Embracing virgin hair

[GoldenRussian]

Hello,

I'm growing out virgin hair and I'm not planning into going for bangs even tho they suit me well. My hair will just be natural, and virgin colour.
Do you have any tips to embrace it ? Highlights made my hair really good looking but I'm feeling like the natural colour will be too boring.
Note that I plan to sell my hair in 5 years so no chemical change or such.
Ideas for hairstyles (big forehead) ? Or whatever...

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Natural colour isn't boring at all, and often has its own highlights here and there anyway. You can tell yourself that if your hair is natural it will be the healthiest it can be, and that's something to cheer about! :) Oh, and ignore the big forehead, you are probably the only one who notices it anyway. It gives you room for extra brains.... :laugh:

[Stray_mind]

I agree with Sarah. You can find many different colors and shades in your natural hair that the dye just Can not replicate.
Natural hair is also usually much healthier and nicer looking than dyed hair, especially when it is well taken care of.

[MidnightMoon]

Well, I personally don't like my natural colour at all (too dark brown to look interesting, not black enough to favour my skin or style). Fortunately I can use non permanent dyes that don't damage it to finish making it black, but I guess that's also out of the question for you since any dye may remain on your hair...
So, perhaps invest some time and money into buying really nice hair toys and learn new styles from youtube. I'd also try to re focus my attention to another body part just not to end up feeling bored. Could be makeup, clothes, body modifications, or something of the sort.

[Aerya]

I used to find my natural hair colour dull and boring. It's a light brown, often referred to as mousy, dirty, municipal grey etc. which probably aided in making me dislike it. After wrecking it with dye I decided to grow it out and I started lurking at LHC. That helped tremendously in seeing how dynamic and well-suited virgin hair colours actually are. I started looking more closely at photos of myself when I was younger and eventually realized my colour is quite wonderful in ways dye can never replicate. :)

I'd suggest finding the thread for your hair colour here and taking the time to appreciate the different aspects of your colour. There are also a world of different hair toys and styles to keep you from being bored. I'm sure your hair colour is beautiful!

[Milady_DeWinter]

I think everybody is giving you very good advice :) There's also a great thread about giving up dyes (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=51155&page=1200) that you can join, if you haven't done it yet :)

[Joules]

If your natural color seems boring to you and you want bangs, are you sure you'll be able to put up with it for 5 years? I love my hair and I take more care of it than anyone I personally know in real life, but even I couldn't bear it for longer than a month when I got sick of my natural color (or the weird yellowish tone it got sun-bleached into), and I hennaed my hair.

Hair is supposed to be fun. If it's not enjoyable for you, growing it out for 5 years would be one hell of a challenge. Are you sure selling it afterwards is a good enough incentive? I mean, here where I live my ii/iii thickness would bring me between 30 and 75 dollars. Considering how much time and money I spend taking care of it, it would be the dumbest financial decision one could ever make (I randomly checked a British hair buying website, they offer a bit more money, but still not enough to jusify the time and resourses spent on growing it). Human hair wigs and extensions cost a lot to buy, but for the person on the other end of it it's daylight robbery, most of the profit goes to wigmakers. Sorry for prying, it just feels weird to me. Your hair should bring joy to you, not to someone else.

[MidnightMoon]

If your natural color seems boring to you and you want bangs, are you sure you'll be able to put up with it for 5 years? I love my hair and I take more care of it than anyone I personally know in real life, but even I couldn't bear it for longer than a month when I got sick of my natural color (or the weird yellowish tone it got sun-bleached into), and I hennaed my hair.

Hair is supposed to be fun. If it's not enjoyable for you, growing it out for 5 years would be one hell of a challenge. Are you sure selling it afterwards is a good enough incentive? I mean, here where I live my ii/iii thickness would bring me between 30 and 75 dollars. Considering how much time and money I spend taking care of it, it would be the dumbest financial decision one could ever make (I randomly checked a British hair buying website, they offer a bit more money, but still not enough to jusify the time and resourses spent on growing it). Human hair wigs and extensions cost a lot to buy, but for the person on the other end of it it's daylight robbery, most of the profit goes to wigmakers. Sorry for prying, it just feels weird to me. Your hair should bring joy to you, not to someone else.

