Grey hair...

[Jester]

I seem to be getting it.

I consider myself fortunate in the sense that, unlike my stepbrother, my hairline is not heading north quicker than a pack of Huskies. But suddenly, out of nowhere, I am starting to get grey hairs. Okay, not out of nowhere, but until recently, it was a grey hair here, a grey hair there, no biggie. But suddenly people are noticing. At first I thought it was just my drunk friends being asses at a bar, but when my not drunk friends noticed it in a dimly lit bar, and my mother commented on it when I was back home a few weeks ago, I couldn't deny it anymore. I am definitely getting grey hairs.

The question is, what to do about it?

In my mind, I have three options.

1. Screw it. Let nature take its course.

2. Fuck this. Have the place where I get my hair cut color my hair. I asked about it at my last hair cut, and the girl said that for them to do it there (where they haircuts are not really all that expensive, at $20 a pop once a month or so), it would cost me $40 each time on TOP of the haircut, and that to keep the color consistent, I would have to pretty much do it every time I got my hair cut, every 4-6 weeks. That seems a bit steep.

3. Fuck this. Color my hair myself. My mom did this for YEARS before she let her hair go grey, and to her credit, or perhaps the credit of the product she used, her hair color looked totally natural, and no one would guess that she was going grey. I will probably ask Mom what she used, since our hair color is so similar (mine may be a shade darker), but do any of you have any suggestions for products of this kind? I don't care about brand, I just want something that will look natural and not break the bank...if I go this route.

So, opinions? Comments? Suggestions? Criticisms? Stock tips?

[Dasota]

I say go natural. But I'm odd. I'm a youngin who thinks guys with salt and pepper hair are hot and the occasional all grey as well.

Now my dad. My dad has an interesting thing going on with his hair and it going grey. Started with just the beard. Then the mustache. Then the eyebrows. And then it just stopped. Full head of nice brown hair, no grey in it at all, except this one tiny patch behind his ear that isn't noticeable until you move other hair out of the way, but he's had that since he was in his 20's.

[Lindsey]

My mom started going grey early. I'm 20 so I probably have some years ahead of me before I need to deal with it, but I already decided that when it happens, I'll wear it proudly. Sure, it's a sign of age, but who cares?

My mom, on the other hand, dyes her hair at home and uses L'oreal, which is inexpensive and looks great. She can match her natural color pretty closely and it's cheaper for her to re-dye it herself and keep up on the roots than it would be to do the same at a salon.

In the end, whatever makes you more comfortable. If your hair is a big part of your identity and your self-comfort, then there's no shame in dyeing it. At the same time, I don't think there's anything wrong in letting it grey naturally.

[crazylegs]

Do nothing. Unless you're going to dye your eyebrows and beard as well then eventually everyone will be able to see that you're going grey - then when the dye eventually washes out it'll be such a huge difference it'll be very noticeable.

[csquared]

The Wife always said that the salt & pepper look would look distinguished. I'm beyond salt and pepper now. I am too cheap to do anything about it.

There is another option.



I'm still looking to try out that straight razor my Grandfather gave me.

Who loves ya, baby?

[dalesys]

The Babes sing to this dilemma: Bald Headed Men

[Jester]

Unless you're going to dye your eyebrows and beard as well ...

Not currently an issue for me, actually. My eyebrows have yet to get any grey issues, nor are they all that bushy so I doubt one or two would be noticeable.

I currently am cleanshaven, but when I do sport my goatee, it does have a few WHITE hairs in it, but no GREY. But then, that has always been the case, since my first moustache at 18. I know that sounds odd, but it's true, and apparently my dad went through the same thing with his facial hair.

Also, I've noticed a few guys who's facial hair and head hair don't always match in this vein. Mark Schereth, the sportscaster, is a notable example. His head hair is just fine, but his goatee is going very grey, with grey now being the predominant color in it.

There is another option.

A shaved head is an option...it's just not an option FOR ME. And not only because my hair is thick and awesome and girls love it and I love it.

But also because I am a short white skinny Jewish guy. Shaved heads don't really work for people like me.

[XCashier]

My mom, on the other hand, dyes her hair at home and uses L'oreal, which is inexpensive and looks great. She can match her natural color pretty closely and it's cheaper for her to re-dye it herself and keep up on the roots than it would be to do the same at a salon.

