The Generous Guide to Going Gray

If you’re thinking about going gray and finally allowing your salt-and-pepper strands to grow freely, the chances are that you’re pretty nervous. However, there’s good news! Letting your mane go gray doesn’t have to be scary. With this simple guide on steps to make the process easier, you’ll find that achieving glorious grey tresses isn’t half as difficult as you imagined.

• Fight the stigma

You’ve surely seen it before – a woman panicking at the sight of her first gray hair.  Gray hair is associated with getting older, and because getting older has been considered a negative change for the longest time, gray strands are targeted on sight.

Men and women both experience the fear of graying hair, but it’s time to do away with the cover-ups, dyes and plucking that often follows. By embracing the natural process of aging, you allow yourself to let go of society’s beauty standards. Natural beauty is just as worthy as cosmetically-enhanced beauty, and it’s time that the world knew it.

• Make salon plans

Finding a competent hairdresser who knows what they’re doing makes the journey to gray much easier. Will you choose to keep your natural gray color or blend it with natural-looking lowlights and highlights to enhance your hair’s look? The final product lies in the hands of a hairstylist you choose to trust with your hair. Ensure that they are educated and experienced about the graying process and that they know exactly how to bring out the best in your locks.

• Gradual chops can save your life

If you’ve been leaving your roots to grow freely in preparation for an all-out gray mane, then there’s great news! You won’t have to wait for your roots to grow out. As your gray roots continue to grow, small chops every few months or twice a year can be the perfect way to get closer to a full head of gray without having to compromise much of your length.

If you don’t mind rocking short hair and prefer a big chop to get directly to gray hair, you can opt for that route, too. The option you feel most comfortable with is the one you’ll feel most confident with.

• A cut that suits your face, style and lifestyle is key

Gray hair can look bland without some sort of shape or cut to spice it up a bit. A cut that makes your gray hair pop is great to keep things interesting. It’s up to you whether a short medium-length or long cut is best, of course!

There are no one-size-fits-all when it comes to the best cut for gray hair. You might love how a style looks on someone else, but you may find that it looks very different on you. To avoid a cut that you can’t undo, ensure that your hairstylist assesses your face shape, personal preferences, and lifestyle to help you make the best possible choice.

• Color crazy? Leave it to the pros

If you decide to go the color route, there’s one thing that you absolutely must avoid: trying to recreate the perfect silver tones yourself. Stylists do more than just apply a block of pigment to your hair. They’re actually trained in where and how to apply the right lowlights and highlights to fit the shade of your hair.

Attempting to do the job yourself could mean a messy tragedy for the health and appearance of your hair. It’s just not worth it to risk damaging your precious mane!

Though a professional salon color job can be quite expensive, it’s an investment in your looks that is sure to pay off.

• The right hair products can make or break your hair!

Choosing to go gray comes with the need for more attention placed on the products that you’ll be using. Gray and silver hair can tend to turn yellow or brassy-looking over time, especially if you’ve had it colored professionally. To avoid that old-newspaper look, you’ll need to get your hands on the right products for your hair and ensure that you use them as consistently as they’re required to be used.

Purple shampoo and conditioners and even purple rinses can help to keep that perfect silver hue for as long as possible. Whether your hair has been colored or is a natural silver/gray color, specially formulated products like these can make the biggest difference in maintaining your silver locks.

• Own your look

Transitioning from your usual hair color to gray hair can be quite a shocker. You might feel uncomfortable at first – you might even feel like everyone’s watching you or judging you! But the truth is this: there’s nothing more beautiful and fulfilling than learning to accept your body for what it naturally does, grays and all.

Your graying hair is just as acceptable as any other hue. Finding ways to complement it can make you feel much more at ease. Gray hair has no color, so colorful clothes, makeup or jewelry can be the perfect way to add some life into your look.

Journey to going fully gray is quite an experience. Sure, you’ll learn a lot about your hair, but you’ll learn a lot about yourself, too. You’ll see your gray hair as a crown; as a gentle reminder of the years that you’ve lived through and made the most of. Getting older isn’t a punishment, it’s a blessing. Letting your gray strands take over with this handy guide will surely be a breeze.

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