I'm not sure anymore what to do about gray hairs.
The first time I saw one a few years ago, I immediately yanked it out and made a blog post about OMG I'M SO OLD I HAVE GRAY HAIRS NOW. Now I see one every month or two.
One problem is that my hair is dark but not uniformly so. Meaning I do have some blondish strands. So occasionally a blond hair will catch my attention and I have to isolate it and examine it to determine if it is in fact gray or blond. I feel slightly ridiculous while doing this.
I realize at some point, I'm going to need to stop yanking out gray hairs or else face baldness. I'm just not sure what the critical amount of gray is where it's better to dye than yank. Also, I always thought I'd be the kind of person who would totally be okay with having gray hairs, but I guess no woman is excited about looking older.
I thought I'd be okay with gray hairs too, until they started coming. Maybe it's just because I'm young (mid-20s). The first time I saw one a few months ago I immediately called my mom to ask when she started getting them (she turned gray way before my dad) and her response was "about you're age, sorry."
ReplyDeleteI only have 1 or 2 that pop up for now, but there's going to come a time soon when I'm in your situation. Let me know what you decide :)
Yeah I started getting them early. I have dark hair too and I can see them right off, but other people don't actually. I think as long as you have a snazzy hair style people just assume you're young and don't look for gray hair. That's what I tell myself anyway!
ReplyDeleteWhat's left of mine is going gray. Hazards of kids.
ReplyDeleteConsider dye. It's what my wife did.
I keep looking forward to grey hair, except neither of my parents have grey hair. It doesn't seem to run in my family, until one is very old. My grandma had some, before she passed, and dyed it religiously. I rather liked the silvery look, but that's just me!
ReplyDeleteJust wait until the gray starts popping up elsewhere.... :/
ReplyDeleteI've been getting them since 25ish. I don't pull them or anything, I guess I don't really care much about them. I really love my natural hair color and I wouldn't want to dye it.
ReplyDeleteSo long as I get to keep my hair, I can't complain about it going gray. Many of my early 30's friends are already half way bald, so I really can't complain about the fact that even my nose hair's are starting to go grey. haha
ReplyDeleteDitto to ER Jedi. I'd be okay with grey hair. I'd be much unhappier with less hair.
ReplyDeleteI actually like grey hair. My mom is salt and peppered and I think it's really stunning on her.
ReplyDeleteI started having grey hairs pop up as soon as I got married...and I'm in my late-ish-twenties. I blame my husband ;)
ReplyDelete(You know this already but).... I've had white hair since I was 13. I now have a noticeable streak in the front. I'm not all that interested in dying it because a) I am lazy, b) I don't think about my appearance all that much and it doesn't look that bad to me, c) I have a very young face so it doesn't make most people assume that I'm 40, d) I swim, and chlorine would kill any dye job, e) The skunk stripe looks horrible when it grows in, so if you're going to dye, you're committing to going at least 1 time a month.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I have enough gray yet to dye it... 1-2 hairs per month is still yankable, I think. But more and more, I think I will probably end up coloring it when I get to that critical mass of gray. I never wear make-up, but I do think gray makes a big difference in how old you look.
ReplyDeleteAccept them. Far easier. And cheaper.
ReplyDeleteI had a theatre prof who had a stunning skunk stripe. Loved it. I don't mind gray hairs too much, but lately I get a few wiry shocking white strands that grow in at my part. I perhaps erroneously blame the stress of internship for these. They stick straight up so I feel compelled to yank. Dyeing hair seems like a big pain and darker dyes are more carcinogenic, so I'm on the fence about using dye when the time comes.
ReplyDeleteI have very dark hair, and started getting white hairs in early high school. I hope my hair goes solid white one day. (Only 30 now, so I'm crossin' my fingers!)
ReplyDeletePGYx -- I think you're confused about what a skunk stripe is. It's not a streak in the front. It's the white roots that show up when you fail to get a touch up. There is no such thing as a stunning skunk stripe.
ReplyDeleteI'm in my mid-20s, and there is no way to part my hair at this point to avoid the gray.
ReplyDeleteI've been going steadily gray since I was about 18, but it really picked up in grad school. The thing is, I'm really freaking tired of people talking to me like I'm 12. I have a tiny head, sloped shoulders, and a very close-mouthed, shy-seeming approach to people who don't know me well, so I know where it comes from, but Jesus Christ. I still get carded. I have probably about 5-10% gray hair at this point, plus the wrinkles on my forehead, and I'm getting carded.
It seems like "young, female" is enough for some people to dismiss me. Especially--this is a bitch thing to say, but it's true--the men in Psych who think they are "nice guys" and therefore deserve the right to talk more than any woman in the class. There are men in Psych who are great. These guys are not. They're the same assholes who corner you at a club and tell you all about what nice guys they are and how women don't dig that, do they, they all want jerks. And they have no problem talking down to female classmates, whether they're at the undergraduate or graduate level.
So. I'm enjoying the gray. It shuts up more people, makes me look older, makes me look more trustworthy. Pair it with a cardigan and I'm practically Mister Rogers. I'm engaged and I'm not out there trying to get laid, so I figure, why not rock the Cruella de Ville vibe? (Next stop, tailored suits and a perpetual sneer.)
OMDG: You're right, I'm picturing a totally different image when I think of a skunk stripe. I just googled pictures which seem to show the image I have in mind -- a long streak of white/light hair. How is it a stripe if your roots are all growing in gray? Are you just referring to what it looks like at your part line?
ReplyDeletePGYx -- Exactly.
ReplyDeletePGYx & OMDG: Uh.. I've heard it called a witch's stripe. *^_^*
ReplyDelete