I agree, hair sells much cheaper than I once thought. If you have a very unique colour and very good texture you might get more than that, but I think the market is flooded with incredibly nice hair from India, and Eastern Europe as well. I think skipping a meal for a month, or just saving 1 euro per day you'll soon have more than what you'd get for hair. You may also find it sad to cut it after 5 years of sacrifice, since you'd have to treat it gently, wear it up, avoid bangs and lots of trims, dyes, etc.

[MidnightMoon]

Double post :silly:

[OhSuzi]

I used to dye mine exciting colours and its taken a while to embrace virgin hair –
Sometimes I love the natural brunette, as its got longer and been in the sun it’s gained its own natural highlights and gotten a bit less dark,
But every now and then I get bored and toy with the idea of dying it.
Things I remind myself in these moments

Hair dye will add an extra shine / richer colour to it – but they don’t always work out the colour you expect, you might need to dye it more than once.
The rich shine only lasts a week or two and then you’ve just got damaged hair and flat colour, that needs dying again.
It’s much thicker and healthier undyed.
I google hair pics of ‘french brunette’ or ‘natural look’ or my fave brown haired celebrities – to remind myself that brown hair is a gorgeous colour too and it can look wild and natural or very sophisticated.
If you don’t like the hair dye, tough it’s permenant, once it’s done your hair is no longer virgin – the only way out is chop or grow.
So reach my growing goal first then if I still wanna dye, do it then -
For you I’d swap that for the fact you’re intending to sell / donate your hair – once you’ve reached this goal then you can go back to dying or whatever you like.
(There are non permanent dyes, but I always find they still stick in your hair a bit, and I don’t know if that would void your hair as something you can sell / donate)

You could google different hair styles instead if you want to add interest.
Plat ribbons / wool dreads into it.
Look at coloured Glitter gel styles like add black glitter and stars to your parting
Add bright coloured clip in hair – you could get blonde and dye it whatever colours you fancy so your still getting creative with hair
Wear a wig


I also toy with the idea of a fringe everynow and again – but I have tried a few very simple hair styles that give you a fake fringe out of your own hair – so I like the option of fringe no fringe. Also there are reasonably convincing clip in fringes you can buy.

As you are growing out previously dyed hair – only toy with the ends that are already dyed? Bleach em – dye the tips green , if its only say the last inch or so and the dye dries out your hair chop it off you’ll prob grow it back in about 2 months.

If you really prefer it dyed or you know 100% what you want is a fringe - go for it, if you're ready for a change change it - if you have strong doubts & think you'd regret it - wait a few weeks first.

Don't dye it on a whim, but don't stick with virgin hair just because if its making you unhappy. It's your hair to do with as you please - good luck

[Synester]

As someone who is a ex dye addict, what really helped me embrace my natural color and grow it all out was how it looked and felt honestly. The shine..how much softer my virgin growth felt compared to my processed parts. How it behaved I cant explain it but my processed hair didnt behave like hair. Now it does and its wonderful. Learning to love your color takes time. But accepting that it is the one for you because its growing right out of your head is what worked for me. I wnt darker hair, but ive had such a journey to get my virgin hair back after dying it for over 10 years.
it would feel like its all for nothing if i dye it at this point.

[GoldenRussian]

Thanks a lot for your replies ! I'm taking your tips. :)

About selling my hair, it's not really about the money. I am on a budget for now but it's not about it. I just want to achieve something and knowing that I can sell my hair in a few years is motivating me to take care of it, so whether I sell it or donate it or just cut it off, I'd still have achieved what I want. And if I choose to sell it, the quality would be gorgeous so, just taking the opportunity to make some money if one day I want to cut it off and go for neck length, you know.


