Giving up the dye/bleach and growing out natural? Share your progress.

[memeow]

Taisyun, I think your hair looks great. All those different colors give you a lot of depth and emphasize your shine. I think it's a very cool and unique look, not strange at all. It makes you look a little wild, and reminds me of Lyra in The Golden Compass

Of course if you've been growing it this long and still don't like it, it's possible you never will. But I find it an enviable mixture of colors

[lunasea]

Ok, I'm really REALLY scared right now. I just cancelled my hairdresser appointment for next week. I've decided to grow out my natural color. This is the first time I've been without a pending dye appointment in years but I have to stop the damage. I don't even know what color my hair is anymore- just that there's more gray in the front than in the back. I'm so nervous about doing this I feel like I need to be locked up in a detox program or something. I've read bits and pieces of this thread but not the whole thing so I don't know if other folks have been this scared about this step.

[hairpleasegrow]

Ok, I'm really REALLY scared right now. I just cancelled my hairdresser appointment for next week. I've decided to grow out my natural color. This is the first time I've been without a pending dye appointment in years but I have to stop the damage. I don't even know what color my hair is anymore- just that there's more gray in the front than in the back. I'm so nervous about doing this I feel like I need to be locked up in a detox program or something. I've read bits and pieces of this thread but not the whole thing so I don't know if other folks have been this scared about this step.

Good for you! If you want a different result you have to do something different….

I am in the same boat I am teetering and tottering between going back to the hairdresser for highlights but I think it is better I just stay out of the salon and let my hair grow. There are too many variables walking into a salon….. will they mess up the colour? How about brushing... will they brush our hair vigorously when wet (I need every strand)? will they use cones (I'm sure if I asked what ingredients were in the product they'd look at me as if I had three heads) ? a hairdryer? A roller brush? A flat iron? Then you have to pay them AND tip them. EEK it stresses me out just thinking about it

[blue_eyes]

I have the same problem. My hair is naturally brown. a kind of chocolate brown. not dark, not light and not medium. The hair around my forehead is golden blonde and I have gingery and golden blonde hairs everywhere throughout. But only on some days? (its so strange) some days the hair will just completely change shades. I grew my virgin hair out to armpit length hoping I'd get to like the color but i HATE it.

I can relate Taisyun! My natural hair looks like an ashy/greyish-brown one minute, and other times has very prominent red or gold tones, then looks like a light golden blonde in the sunlight (the hair around my forehead is almost platinum it's such a light blonde). I swear that on some occasions it even has a green tinge to it. Other times it can look like a nice, rich brown color. I'm not a big fan of it, and I never have been. There are times where I think it looks pretty, and other times where I think it's disgusting.

My other issue is that I don't think any of this vast array of colors looks good on me (except for the light blonde hairs around my forehead). I didn't start growing out my virgin hair with the intention to stop dyeing forever, I'm only doing it to get a fresh start with healthy hair &then use better practices to try and keep it healthy (I severely damaged my hair by trying to go from black dye to blonde several times, and the breakage got very bad). Maybe by the time I've grown out the dye I won't want to start coloring again, but so far I still hate my natural color.

[jocosobe]

On saturday, It's been 18 months since I last bleached my hair. And my best friend cut out nearly 8 inches of the bleach yesterday(!!)
I feel soo liberated and free, and I can't believe my hair is so soft and healthy. Right now, i'd say that I have about 75% of virgin hair and I'm feeling so close to my goal.
I'm going to keep on cutting layers in the bleached areas, and hopefully by October-November, It will all be gone
In the pictures, it looks a bit uneven and wavy because I slept in a bun, but it's straighter and a bit longer in it's natural state.

[blue_eyes]

Wow jocosobe, your hair looks great!! You can barely even tell your ends are bleached. It must feel so great to be so close to being dye free, I can't wait to be where you are! Congrats!

[Belle Paix]

I'll join in! I'm a newbie, and after having short hair for four years (3 & 1/2, I guess!), I've decided no more coloring and no more heat. I colored my hair back to it's original brown last night (or pretty close), and am starting new. Holy Crap!

[abauer789]

jocosobe, your hair looks awesome! I did the same thing just cut off all the damage by layering and cutting off length once I was at shoulder. It is the best feeling! I can totally relate to your comment on how liberating it is!
Congrats!

[Dickiebow]

Jocosobe Fantastic progress. Your hair seems to grow quickly. It's so shiny

[jocosobe]

Blue_eyes Thank you so much! I know, it looks more like dip dye now than ombré. It truly feels amazing, the texture and softness is amazing. When my hair was long and I'd wash and conditioned my hair, the ends felt soft for like one day, and by the next day, they'd dry up and feel all crunchy which is not the case anymore. Feels so good

Abauer789 Thank you! Didn't you cut your hair at 18 months aswell? It is the absolute best feeling, I can't stop touching my ends, haha! Yes, so liberating!!!

Dickiebow Thank you so much! People say it grows fast but I don't know, when you're waiting for your natural hair to grow, it feels like an eternity sometimes, haha!