My Hair Dilemma - for Brunettes

[Antonia]

I am a 44 yo female with black hair. Well, it was black. I have always looked Italian. Now it is salt and pepper. I have a very young face. Most days I am happy enough with it. I did color it, but it got that reddish color and I hated that. I am not a redhead. It's just not me. I am also not a haircolor expert, so I have gone salt and pepper. It is shoulder length with some layers and about half grown out salt and pepper. I will not spend a fortune at a salon.

My question is this - if I let it all grow out and then put about 2 shades lighter on it, will the gray take the light shade and the dark hairs stay the same therefore giving a highlighted effect??? This is one option I have considered.

The other option is to just stay salt and pepper and thank God my face still appears young. Any other ideas?

 

[Serena]

I used the semi permanent color to do this. It worked for a while, but my grays are very resistant and didn't take color well.

You might try it and see what happens.

 

[palmtreegirl]

I recently dyed my hair from bleached blonde back to dark brown(my natural color). I called the Loreal color help hotline that's on the box and they told me exactly what to do. I had to buy 2 different shades & combine them, my hair turned out great. They were really helpful.

 

[minkydog]

Sorry, I elected to go the "spend a fortune on my hair" route about 2 yrs ago. My natural color was dark brown, but the whole front of my head was gray--no salt & pepper for me. With my light eyes and light skin, I just looked sallow and lifeless(people at the hospital thought I was my DH mother ). So after a couple false starts at home, I opted to see a professional. She made my hair look great, a honey brown color that doesn't show the roots easily. In my opinion it's worth every dime.

 

[mom2grace]

Sorry, I elected to go the "spend a fortune on my hair" route about 2 yrs ago. My natural color was dark brown, but the whole front of my head was gray--no salt & pepper for me. With my light eyes and light skin, I just looked sallow and lifeless(people at the hospital thought I was my DH mother ). So after a couple false starts at home, I opted to see a professional. She made my hair look great, a honey brown color that doesn't show the roots easily. In my opinion it's worth every dime.

ITA!! I have been gray for almost 20 years, and I am only 34!!! I have been coloring my GRAY hair since I was a teenager. My "natural" color is dark brown.

If you want to hide the gray, at some point you will hit a wall and HAVE to use a professional to cover it.

ITA about the red/purple issues. Most brown hair color has either a red or purple undertone. I am now using one with "caramel" in the name, but it is still very dark, but it avoids the red/purple issue.

However, my sister has lighter hair, and her gray "blends" in much more.

I suggest you use a pro and see how it goes. Ask a lot of questions, and then maybe you could do it yourself after that!

 

[Antonia]

Thanks for the replies. Maybe a pro is the way to go. I'm going to wait a little while to do anything so the old color I used grows off the ends. I don't have much more to go. That way my hair will be uniformly salt and pepper. So whatever I do may turn out better. I told DH he should be glad his hair is just falling out. So much less to worry with. LOL

 

[Marseeya]

How thick is your hair?

I half wish I hadn't decided to color mine years ago (I'm 38 and have been getting gray hairs since my early 20s). It's very expensive because my stylist has to use double the amount of color on my hair and I usually get a double process -- dark brown with highlights.

I tried coloring it myself, but the color fades too quickly no matter what brand I use, and it fades to a nasty orangeish brown.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Marseeya,

Your hairstylist charges you extra for that? My hair is CRAZY thick and I have to use double too, but I've never been charged extra for it.

*sigh* I am 27 years old and I color my hair to cover the gray. I grew out my bangs this year. My hair is right now at shoulder length. I want to train my hair to have a different part. If I don't keep my color up-to-date, if you will, I can't put a different part in my hair. They gray SHINES like you wouldn'y believe.

My natural color is very dark brown. I started coloring it regularly (about every 6 weeks) about a year ago. I have it colored practically the same color except the color has something it in that gives my hair more "sheen" than it would normally have. I think it's actually called Sunset Brown.

