Salt and Pepper DROPOUTS thread! (Going gray but can't QUITE give up the dye! HAHA)

[turtlelover]

I flunked out of the actual salt and pepper thread. Can we have a thread for people dealing with some gray that still color either w/ chemical dyes or natural methods? I think that coloring gray has its own set of challenges for SURE! I adore salt and pepper hair -- I TRULY do!!! -- but I get so bored w/ my hair that I love to play w/ semi color just to liven things up.

[DollyDagger]

Heheh...right on turtlelover :) great idea for a thread! Im sure there are plenty who are blending their grays :)

Im letting the grays have their way :) but I'd love to hear how you guys are blending/covering..with what and how often...?

[Robi-Bird]

I'm with you. The greys will have there day but it is not his day... Or this decade.

[hennalonghair]

Salt & pepper Drop Out :rollin:
I'm not sticking to just silver hair either. Mines silver, cherry cola , & chocolate brown.
Plus I'm pretty sure my ends will be experiencing manic panic or some other semi.
I'm just leaving my roots alone.

[turtlelover]

Well, on my head at this very moment is Clairol Advanced Gray Solutions semi permanent in a 2N shade mixed 50/50 with a 2RV shade. I am hoping for a brown w/ some red overtones. My hair was more of a coppery goldish medium brown before the dye I am attempting w/ some faded blondish/coppery shades on the gray streaks. I liked my more natural color but just want BRIGHT for a change. HAHA The natural shades last for awhile but seem to fade out most of the way within 2 weeks for me. I've used it 2 times now and it seems pretty non-damaging. Of course, I haven't used it long term, and this is a less natural shade, so what it will do w/ regular applications remains to be seen! I have sworn off demi and permanent color, so this will have to satisfy my creative urges! LOL

[DollyDagger]

You're sticking with the Advance Gray..? which colour are you going to try..Have you ever checked out the elumen thread here..?


eta-lol..youve got it on right now.. okay cool. Let us know how it turns out! :)
Red colours always tend to fade fastest it will be interesting to see how long it last compared to the other colours you tried.

[turtlelover]

I used Burgundy Brown (2RV) and Espresso Bean (2N) in a 50/50 mix. It definitely darkened my hair a bit overall and added some red tones and toned down some goldish/brassy faded color already in the length of my hair, but it doesn't look at all burgundy nor too dark. My uncolored gray roots and everything blended pretty well in spite of the rest of the hair already having gold tones it it. I probably should have used the burgundy brown all by itself if I was looking for a more dramatic shade and might do that the next time around. I used the blowdryer on my hair and tried to blowdry it straighter for the first time in a couple of months and it really brings out the shine! I haven't been doing that, but I was impatient to see the color after it was dry! HAHA I would do it ALL the time if I didn't think paddle brushing it while drying would eventually do some damage, as my ends naturally will flip under when my hair is cut correctly, which looks pretty nice. *sigh* Edit: In real life, my hair looks a bit more reddish brown and not as gold as it does in this photo.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/NFLnjHFjYKMP49agsvXZnSX0U01DALyU0gL5PsOzQoF5bo3b60 5tKks9TFKFj0nFXj7ox55BzTIcF5u4zcSBKYGBxMaK0RTBGjQ5 uQJt7ECnab-6_KQPYyF-wvx7CkybunTnLjaRrt06eJGIsAb2lbhMWVxv-6cMdQDFzfEVWvS-jaKJ0fiiSEfreL7wSrKmzxWZzrJaGu4a9utgf__cYV23eoeXBZ yO9FRt8jSjSxozFyWGaNIGz-z6-P6-prkrOfGc07O76gEZwQZQ-vxUWAr5GPlnsxVv9kFJsOSOmaeYfsEfrKWf412rTKMqppvLG3j bloAKH-mjJXKyRmcEXKHxL1nQk4V51jJqrxB3YjZTzgsK0FTgPSr_OhWP qmFLz77U8UzAUO_K7O607_M2kMB5_8v3_-wfzZ1AviSLMlvCg3HTPnq-Sx_e4NuN6swfAAnVQ2R1wfmQj8hqLk64R4MQA7f04CabHxyC6S gVTKZIIf3rvP5thJ_Fj9mzVx8vfZgzGknW6TU2gHsZZ9t4ucs0 Gnz59tJdOmoCHaKIsyU=w480-h640-no

[DollyDagger]

Turtlelover ..your hair looks great! I think you and I have similar hairtypes maybe...(mines maybe a bit curlier>?Id have to see yours curly to know:) Last time I paddle dried it didnt turn out as nice and smooth as yours though :) thanks for sharing. Nice length and colour! :)

