I have decided to see what color my hair truly is and I am at that stage where my grey roots are about 6 inches long now. Looks awful!

My questions to all of you is:

1. Is there a way of getting through this growth period gracefully?
2. Is there a rinse to make my grey hair sparkle, rather than be dull? I hate the old and tired look. I want to have nice hair that looks and is, healthy, but I don't think I am going to have that gorgeous vibrant grey that is so pretty.

Help?

My late husband had beautiful silver/gray hair. My hair turns white, so it is the bottle for my hair.

What color was your hair and how long is it? I am in the same process, but my natural hair is a dark strawberry blonde. It does blend fairly well as long as I keep it cut. Right now it is way too long, but I am waiting to get over this cold before I get it cut. :D

I have salt and pepper grayed hair; you may never have a full gray on yours either. There are shampoos to make them shine but I just use regular Suave shampoo and it does shine. You will like it when it gets long enough to cut off the other color.

I unaware chose a permanent rinse for my hair years ago and had to let it grow out. I found a shampoo type that had a little color in it. It washed out with next shampoo if you didn't use that again. I would just look at a beauty supply store for advise.

i finaly let mine go to natural and it looks like a dark ash there is arinse called fancyful you can ger it at sally's hair supply walgreens use to cary it it is just a rinse from shampoo to shampoo

1. Not really, unless you wear a hat! When I let my grey grow out, I got my hair cut short and frequently - so it wasn't too bad.

2. My hairdresser recommends a purple shampoo, specially formulated for grey hair. It helps keep it white, not yellow, and really brings out the shine.

Keep in mind that the grey you now have is your "natural" colour and, once you get used to it, you'll realize that it's really pretty gorgeous after all. And if you want to really funky get a coloured streak put in it like I did - royal blue goes beautifully with grey!

I was a medium brown and always dyed it when I started to get the grey. I remember I did the same thing to see what my roots looked like at age 60, I think. I was so tired of the dying and I was beginning to get thin spots and that is from years of dying.

I decided to keep what hair I had left even if it was grey, better than bald.

My six inch roots looked horrible but I perservered and let it grow out. I shampooed every second day and put conditioner and some shine product and just kept it high up in a bun.

When it finally gew out to cutting lenght, I was shocked at the color. I love it. My avatar is a recent pic. So be patient and let it grow all the way out and see what you have, there are all sorts of things you can do to make it the way you like.

The style I have now is one that I like very much but it takes some upkeep, so yesterday I had it cut shorter and it is easier to keep up.

I've been wearing a medium brown for years and the grey is a real different look, so much lighter. I usually wear my hair fairly short (I call it my Sue Sylvester style! - See pic), so the grey is about 1/3 to 1/2 of my total growth.

I just don't want to look old and worn out!!! (even if I sometimes feel that way! :-D

Corky you are a beautiful woman. You won't look worn out lol....just be patient...

I really hate that yellowed look - to me its the same as yellow teeth. Sorry, hope I haven't offended anyone.

I hope to love my natural hair.

You local salon should have a product made by CHI. Tone and shine. Leave it on your hair for a few minutes while in the shower and it covers the gray. Washes out after a few washes. But its not like some of the hair dyes out there that wash out uneven. this stuff is all natural and is a great product in my opinion. the only draw back is the price. I really dont know how much I get mine for free because my mom is a hair dresser.

I just went "natural". I had gone lighter and got tired of dying it. I had my hair cut like Jamie Lee Curtis. I really like it and have gotten compliments on it. It has always bothered others more than me. I am staying silver/gray.

i had the same problem when growing out my hair i decided to get it cut short to get rid of the rest of the color boy am i glad i dont have to keep that up anymore

Pantene makes a good blue shampoo called Silver Expressions, cream rinse too, mine is white with silver sparkles and has been since my 30s, if you smoke or are around someone who does it will always have a yellow tint. part of why I quit smoking!

I too am very gray, more white in front and grayer in back. I have been so since my 40s and love it. I did dye it once and didn't like the upkeep so keep it natural. I also use the Pantene for silver hair as our water has alot of rust in it and my hair tends to turn yellowish.

you have to remember that gray hair has a different (coarser) texture than your "normal" hair, so you have to do more to it to get it shiny and smooth.

Some gray hair is coarser than the original but mine came in baby fine. I keep thinking it is thin but my beautician keeps telling me it is because it is gray/white and very fine it looks and feels thinner. It was more coarse when I was younger.

I am letting mine grow out too, I have had graying hair since high school. I alway had some sort of color on it but I have decided to let it grow out also. Since my color was a lighter one its not as noticiable as when someone has darker color on the ends. If its grown out 6 inches why dont you just get a new style that would rid you of all the colored hair...its a win win new color and new style. It might look completely different to you once all the old colored hair is gone

I have white hair, done past the grey stage and was down the middle of my back in length..........started when I was in my 30's, from my dad's side of the family. I will be 50 in May, and like today, I just colored my hair, med auburn (original color) .......my mom is 69 and had very little grey. My dad was grey by 25 or earlier from what I remember being told. I just can't do it...the grey/white. We just moved to this area and went to the church in town yesterday, then eventually the pastor stopped by our house and was visiting. Was amazed as to how young I looked with the amount of grandchildren (7) I have. Thought my husband had "robbed" the cradel. He was to funny, but for me, grey makes me look older then my mother and I just don't feel that old yet.
The Wednesday before Christmas, I did get it cut to just below the shoulder for a new look but still don't have the heart to go all grey/white. So I will continue coloring.