I love the process of growing virgin hair, but I don't want to do one mistake that will make it go bad. I'd like to stay natural but I never did, so I just wanted to see how I could avoid falling off the wagon. I'd just be super proud to grow locks that look gorgeous, and be able to say this is all natural !

[lapushka]

Unfortunately I was really "trigger happy" with colors and dye... until I melted my hair off. I used it all on top of each other, no wonder right? :oops: Anyway, that for sure got me scared of dye from that time on and I haven't touched dye since. I wasn't happy with my natural color for *so* long, but now, now that it's going slowly (sloooowly) gray, I am liking it more and more. Go figure.

You can't force the issue. If you still have that itch you are bound to scratch it; but use semis and demis if you get the urge, meanwhile your hair color can still grow out once the dye fades!

[WyntreBlossom]

I used to dye mine exciting colours and its taken a while to embrace virgin hair –
Sometimes I love the natural brunette, as its got longer and been in the sun it’s gained its own natural highlights and gotten a bit less dark,
But every now and then I get bored and toy with the idea of dying it.
Things I remind myself in these moments

Hair dye will add an extra shine / richer colour to it – but they don’t always work out the colour you expect, you might need to dye it more than once.
The rich shine only lasts a week or two and then you’ve just got damaged hair and flat colour, that needs dying again.
It’s much thicker and healthier undyed.
I google hair pics of ‘french brunette’ or ‘natural look’ or my fave brown haired celebrities – to remind myself that brown hair is a gorgeous colour too and it can look wild and natural or very sophisticated.
If you don’t like the hair dye, tough it’s permenant, once it’s done your hair is no longer virgin – the only way out is chop or grow.
So reach my growing goal first then if I still wanna dye, do it then -
For you I’d swap that for the fact you’re intending to sell / donate your hair – once you’ve reached this goal then you can go back to dying or whatever you like.
(There are non permanent dyes, but I always find they still stick in your hair a bit, and I don’t know if that would void your hair as something you can sell / donate)

You could google different hair styles instead if you want to add interest.
Plat ribbons / wool dreads into it.
Look at coloured Glitter gel styles like add black glitter and stars to your parting
Add bright coloured clip in hair – you could get blonde and dye it whatever colours you fancy so your still getting creative with hair
Wear a wig


I also toy with the idea of a fringe everynow and again – but I have tried a few very simple hair styles that give you a fake fringe out of your own hair – so I like the option of fringe no fringe. Also there are reasonably convincing clip in fringes you can buy.

As you are growing out previously dyed hair – only toy with the ends that are already dyed? Bleach em – dye the tips green , if its only say the last inch or so and the dye dries out your hair chop it off you’ll prob grow it back in about 2 months.

If you really prefer it dyed or you know 100% what you want is a fringe - go for it, if you're ready for a change change it - if you have strong doubts & think you'd regret it - wait a few weeks first.

Don't dye it on a whim, but don't stick with virgin hair just because if its making you unhappy. It's your hair to do with as you please - good luck

Honestly, I know this isn't my thread, but I came to read the responses because I needed the same advice. Been growing out natural for healthier and thicker hair but am missing the red terribly and find my natural hair bland and boring though my husband loves it natural and tries to convince me it isn't boring. I love the advice you have given about dyeing ends or waiting until you meet certain goals. Thank you for this.

[Joules]

But guys, isn't the freedom of virgin hair great? You never have regrowth that looks awful, you never have to worry about touch ups (especially before holidays and vacations when you want to look your best), you don't have to spend money on hair dyes...

I henna my hair, and even though I adore the color it gives me and my regrowth isn't as noticeable as it is with chemical dyes, I really miss the easiness of having virgin hair. My natural color is cool-toned blonette, the most boring of them all, but still I can see myself growing it out in the not-so-distant future.

