Editors Notes: We at HairMNL embrace every shade of hair color, even that dreaded grey ones. But if you’re not ready to sport the salt amongst your peppers, that’s okay. Together with Davines, we want to help you understand the changes happening to your hair and share some tips on how to manage those silver.
As much as you may love your anti-aging skincare routine, you must also come to accept a universal truth: we all get older, and it’s unavoidable. For anyone lucky enough to make it to their older years, things like wrinkles and gradual loss of energy can become minor annoyances to have to adapt to. Every journey is different, but one of the most common experiences associated with getting older is noticing that our hair has started to turn gray.
So, what causes gray hair in the first place?
The idea of “gray” hair, in general, has its own misconceptions: rather than your hair changing color, the emergence of gray hair is a sign that the regeneration process your hair goes through is slowing down. So while you may have been a brunette all your life, your hair follicles start producing less color as they age, and the regenerative cycle of hair dying and regrowing will start to produce hair with a lighter and grayer color than before.
You may have seen some stunning looks of women choosing to show off their gray hair rather than hide it, but how you look and choose to present yourself is a personal choice. Maybe you feel at your best when your hair is a different color, and of course, gray might not be the most flattering look for everyone. So for any brunettes who are interested in hiding their gray hair as it comes in, here are some of the best options:
Photo by kennakunijo/Instagram
Dyeing Gray Hair
If your roots are coming in strong or you’re just ready to take the plunge, there are several ways your stylist can help cover up any gray strands. It’s important to get their opinion on what will work best for your hair texture, color, and condition, so be sure to ask for a consultation to see what they suggest before committing to one path.
Photo by kennakunijo/Instagram
Highlights
The good thing about gray hair is that if it’s only a sporadic occurrence across your head, your stylist can usually use highlights to make them blend in more. A nice mixture of lowlights and highlights will add dimension to your hair, while also masking the appearance of any gray hairs. And if you opt for a balayage treatment, it generally makes the grow-out process look a lot smoother and more natural.
Full-color service
The easiest way to cover grays is by asking your stylist for an all-over color service. You’ll obviously need to keep on top of scheduling follow up appointments since your gray roots will start to come back in. But now the main question is what color brown you should be dyeing your hair.
Even if you were born with naturally dark brown hair, it might not be the best choice in this case — we lose the natural pink hues in our skin as we age, so darker hair colors can actually end up making us look older and more tired. Try to stick to warmer brown hues, but always ask your stylist, as well as the best color for your skin tone, before committing to any changes.
Transitioning to gray
You might want to start by opting for a shorter haircut, lessening the visual difference between the new grays and “old” brown color. But there are other lifestyle tips (such as switching up your makeup routine to more gray-flattering hues) that can also make a big difference in your look.
The grow-out method
If you decide you’re ready to commit to gray hair but don’t want to go through any extra steps of transitioning, you always have the choice to just say “I’m fully in this” and let your hair grow out. While this can mean dealing with an awkward in-between phase for a while, when your gray roots are contrasted with your natural hair color, it’s also definitely the simplest way to acknowledge this change as a natural part of aging. And as a plus, you’ll be saving a lot of time and money that’s usually required to slowly transition your hair to be fully gray.
No matter which hair journey you choose, celebrating your newly gray hair can actually be a really beautiful and flattering choice. For at-home maintenance, there are specific shampoos and conditioners that can help to make your gray hair look more vibrant, healthy, and shiny. A combination of Alchemic Silver Hair Shampoo and Silver Conditioner, P2,900, intensify and illuminate the natural cool tones of gray or silver hair, as well as providing protection and nourishment. You’ll want to ensure that your gray hair is properly nourished and hydrated so that it can look as reflective, shiny, and healthy as possible.
The decision on whether or not to fully go gray is a big one, especially since there are so many simple ways for brunettes (and everyone else) to successfully hide their gray hair with smart styling or a salon dye-job. But every person is different, and it’s important to find the hair journey that works the best for you.
