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| Go gray | 42% | 2115 votes | Total: 5095 votes | |
| Dye it | 58% | 2980 votes |
Go gray
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Add to FavoritesI have tried both sides of the story, but came too the final decision that it is not worth it. Dying your hair is so much like hard work, every couple of weeks you are touching up the gray roots. I hated it! I did not like it because my hair ended up looking so false. Now the eyebrows are starting to match the hair. Now I am proud of my look, very distinguished.
Then there are the gray eyebrows that don't match the hair! I said too myself they look horrid and there is nothing that you can do about it. Have nice looking hair and then the eyebrows that look gray. You can not win bits and pieces go gray at different times, then it does not match the other.
So if I had my time again, I would not dye my hair as I aged. The trouble is I missed my pure black hair. When you start going gray young, you miss your natural hair of a time gone by. That is why I dyed my hair, but gave it up as a lost cause. Now I can save that money, by not going to the hairdresser for a color. These days I am quite proud of my white hair. I am now 54yrs old with pure white hair there is a few dark natural hairs left, and I am proud of it.
There is also a saying "It doesn't change whom are on the inside, no matter what color your hair is, we are just a little wiser." It is my choice to grow old gracefully wrinkles and all.
I also thought it was great to try looking younger but it doesn't work, color doesn't go with wrinkles or gray eye brows as I said before. Especially if the bones don't work the same either, with nice looking hair of a young person, people think you are young and then someone is helping you up the stairs or up off the floor cause the bones don't work the way they used too. I quite often laugh at myself because it has taken me a long time to be happy with myself. How I look, coming across a photo of myself the other day, back maybe in my late thirties with black hair and gray hairs sticking out all over. I did not like it but I don't mind now.
Today I had my hair cut, an outstanding statement! When I looked on the floor after my daughter cut my hair, I laughed, there is definitely no black hair left. Everything that was on the floor was white hair. I am sad that I have no more black hair but now I am proud of my white hair, even though I am only 55yrs old.
Learn more about this author, Barb.
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Dye it
Well of course there are no hard and fast rules about whether you should go gray naturally or dye your hair but I know what I do, and why I do it. I was a very dark haired brunette when I was young. My natural hair was almost black. As such changing my hair colour was never really something I considered or that I thought would look very natural. Consequently I only began colouring my hair when I hit my late twenties and that was only with a chestnut or dark brown hair tint. You know one of those that washes out in about four to six weeks.
Well that was fine and dandy until I had passed that magic 30th birthday and was racing through my thirties. All of a sudden the gray was appearing in a higher percentage and my hair seemed to be turning into tough, fuse wire. If you do not know what I mean by that take a close look at natural gray hair and nine times out of ten the texture will resemble that of fuse wire.
Initially I dyed my long hair at home but after ending up with an uneven colour and a dyed bathroom I decided to have my hair coloured at the hairdressers. I have continued to have this done and long since had my hair cut short. It has since grown again, has been cut short again and so on and so forth. So this was the state of play until about four years ago.
I decided that the brown almost black dyed hair was just to dark and was making me look like an aging female Elvis. I took the bull by the horns and decided to go blond and the rest as they say is history. This colour disguises my gray much better and does not show my gray roots quite as quickly, or as easily. Before the blond I had begun to think that I wished I had not started dyeing my hair and had just gone gray gracefully. However I have since decided that I will grow old disgracefully and hair colour is just one way that I can achieve this.
My hair colour makes me feel younger and more lively. I almost feel as if I have always been a blond. Perhaps there has always been one in me trying to get out. So as to the question 'Should you go gray naturally or dye your hair as you age?' I think the answer is please yourself. If you dye your hair and find that it is not for you it is possible to have the dye diffused in order to let your natural colour show through. However this process can be costly and time consuming. The alternative is having two toned hair whilst the dye grows out. I also think it depends what sort of gray your hair goes. Some people have lovely, soft looking, snowy white hair that is very flattering. However mine was a dirty, streaky, slate gray that made me feel a hundred.
Consider your personal circumstances and your finances also as hair colouring can be expensive and needs constantly re-doing. However for me I say bring it on, but not the gray.
Learn more about this author, Ethel Smith.
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