Many hair dyes stink to high heaven. I use Clairol Natural Instincts and it doesn't have that harsh ammonia smell, and leaves your hair very soft. It's only semi-permanent, though, and it fades in about 28 shampoos. There are dyes specifically for men (Just For Men brand) but I know nothing about those, nor why men have to use a different hair dye than women.

I started going grey in my teens and having to dye my hair in my twenties. I have often wondered how I would look if I'd let nature take its course, but I'm not yet ready to go grey, even at 43!

[firecat88]

I started going grey a while ago (Found my first grey hair when I was about 20, I believe). It's only been within the past couple years, though, when the greys were more and more prominent that I've been getting it dyed. Early greying runs in my family, though. My dad's hair was completely salt-and-pepper by the time he was 35. My grandmother (his mom) was the same way and I honestly hope that, if I keep going grey, that I go the way she did. Her hair is completely clean-laundry white and is actually rather beautiful.

[MaggieTheCat]

$40 is, if anything, cheap for a color...it's at least $100 when I want mine done professionally, sometimes upwards of $120. But my hair is very long, very thick, and very dark, so they have to use both peroxide and dye, and lots of both to get mine to do anything. And $40 is still a good chunk of change, especially if you're getting it done every other month.

Anyway...I vote for trying to color it yourself if you want, and then going natural if you don't like it/too much hassle/too expensive. A friend of mine is 29 and already has quite a bit of grey (she says it's genetic, her mother was entirely grey by the time she was 35 or 40.) She recently got her hair cut in such a way that the grey looks very, very nice on her. So, you can make it work naturally in your favor. Maybe ask your stylist what cut they'd recommend to "bring out" the grey, in a good way.

[cashierbex]

I say go natural.

[AnaKhouri]

Let it go, man. People age for a reason, and I think trying to hide it is silly, personally. I have had white hair (not gray, mine comes in snow white!) since I was 20. While I still don't look like Emmylou Harris yet (darn) it's more noticable now. I don't care.

[Lindsey]

Many hair dyes stink to high heaven. I use Clairol Natural Instincts and it doesn't have that harsh ammonia smell, and leaves your hair very soft. It's only semi-permanent, though, and it fades in about 28 shampoos. There are dyes specifically for men (Just For Men brand) but I know nothing about those, nor why men have to use a different hair dye than women.

The L'oreal dye my mom uses smells harsh while she's dying it, but after the first shampoo the smell is gone. Also, I heard that semi-permanent is better for your hair than permanent since it strips fewer natural oils from your hair, leaving it softer.

[auntiem]

Anyway...I vote for trying to color it yourself if you want, and then going natural if you don't like it/too much hassle/too expensive. A friend of mine is 29 and already has quite a bit of grey (she says it's genetic, her mother was entirely grey by the time she was 35 or 40.) She recently got her hair cut in such a way that the grey looks very, very nice on her. So, you can make it work naturally in your favor. Maybe ask your stylist what cut they'd recommend to "bring out" the grey, in a good way.

This!
I noticed that my hair went grey first on the hair that went naturally blond in the summer - once it reaches my natural red highlights I may re-think dying it - but a good haircut could make use of your grey as a natural highlight.
Also, now that your Mom has gone grey - is it a pretty grey? I ask because some people luck out and get a really pretty shade of grey hair. My Mom gets compliments all the time on hers (jury is still out on if I lucked out and got her genes).
That, and I agree with other posters - salt and pepper hair is hot on a guy.

[Jester]

Also, now that your Mom has gone grey - is it a pretty grey?

You tell me, since I can't really be objective on Mom. Personally, I don't think she looks her age (she was 75 in this picture, will be 77 this summer), as no one in our family seems to look their age, and her hair, unlike my stepfather's, is hardly thinning or anything, as happens to a lot of older women. (Yes, that is all her real hair....no wig, no hairpiece, and nowadays, no coloring, either!)

In the first picture, it's my mom, my older sister, and my stepfather at (I think) my cousin's wedding. (Which would have been, I think, October of 2010.) The second picture is from January 2011 when the whole family gathered in Phoenix. From left to right you have Mom, my older sister, me, and my younger sister. I love this picture because I look really tall in it. I'm not. I'm only 5'8". But I look tall because my mom is 5' and slouches, my older sister is 5', and my younger sister is 4'11", though she claims 5'.