I tried coloring my own hair once when it was midway down my back. I swore I would NEVER do that again. I will gladly pay my hairstylist to do it. I love him, he is the only one who has ever cut my hair. He's hilarious and cracks me up talking about how hot he thinks Shepherd Smith is

 

[crz4mm2]

I color my own hair all the time although I have had it professionally done too. It just cost too much to go to the salon every 4-5 weeks. my hair is short and almost white in the front (and I am ONLY 46 and refuse to be white haired!!) so have to do it frequently. It is very hard to cover the white.
I buy three different colors and mix them. I have tried all sorts and currently use wella. It seems to last longer and cover better than the others I have tried in the past. I buy at Sally's beauty supply (and no, you don't have to be a hairdresser).
The key is to find the color you like and to get it on the outgrown areas and leave it on long enough (30 minutes) and then pull to ends. If you put on ends at the same time you will end up eventually with ends much darker than you want.
I don't know if your grey will color 'lighter' than the rest of your hair. I don't think permanent color is designed to do that. Good luck in trying though.

 

[kasar]

I'm with minkydog. Hair coloring, like plumbing and electrical work, is best left to professionals.

 

[SC Minnie]

I am starting to get a lot of gray and highlighted mine at home for years. Last haircut I finally broke down and had my stylist do it. She highlighted it and put a color wash to get the grays. It turned out wonderful-- it has so much shine and looks so healthy. It was about $100 for the 2 color processes and a cut and style.

 

[Marseeya]

Marseeya,

Your hairstylist charges you extra for that? My hair is CRAZY thick and I have to use double too, but I've never been charged extra for it.

*sigh* I am 27 years old and I color my hair to cover the gray. I grew out my bangs this year. My hair is right now at shoulder length. I want to train my hair to have a different part. If I don't keep my color up-to-date, if you will, I can't put a different part in my hair. They gray SHINES like you wouldn'y believe.

My natural color is very dark brown. I started coloring it regularly (about every 6 weeks) about a year ago. I have it colored practically the same color except the color has something it in that gives my hair more "sheen" than it would normally have. I think it's actually called Sunset Brown.

I tried coloring my own hair once when it was midway down my back. I swore I would NEVER do that again. I will gladly pay my hairstylist to do it. I love him, he is the only one who has ever cut my hair. He's hilarious and cracks me up talking about how hot he thinks Shepherd Smith is

I'm jealous! Maybe I need to find a different styling salon, but as it is I'm already going to one of the less expensive places (Holiday hair, a chain). I love my stylist there -- she gives a great color and a wonderful cut, but I hate the way she styles my hair. She's stuck in the 80s and wants to poof me up every time.

I kind of miss having a man do my hair! The last guy who did it was such a hottie -- and he was straight too! LOL... he went out with my friends and me for my bachelorette party. There just aren't any male stylists left in my town.

 

[ahutton]

I wonder why men do such a better job than women? I have only found 2 women in 20 years who can cut or style my hair, but I've never had a bad experience with a man!

I have a lot of gray mixed through my hair, and I've had great success using Clairol Natural Instincts. It softens and makes the gray look like highlights without changing the color of the rest of my hair. It is semipermanent (4-6 weeks) but I don't mind, I just do it again. I can do a lot of $6 treatments before it makes up for the difference in what it would cost me to have it colored professionally. I did some reading on color and just make sure I pick the right undertones for my natural color so the lighter pieces don't look so out of place. I stay away from "golden" tones as those get a little more orange/brassy, but the "beige" and "ash" tones blend nicely.

 

[Parkhopper]

I went the other route. I *stopped* coloring my hair at age 35. I also have dark brown hair and have been coloring my hair since I was a teenager because of a grey streak which showed up in the front of my hair at age 13. At 35 I gave up because I have short hair and I would get it colored and within 2 weeks I had such noticable white roots. My grey/white is evenly salt and peppered throughout the back of my hair, but I have a really prominent white "patch" in the front.

The funny thing is that when I go into my hairdresser's for a cut now, people ask her to do their highlights just like mine!! She tells them what I do...God did my highlights.

What can I say, it is not always easy being so grey at 39, but it is the way I was made.

Suzi

 

[diznygirl]

My SIL has black hair with lots of gray - she's very evenly mixed salt and pepper. And people always ask her where she gets her hair highlighted!

She went with a much shorter cut - it was harder to manage when it was longer - but with the shorter cut it looks stunning!