Thinking about growing out your grey hair?

The pandemic is not the ONLY reason to grow your natural hair colour out if it is grey.  It can be many reasons including the commitment of time, the constant planning to ensure the demarcation line is not making an appearance during times you want to look and feel your best and over all wanting to embrace yourself in a more natural way.  This should, in my opinion, not be looked at as someone “Letting themselves go”!  When I hear clients, friends or family suggesting it is, I wonder if it once again societies way of creeping into the heads of both men and women suggesting that it is aging which of course is a curse these days for many.  There are a few ways of growing the grey out from subtle to extreme, just as it showed up to begin with.  Some started seeing grey from an early age (I have seen teenagers with up to 25% before the age of 19).  If one starts covering it up so young, even twenty or thirty years later, they become so accustom to colouring that they often simply cannot imagine life without haircolouring or should I say life with grey hair. 

Based on how long you have been covering the grey, I would like to suggest this:

If you are youthful, enjoy playing with your hairstyles and consider yourself to be a trendsetter: Try some fun highlights, why not? Life is short! It has become so acceptable to have fun colours in the workplace and is not considered unprofessional or “over the top” at all.  These colours could include some of my personal favorites such as: lilacs, pinks, purples, platinum’s, maybe some blue, orange, or green.  If your hair that is not grey is dark, try the latter, if your hair is lighter, try the first ones.  The grey hair will pick up these fun colours without the use of bleaching or pre lightening and gives a non-comital look that can be changed up as often as you feel like without any damage or dryness. Many people would like to play with these creative colours but choose not to because of the expense of the double process as well as the integrity of the hair afterwards.  All the sudden your grey is really working for you!

If you are a bit conservative and would like to “ease into it”, wait until your hair grows about an inch and a half of root and get some fine blended highlights that are light enough to tone with a combination of silver and grey tones.  The reason I suggest more than one tone of grey is because it will help to ease into it when you see the light and dark shades of grey.  There are so many beautiful shades Professional Hair Colourist’s having to work with, maybe not 50% of the entire head, but enough to break up the demarcation and give a slight taste of what would look best while pairing the highlights with the rest of the hair.  If seeing the demarcation will drive you nuts, a semi-permanent colour can simply “blend” them, disappearing over about 10-15 washes.

Start slowly around the hairline and parting.  Get use to seeing the light around your face and in the parting. This does not have to overwhelm your look; it is merely a preview of what you could work off moving forward.

If you are comfortable with a “shock value” or do not mind the opinions of others, because let us face it, our family, friends, and co-workers love to provide feedback or opinions when we do something dramatic (typically the ones to judge are the ones who do not have the nerve to do the dramatic things themselves; remember this). Have a complete removal of the artificial hair dye in your hair and replace it with toners with all shades of grey and maybe a bit of blonde, brown or black depending on what percentage of grey you have in the natural.  Once the hair dye is removed, the new shades can be replaced with bold streaks or fine ones, depending on how bold YOU feel.  Either way when your own starts to grow in it will blend.

None of my recommendations are to discourage anyone from having your hair coloured (always by a Pro of course!).  I have been classified as a Professional Hair colourist and am a Master of my trade for many years and many reasons, all based on experience and expertise.  I will always have a way of freshening up my client’s hair, leaving them feeling amazing and confident.  Everyone desires a change sooner or later and everyone deserves a Hair colourist who will have the right recommendation for them.  What I would like to achieve by giving these suggestions is to lose the idea that one must “cover” the grey for anyone or anything but themselves or feel that natural grey hair says that one is “letting themselves go”.  Going to the salon is fun, fashionable and can give you the change that makes you feel like a million bucks when you look in the mirror and smile at yourself with confidence.    Next time your roots are coming in, ask yourself if it is time for a change.  If it is, give me a call and I would be happy to consult with you on which route to take!  

To Tone Or Not To Tone, That Is The Question!

I want my clients to know what a toner is.  Sometimes I get asked: “Will I need a toner?”  I have also heard: “Does a toner cost extra?”  The later leaves me feeling like the client may think I am going to try to “upsell” her or “supersize” her colour appointment.  If after reading this, you are comfortable enough engaging about whether you require a toner during a hair colouring consultation I have achieved my goal! 

I like to think of toner like a liquid make up or a mineral powder foundation you may use to cover your face.   Think about why you would wear a cover up liquid or powder….

You either want to:

A.: Cover up/ Neutralize what you do not want to see.  It may be to neutralize unwanted red, orange, or yellow. 

B.: To enhance what you would like to see.  After lightening darker hair, you may want to add some gold or red to it to emulate being kissed by the sun or to add some dramatic reds or vivid to the look.

Typically, after either a full bleach out or a classic/modern day highlight/balayage/ombre; your hair is made several levels lighter than it is naturally.  In this process your hair is left with an underlying tone you may not like such as “brassy orange” or “yellow”.  In this case, we would use a toner mentioned in A.  To Cover up/ Neutralize what you do not want to see. 

You may have dark or black hair to start and wish to B. Enhance or add a lighter very warm, chocolate brown or a red tone to the look; typically, the modern balayage or ombre style.

Maybe even a colour melt where the hair is first made a little lighter to be toned at the scalp dark, painted down to the middle of the hair with a medium, ending with the lightest toner on the ends.  Hair must be “Pre-lightened” to use a colour that is a few shades lighter than it currently is.

The desired result will determine whether one will require a toner.  When the natural or previously dyed hair is lightened, a toner will balance it out to create a more even or flowing colour.  It will have a “seamless” appearance to the highlight for the one who does not want to see any lines or stripes in the highlight (especially on the sides), but mostly for eliminating the warm tones after lifting hair to a lighter colour.  Note that ALL drugstore colours basically require a toner.  You simply cannot colour your own hair in between a Professional and expect it to fall right back into excellence. *sorry

Do not mistake a toner your Professional Hair colourist will do at the salon for any services you may do yourself at home.  The Professional Hair colourist has many years experience and hours of education to support that experience.  We understand the Colour Wheel, the Underlying Pigments and what to do with them, and we understand all fundamentals of the hair structure and what happens both physically and chemically with the hair during the process and after, ensuring that one leaves with the products to maintain their colour with at home. 

We all feel great after a little change.  Perhaps the next time you feel like having your hair bleached out or highlighted you take into consideration a new tone to it.  Perhaps you are currently an icy or cool blonde…try some gold or lovely rose gold to bring some warmth to the hair.  If you are already a warm or golden blonde, why not try some cool shades of blonde, think platinum or silvery and see what happens.  Either way, I sincerely hope that this gives you some insight into what a toner is.