comfortably go grey. I don't know if mine will be a nice color or not, but I think it will be fun to find out. I'm *almost* ready to do it...but not quite. I'll have to go back to a pixie cut again to make the transition because growing it out looks so incredibly bad (such a nasty contrast to the dark brown dye).

[tulip]

I'm 40 and the most greys I've been able to see at the same time is 6. Recently they seem to be hiding. I figure when it's time to go grey, I will do so gracefully, like Bonnie Rait or Emmylou Harris. We'll see how graceful I actually am when the time comes, however. Wrinkles--well that's another story entirely (I'm still fighting zits!! I thought I'd have at least a few years of post-zit pre-wrinkle skin, but it may not turn out that way).

BTW, great cut, Andrea!

[Tokie]

You have a pretty face and nicely shaped head - and you look a bit too healthy to be a girl on chemo! I like it! Maybe it's more aero too! Now everyone will want to run their fingers over your prickly head! Tokie

[Blueberry]

Andrea - I think it looks great! You can definitely pull it off!

GLC - I never would have guessed that your hair is colored at all.

CA

[evangundy]

[QUOTE=Possegal;326612]hmmm, edna, see my post above about my mother starting to go at 11 and being 100% gray at 15. her name was edna. coincidence? QUOTE]

Well, my mother's name was Edna as was her mother, and they both started with white hair at a young age too ...... maybe you've got something there??????

I have a great sylist that I go to (for the past 3 years). I get it cut about every 4-6 weeks and I don't think I've gone with the same style twice in a row for the past 20 years. I'm always changing something about it, but still keep it short.

And Andrea, you have the right shape face and head to pull off such a short haircut. It looks great! And my DH said it looks great too.

Edna

[Andrea]

Thanks, everyone... I'm not sure what to do next