As my hair color is changing I realized that my makeup had to change as well. Off to my favorite makeup store I went to get some professional advice. As fortune would have it I requested help from a wonderful young lady capable of giving me the right advice. I really love to talk with people who enjoy what they do and send their positive energy directly into their tasks which is exactly what happened. We discussed my goal of gray hair which sent her scurrying through the store to obtain the elements that enabled her to work her magic on my face. As she was educating me on color and contour she surprised me with a question. "I wish my mom would let her gray hair grow out - how did you embrace your gray?" Good question! How did I embrace my gray? I can explain what I went through but that does not mean it is the path for everyone. The most important aspect to remember is acceptance of self and a non-judgmental stance. If you feel hair color makes you feel better then color away.
I approached the decision to go gray in the same way I approach most things in life: this is a choice. A choice carries no risk so I set out to gather the information I needed to make my choice. When I decided to let my natural color emerge I was at a point where the gray hair peeking out past the brunette within a week of coloring was very distracting. I was spending too much time in the salon and despite loving the experience and my stylist I needed to break free from the obsession. I wanted to accept every aspect of me and to challenge the seemingly double standard between gray hair on men vs. women. I could always go back if I did not like the way it looked or how I felt, so why not? Now onto the how. As you have read in prior blogs I had to enroll my stylist and be open to trial and error - this is the hardest part as I was not always perfectly happy with the appearance of my hair - a positive self image is important coupled with loving, honest friends and family who will support your goal. The path has humbled me and allowed me to embrace some fears of aging that I was not yet addressing.
- Deal with your actual age. Hey you made it this far and you are doing great.
- Stop mumbling your age when asked at the doctors office :)
- Enjoy the fact that you will never be carded again.
- Find the inner and outer beauty that only comes with age:
- The smile lines.
- The confidence.
- The understanding of what is important.
- Find examples of older women that seem to age gracefully and follow in their wake.
- Accept that your actual age does not dictate your emotional age or your ability to love life and have fun.
- Get a great hair cut.
- Limit your makeup and show off that smile.
- Go for it and love what you see.
Now - if you are not ready to let the gray shine then color on as my dear friend MM shares in her story. Find out how she feels in the Women of the Gray section where you tell us YOUR story.