Gracefully Gray…by Linda Carlblom

Linda on a particularly good hair day.

I’m one of those women who has never liked messing with my hair much. I keep it short so I don’t have to curl, straighten, or style it. I like the wash and wear (though I do blow-dry) simplicity of short hair.

Years ago, like maybe fifteen to twenty, I thought it might be fun to put some blonde highlights in my hair. Not blonde, blonde. But something lighter than my usual dark, dark. I’d read somewhere that as you age, you should go with a lighter color to keep you looking younger. So after petting all the hair samples at the drugstore, I found the shade I wanted and brought it home. This would be fun!

Long story short, I did it. Then I shyly looked in the mirror when I was done to see the result. Red. My hair was not highlighted with streams of sunshine, but red streaks. I’ll let you draw your own comparisons. Maybe I didn’t get a light enough shade, I thought. But the next time I tried it with a shade that was shockingly light on the box, I had the same result.

I consulted a hair stylist who told me apparently I have natural red highlights in my hair that just want to stay that way. Hmph. Of course, if I wanted to come into the shop and pay an ungodly amount, she could make them come out the way I wanted. I didn’t want them that bad. Remember, I’m a wash and wear kind of gal, who doesn’t like messing with my hair much.

Over the years, I’ve gotten my wish. I have the lighter highlights I spent money for at the drugstore. Only these are natural and more silvery than any of the boxes I saw on the shelf. I’ve let my hair go gray of its own freewill and, by golly, I love it! No covering roots. No hoping I got the right shade of dye. My gray glistens in the sun and doesn’t even show when it falls from my head onto the shower floor. It’s fabulous!

I have a way to go before I’m totally gray. I’m still in the salt and pepper highlights stage. But like food, isn’t life better with a little seasoning? I plan to enjoy every minute of growing Gracefully Gray.

Anyone else out there going with their natural, organic (I’ve heard those are big buzzwords these days) hair color? Let me hear from you in the comments!

Linda