[Rebeccalaurenxx]

Personally I love to dye my hair. I never really accepted my natural color.
I think it’s imporrant to let ourselves live; if you want to color, color.
I like having darker hair. Coloring isn’t like bleaching.
It’s completely possible to have long dark hair, using deposit dyes.
Not coloring just helps you retain more length, so with dye you won’t reach extreme lengths.
But personally; I don’t want to go past TBL.


It’s up to you. Embrace what you really want.
Even if it ends up not being your virgin color; your happiness is the most important.

[M3DUS4]

Virgin hair is easiest and cheapest to maintain, and it will look far healthier when it is very long than hair that has been dyed and not given expensive touchups.

Natural hair color is always fashionable, never tacky, and automatically matches your skin tone.

You go, girl-- I'm growing mine out virgin, too, for the reasons stated above. Good luck!

[illicitlizard]

Virgin hair is easiest and cheapest to maintain, and it will look far healthier when it is very long than hair that has been dyed and not given expensive touchups.

Natural hair color is always fashionable, never tacky, and automatically matches your skin tone.

You go, girl-- I'm growing mine out virgin, too, for the reasons stated above. Good luck!

I really needed to read this, struggling to enjoy my natural hair colour. But you're right it does suit me quite well. Darker or lighter hair always made me look washed out or just really pale (which I am but still)
The upkeep is really the thing that turns me off dye, I can't stand roots and I'm also far too lazy to keep up the dye so I don't end up with roots.
Part of me still wants my purple/pink hair back though *sighs wistfully*

Good luck to all of us struggling to grow out our natural hair! Hopefully we learn to love it :)

[nycelle]

Personally I love to dye my hair. I never really accepted my natural color.
I think it’s imporrant to let ourselves live; if you want to color, color.
I like having darker hair. Coloring isn’t like bleaching.
It’s completely possible to have long dark hair, using deposit dyes.
Not coloring just helps you retain more length, so with dye you won’t reach extreme lengths.
But personally; I don’t want to go past TBL.


It’s up to you. Embrace what you really want.
Even if it ends up not being your virgin color; your happiness is the most important.

Agreed. If coloring makes you happy, that's great. No need to embrace something you don't like.


Virgin hair is easiest and cheapest to maintain, and it will look far healthier when it is very long than hair that has been dyed and not given expensive touchups.
Natural hair color is always fashionable, never tacky, and automatically matches your skin tone.

You go, girl-- I'm growing mine out virgin, too, for the reasons stated above. Good luck!

To the bolded, unfortunately, that's not true. It's a nasty trick mother nature played on many of us- that our hair color and skin tone look terrible together.

I have a friend who looks fab. as a blonde. She looked horrible with her natural color brown- very sickly, it completely washed her out. She's been blonde forever now, and no one ever believes it's not her natural color.

[sugar&nutmeg]

Except for the Sun-In incident, back in the late 1960s (yes, I'm that old), I've never colored my hair. It's always been sort of "multi", as I guess is most folks nature color. I like the variation, though my hair was just warm light-medium brown. Now it's more multi-silver with browner ends and a couple of leftover brown streaks.

Dyed hair (except some --not all-- expensive, talented-colorist salon dye-jobs) just mostly seemed flatter (all one color *and* less shiny) than natural, perhaps especially black. High/low lights can appear (again not always but often) kind of stripe-y. If that's the look one wants, go for it! I would NEVER impose my preferences on anyone else's head of hair.

But for me, being 'natural' and going for optimum hair 'health' wasn't my motivation. It has always been a combination of frugal, very lazy, and to be honest, thankfully (?) not really paying much attention. I never gave much time to analyzing what color my hair was, or to critiquing whether that color 'suited me best'.

If you love coloring, and have fun with it, and like the results, and don't mind the time or money spent, and don't think it's damaging (or don't care if it is) then don't let ANYONE'S differing opinion influence your personal decisions.

Benign neglect covers a lot of bases, I guess!

Edit for syntax. Syntax is good.

[ArtOfNoot]

Virgin hair appreciation:
No color upkeep
Less damage
No more annoying comments/questions (I'm a bit shy so this one was big for me)