[turtlelover]

Turtlelover ..your hair looks great! I think you and I have similar hairtypes maybe...(mines maybe a bit curlier>?Id have to see yours curly to know:) Last time I paddle dried it didnt turn out as nice and smooth as yours though :) thanks for sharing. Nice length and colour! :)

Awww.....thanks! I will try to take some pics in better lighting so the red tones show more. I really do want to try to grow to BSL or maybe even waist, but my hair is a ii and tends to get flat on top when longer. I hope I won't be disappointed when I get there! My hemline is still plenty thick, but my hair just feels so flat on top sometimes and I'm not sure how to fix that, plus I am afraid my ends could get thinner when longer. I haven't had waist length hair since my mid 20s, and I am 40 now, so maybe my hair won't grow the same way. I guess we shall see!

[vpatt]

Great idea turtlelover, I colored my gray for some time......just because it was fun. I think that is the biggest thing.....enjoy whatever you are doing with your hair.

[turtlelover]

One thing I have never done is use henna. I don't like the orange tones that henna can give at times, but I saw some awesome results when mixed w/ hibiscus for sort of a cherry cola effect. I LOVE that color, and would totally go for it if I wasn't a little bit nervous about the maintenance required. Henna makes hair look soooo shiny! LOVE that!

[ReadingRenee]

Awww.....thanks! I will try to take some pics in better lighting so the red tones show more. I really do want to try to grow to BSL or maybe even waist, but my hair is a ii and tends to get flat on top when longer. I hope I won't be disappointed when I get there! My hemline is still plenty thick, but my hair just feels so flat on top sometimes and I'm not sure how to fix that, plus I am afraid my ends could get thinner when longer. I haven't had waist length hair since my mid 20s, and I am 40 now, so maybe my hair won't grow the same way. I guess we shall see!

I think we have really similar hair too. I just have a few silvers that I am not doing anything with but I wanted to comment on the flat top. I grew my hair out to bsl and it was SO flat on top it was part of why I cut it short again. Have you tried the curly girl method of clipping your roots while your hair dries? I have managed to get a nice drying effect from pulling up the crown and making a bun on top of my head while it dries, but I bet the clips would be even better.

[Robi-Bird]

I'm trying to cover up old red dye, my intentions are to move towards a basic brown brown. I suspect it'll be awhile before I'm successful. It is much more mute now but I've a good two inches or more root outgrown, not really noticeable to anyone but me but it signals dye time sometime this week.

[turtlelover]

I think we have really similar hair too. I just have a few silvers that I am not doing anything with but I wanted to comment on the flat top. I grew my hair out to bsl and it was SO flat on top it was part of why I cut it short again. Have you tried the curly girl method of clipping your roots while your hair dries? I have managed to get a nice drying effect from pulling up the crown and making a bun on top of my head while it dries, but I bet the clips would be even better.

I will have to try the clips sometime. Great idea! I bought a product called Garnier De-Constructed Texture Tease that also seems to give me a little bit of root lift when I have 2nd day, flat hair. I just bought it this week, but so far, so good!

[turtlelover]

I'm trying to cover up old red dye, my intentions are to move towards a basic brown brown. I suspect it'll be awhile before I'm successful. It is much more mute now but I've a good two inches or more root outgrown, not really noticeable to anyone but me but it signals dye time sometime this week.

This is why I've never gone w/ red from henna yet, though I LOVE red shades and am growing increasingly tempted by the conditioning/thickening benefits. I am just afraid that I will get bored and want something more natural, but then be stuck w/ something that I can't really cover over. I wonder though if you can cover over henna w/ semi permanent dye if you need to. Hmmmm....

When I used Ion demi permanent dye in a reddish shade and got tired of it, Vitamin C tablets crushed up (I used to use about 20 or so) and mixed w/ cheap VO5 conditioner and then left on my hair for about an hour would lighten my hair about 2 to 3 shades. Then, I could cover it w/ something more neutral/ash toned, because you are left w/ brassy/copper when you strip the red dye. I am not sure how well this works for permanent dye, however.

[Alastríona]

Yep. This is me. In no way are my silvers and I ready to make friends yet. I'm sure they are very nice people (hairs) and all but nope. :-)
Funny, it's about self image. Not necessarily grey equals old but grey is not what I expect to see in the mirror and grey is not a bright happy colour for me. Much happier with my fabulous glow-in-sunlight red :-)

[turtlelover]

I am having an issue w/ some hard water buildup, but am wondering how I can clarify without stripping haircolor. Hmmmmm.....