Silver is the new Black - How to make the transition easier

I remember the first time I really noticed a younger woman with silver hair, it must haave been 12-15 years ago, I met her at the bus stop on the way to work. We took the same bus in the morning for several years and I was blown away by her beauty and her silver hair. She reminds me about Helen Mirren, but younger. She was my age, we were both in our mid 40s. I had some serious silver hair envy. I remember I dreamed my hair had gone silver over night and that I went to my hairdresser to cut it in a short pixie to get all my silver hair out there. I was somewhat disappointed when I woke up in the morning and found that my roots was nowhere near silver.

It might be a bit funny that I am such an ambassador for going silver. After all I do dye my hair and have no plans to go natural just yet. The answer is in my genes, in my family we really don’t go grey, we more kind of fade and that’s not a very good look. And as long as I can get away with dying my hair every 12th week or so it’s not a big hassle. Actually I only full dye once a year, the other times I do something they call a quick fix and only dye the crown area and the the top. It’s a blessing I know, but I also think that to gray gracefully is a blessing and I still get serious silver envy.

When you come to a point where you need to dye your roots every 2nd week it might be time to give in and let nature do it’s magic. Everyone knows you are gray anyway, it’s hard to hide, especially if you have dark hair. For blondes it can be easier as the contrast is not as high between the blonde and the gray.

So how to grow out your gray without going completely insane? If you can afford it you can get help from a hairstylist that’s an expert in this. It’s a long and expensive process. I checked with a hairstylist and she said it’s 10-12 hours and it will set you back at least $1800. So for this kind of money you really need to know that the stylist knows what she/he’s doing. I have seen some amazing transformations though, and I’m sure you have as well. Jack Martin for instance is a well known colorist who can do magic like this.

For me who’s a pixie girl the obvious solution would be to cut the hair short, short hair is flattering for most face shapes, and you will get your natural color very quickly if you choose this approach. Here’s some pixie inspiration. Dame Judy Dench and Jamie Lee Curtis are 2 celebrities who really rocks the silver pixie. And if you look at the 3 other women in this collage you can’t possibly say that grey hair is aging. A pixie is not as hard to grow out either, I have grown out my pixie several times, the trick is really to to keep the neck short while growing it out. To get a pixie cut is the fastest and cheapest way to transition into gray.

Pixies are not for everyone, even if it might be flattering for you. Not everyone feels comfortable with short hair, and then there’s your husband who might tell you again and again how much he loves your long hair. I’m for sure no expert in this, but talk to your stylist. Getting your hair cut with more layers and get some waves will soften the look and the contrast will not be as visible. Up does will also help, put your hair in a ponytail for instance, then you will see your silver more and the dyed hair will be in the back. Other tricks are to use headbands or hats. A straw hat in the summer is super delicate or maybe you’re more of a baseball cap girl. In the winter a beanie or a beret will be good options, you can even wear them indoors if you make them part of your outfit.

On Facebook there’s numerous groups where you can get more ideas, information and it’s always good to be part of a community where the people are going through or have been through the same as you. Here’s some of the groups my clients are members of. Silver Foxy, Silver Sisters, Growing Gray Gracefully, Silver Revolution, The Silver Circle to mention a few.

This is the first blogpost in this series, in the next blogpost I will talk about if going gray will change your season. And I have asked some of the women in my group to share their transitioning stories. So stay tuned.

You are most welcome to join my Facebook community (2) Colors In Style By Kari Community | Facebook

I`m a Contrasting Panache Autumn, which season are you?