“After I was 16, a child in my math class shouted out, ‘Hey, you’ve grey hair!’” says Cup of Jo reader Kate. From then on, she dyed her hair each two weeks — till she was 34, welcomed a new child, and struggled with the maintenance. Now she loves the colour: “The opposite evening, my four-year-old mentioned, ‘Mama, I hope I’ve grey hair someday as a result of it’s lovely.’ Breaking down magnificence norms for my daughter, might it get higher than that?”
Right here, eight extra Cup of Jo readers inform us about embracing their grays…
“My hair began turning grey after I was 12. 12! My older sister has the identical timeline — it’s simply who we’re. I dyed it for the primary and final time after I was 18. The grays got here again with a vengeance, and I’m so low upkeep that I made a decision to simply roll with it! Now it’s nearly absolutely white in a means that also manages to shock me. (New pals typically assume it’s blonde.) However I’ve absolutely leaned in — it’s a part of what makes me me.” — Amanda
“The place I stay within the Netherlands, nobody feedback on my hair, however after I traveled to India for a household occasion, many individuals talked about it. Have you learnt what I informed a relative who implied I wasn’t coloring my hair due to price? I mentioned, ‘I paid to get grey streaks, they’re very stylish and really costly!’” — Shweta
“I used to be going to the salon each couple weeks, ready for the blonde to sink in, solely to have stripes of silver present via days later. ‘Colour-resistant grey’ was the prognosis. So, I reduce my hair right into a pixie and located probably the most startling pure ‘highlights’ in silver, salt and pepper, and darkish grey. Individuals typically ask me, ‘Do you shade your hair to get it to appear like that?’” — Nona
“I come from a tradition of girls who dyed their hair it doesn’t matter what: ‘dejarse las canas significa descuido’ (‘grey hair equals neglect’) is what I heard every time a lady had seen roots. However then, on Instagram, I discovered a motion of girls of all ages leaving their hair pure. My hairdresser gave me delicate grey highlights to make the transition smoother. My hair makes me really feel as true to myself as I’ve ever been.” — María
“I ended dyeing my hair two years in the past, after we moved from London to Tanzania. I used to be impressed by a lady I met right here who was embracing her grey. These early months have been onerous! Trying within the mirror and seeing grey was a battle, however then I turned 50 and determined I didn’t wish to really feel disgrace about visibly growing older. There are nonetheless robust days, however as a rule, I’m having fun with this new evolution.” — Cheryl
“I’m an arborist, which is a male-dominated subject, and I believe I now get extra respect main workshops. It’s a aid to current a bit of older and embrace the liberty of being myself.” — Pamela
“Grey is only a hair shade like some other. I’m studying, again and again, that hair doesn’t have something to do along with your worth as a human — it’s simply hair. I’ve additionally stopped utilizing the time period ‘prematurely grey,’ since most of my pals of their thirties even have grays. There’s nothing untimely about it — possibly we’re simply carried out hiding.” — Ruth
“What I really like most about my grey hair is that it’s an attractive means of marking time as I get older. As a substitute of a tough line between dyed and undyed hair, I see filaments of silver that develop denser at my roots.” — Erica
When did you first discover grey hair? How do you are feeling about going grey?
P.S. Libby DeLana’s magnificence uniform, Cheryl Sparks’s week of outfits, and 4 extra girls on going grey.
(Opening picture by Chrissy Blake.)