Robinlee, I am in the same boat. My hair grows very fast so keeping the color up is a bother, but I just can't let it go gray. It isn't me. I have thought about it, but that's the extent of my going natural. Red is natual for me, not gray.

I went gray about 1 1/2 years ago. Everyone tells me I have beautiful gray hair. I say, at least I don't have the hassle of coloring it any more!!!! When I decided to do it, I cut it very short and let it grow out. I loved the short hair, and it didn't take long for it to grow. It's medium short now because I choose to have it that way. I think the funny part of being gray is when I'm in a room with ladies twice my age ( slight exaggeration ) and I'm the only one with gray hair! They all still color theirs.

I was going to suggest this, as well. My mom used it when it first came out and it tinted her hair purple - like you see on old ladies in the cartoons!

I have natural blond hair and the shampoo I use definitely affects my hair color. Some shampoos turn it very dark. If you have problems with the "gray" shampoo, try one of the ones for blondes. Pantene and John Freida both make one. It won't bleach your hair, it just keeps it from getting darker.

You can also try a rinse with white vinegar after you wash your hair. Or, you can do 50-50 conditioner and white vinegar. Don't use apple cider vinegar because it darkens your hair. Apply the vinegar generously, then rinse out. The vinegar smell vanishes when your hair is dry. Leaves your hair silky and shiny.

Thanks so much........I have contemplated a couple times, but I get comments on my hair all the time, and 2x's yesterday and besides my husband that was the first since I went about 6" shorter a couple weeks ago.

I've lost weight (25lbs) since July, but still have atleast 40lbs to go. But ever since high school, the long "red" hair (and hazel eyes) was and still is my calling card I guess you could say.

I wear my hair so short that I could never get 6" of roots. When I get my hair cut it is less than 1" all over my head. When I did color my hair 20 years ago, a single hair cut would automatically take me back to my original color.

I have considerably more gray now at 64, but I earned every one of them and had lots of fun.

I have worn my hair this short for 30 years and like that it is wash and go.

I still color my hair. I have a white streak on each side of my face just like Cruella DeVille and I'm not quite ready to show the world yet.

Gorgeous! If I could look like you!!

Ohh! Thanks for all the advice!

I tell my boys to look really closely at my grey hair 'cause their names are written on every hair!! So glad my grandsons are perfect angels!

Well that certainly explains why mine seems duller than my colored hair.

There are alot of herbal ways to brighten gray hair without having to resort to dyes. Here's an example...


http://www.associatedcontent.com/art...ly.html?cat=69

Well, I'm probably the wrong person to ask, but, i'd suggest that you cut your hair.

I've been a 'wash and wear hair' girl since I was 20 - now 61. It's very rare that my hair gets past 4 inches long...it's just too much work! So I'd have a 'natural' head of hair in about 2 - 3 months.

I did let it grow out to about 10" about 5 years ago. It was a nice change, but the upkeep was a burden. My DH was relieved when I went back to my 'normal' look. Me, too!

Love that comment! I finally stopped coloring my hair inmy early 40's. I didnt have enough gray to look good, just patches. Everyone tells me I have beautiful gray hair, but I really don"t see it, just didnt want the dyed look any longer. MyMIL and SIL all raved about my hair, but they all dyed theirs. MIL died at 83 in an accident, but she had dark brown hair. I use a Pantene product that is clear , suppose to stop frizz, and it makes my hair very shiny.

I occasionally use the Pantene Silver Expressions. My hair color was auburn and I was afraid it would come in yellowy, but since it faded to ash brown and then started going grey (in my mid-30's) it won't hold color. And left alone, it is shiny, soft and I get lots of compliments on my "highlight" which are really God's highlights.

I do the 'splurge' every couple of months and get highlights/lowlights in my hair. That way as it grows out it is not as noticable. I also have gone back to my usual short kinda pixie style that's just blow 'n go. Much easier to take care of!

Well, I love your hair! I hope mine looks as good!

I hope I get 'God's Highlights" too!

oh wow, you sound like me at the hairdresser, I am (was?) a natural brunette, slowly had lighter and lighter until i was blonde. I'd rather spend money on other things than my hair. SO i cut it short, used a semi/demi color to bring me back to what my natural was. Now I am at the point where I don't have to color any longer. I earned my gray ad I'm happy to wear it. I'm 44 and loving every minute of shorter hair and not paying my hairdresser oodles of $$ every 6 weeks.

PS. I wear NO make up either, never have. I still wear a bra, though, can't stand to have those things hanging in my waist band :-)

I have medium brown hair and it is super baby fine.
where the strands of gray that have shown up they are so odd. they are all sparkly irredescent and very noticeable.

Can you still get the Pantene silver expressions??? I cant find it, and I was told that they stopped making it. I have very light grey and white hair.....blessed with that combination at a very early age as my mom was completely silver when she was 40.
My hairdresser used to put alot of blonde streaks in my hair to camoflauge it , but then finally convinced me to let it go natural.
I have had alot of compliments on it, but it was a rough transition for me...