by Deborah Coshun

Created on: February 15, 2010

Do you want to look younger or look older?  That's the only question you have to ask yourself to come up with your answer for this question of dyeing your hair or going gray.  Well, it should be that simple but it's not.

I have seen some women with gray that is absolutely beautiful and very becoming on them.  If you are one of these women, then by all means I say "go gray".   My hair has very little gray at this point and I am 61 so I know it's coming.  This issue of whether to color my gray or go natural has been on my mind a lot lately because I would really like to be able to stop coloring my hair.   The decision maker will be whether I have that beautiful white gray or the drab gray that most women are blessed with.  My mother and sisters color their hair so I have nothing to make a comparison as to what to expect; my cousins and my brother had/have beautiful white gray.  The other issue will be, "Does that beautiful white gray look good on me?".

One absolute seems to be that if you are going to go gray, please keep it styled.  Nothing is uglier or more aging than long shaggy  gray hair; if you're 60, you will look 70.  Gray hair does not have the same texture as it did before graying nor does it have the youthful sheen of healthy hair.  Gray hair whether you're young or old is simply "not pretty".  If you're staying gray because you don't want the bother of coloring your hair, then you will need to switch your concerns over to making sure that it is styled with appropriate cut and conditioned.

Let's face it women, we will always be challenged when it comes to our hair.  If you're not having to worry about the color, then you have to worry about what style suits you.   A person's hair is usually one of the first things that will catch someone's eye.  What do you want your hair to say about you?  The color and/or style you choose for your hair needs to match your personality and what matters to you.

I will never be young again but for as long as possible I would like to look my best.  If looking my best means that I need to color that gray when it arrives, then that is what I will do.  You may be one of the blessed that has beautiful gray hair and it makes you look better, then go with it and enjoy it.   Ultimately, the choice is ours and that's where we come back to the original question I started with writing this article, "Do you want to look younger or older?".

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