Questions about age and when to stop coloring hair

[Anonymous]

I’m 48 and as much as I would love to stop (been doing full color since mid 30s) I’m concerned about an upcoming job search and my youngest is still in elementary school. Maybe 5 more years. When it’s time I’ll let it go for a few months and then cut it really short.

[Anonymous]

I am 46 and color but for me it is not about an age it is “acceptable” to go grey. I have enough grey to color (semi-permanent) but it is because it is in patches framing my fave and along my part. It isn’t neat enough sections to have some cool, edgy style streaks or chunks and it also isn’t all over enough or amount enough to just look salt and pepper style either.

[Anonymous]

Been coloring since late 30s (early white/greys!), mid-40s now. I am planning on coloring until at least 50 though I wouldn't be surprised if I bump that another five years down the road then...we'll see! I think coloring with a dark color looks bad on most women, especially after 60.

[Anonymous]

My mom is 74 and does henna. She looks great!

[Anonymous]

Over 60 is fair game to let the gray in.

Before 60, it really depends what your natural color is and how much gray you have.

I’m 38, medium brown with about 5% gray. I dye every 6 weeks with a demi color gloss. It doesn’t give full coverage but blends the grays nicely and fades them into highlights. There is no harsh line either.

As I get more and more gray though, I will probably have to come up with a different plan. Dyeing med/dark brown hair that is more than 50% gray doesn’t look good to me. Plus I’m not about to do 2 week touch ups. So at that point, I will talk to my colorist about something different...perhaps keeping some gray and doing intermittent low lights?

[Anonymous]

I’m 51 and have never covered gray. I’ve got one about 5%-10% salt and pepper in my dark blonde/light brown hair.

[Anonymous]

I’m in my 50’s and only have a few grey hairs around my temples. My mom is probably less than 25 percent grey in her late 70s. There’s no rule, at least according to Mother Nature, that you have to be all grey at a certain age.

[Anonymous]

I'm 46 and I have 3 strands, so I highlight. My mom is natural blonde and still colors hers at 82. Whatever makes you happy.

[Anonymous]

I started graying at 16 and was full gray by 30. Have been coloring since I was 19. I doubt I will ever stop coloring.

[Anonymous]

Going gray gracefully is becoming the more modern approach - some day we will look back and wonder why we went to all this trouble to look younger…I’d just do it now and you will be ahead of the times and showing peers (and your kids) that it’s ok not to play the game of trying to look unchanged as years go by!

[Anonymous]

Keeping up with professional color is part of the deal for many executive women. I’m about 15 percent gray with dark brown hair. I’ve colored since I was about 32 and am 46 now. I tried to transition to no color during the first 11 months of the pandemic. I just looked washed out and drab. Back to semi-permanent color with partial highlights and a gloss every 8 weeks! Maybe when I retired and I’m closer to 50 percent gray I can skip all over color and go with lowlights and a clear gloss, but for now this is necessary and likely will be for another 15 years.

[Anonymous]

I went grey early and at 52 and I'm not ready to stop. I do hate the hassle and expense but I feel it will make me look really old to go grey.

[Anonymous]

It really depends on the person. I have dark hair with a lot of gray, concentrated in the front, and it really ages me and makes me look washed out. I am 43 and have been coloring since my early 30s. Some people can pull off gray hair and look great, but I am not one of them.

[Anonymous]

A lot depends upon if you are in the workforce. If you are in the workforce color your hair until your last paycheck.

[Anonymous]

I’m allergic to most makeup and hair dyes and am very pale. Henna/indigo and lipstick are the only things these days that make me look like I have a face. If I went gray I think I’d look over 50 and I’m only 46. Not ready for that yet.