Hi, I use naturcolor from herbaceuticals. It works well at covering grays, I have used it for a couple years now. Regular dyes used to make me sick for days, so went partially gray for awhile til I found this.
Posted by INEBG (Member # 27690) on :
When I decided to get away from toxins several years ago, I quit coloring my hair. I hadn't seen my actual hair for many years, so the prospect was a little unnerving. But, as it turns out, my grey streaked hair looks great. Now, people are constantly telling me what beautiful hair I have, even strangers. Who'd have thought! Because it's not damaged with chemicals anymore, it's smooth and sleek and shiny. And it grows in stripes of white, silver, platinum, and lead - very dramatic. So, if you don't find the product you want, it might be interesting to find out what your natural hair will look like. You might like it.
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
Thanks for the input!
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
INEBG... I SO hope my hair will streak like yours! Sounds great! And way cheaper than paying for it to be streaked!!
Right now I only have about 5 gray hairs, so this could take awhile for me to find out what mine is going to look like!!
My mother didn't get "mostly gray" until she was past 65. And she never dyed hers. It looked pretty good, just gray interspersed with the light brown.
She passed away at age 81 and it still wasn't all gray! There is hope!!
Posted by TS96 (Member # 14048) on :
I'm 39 and have quite a bit of grey hair. My husband wants me to go grey naturally so makes it easy for me.
But intrestingly I asked my husbands grandmother who is 88yo how long have you been coloring your hair it looks so black? She was offended when she told me she has never put any color on her hair in her life. Oh boy was I embarrassed. I apologized.
I will hopefully never do that again.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Yikes, TS!! My aunt is 88 and she doesn't dye her hair either. She has some gray, but not much.
I'm 59 and the gray hairs I have, I just cut out! Think I'll go bald??
I'm hoping not to ever have to color it.
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :
- With the hair loss as it is, I would hesitate with any product.
Even the more natural dyes are chemicals, too. Even ammonia-free products can be caustic. We also have to think of what gets washed down the sink because that gets into the water supply for our food, for fish and it comes back to us for drinking water - with - many chemicals being undetected.
Anything that soaks on the head can be absorbed into the blood stream in 26 seconds. And, our eyes and lungs take in a lot of the smell, too.
All that considered, Henna may be an option. I tired a henna shampoo, though, and it really burned my scalp very badly.
I used to highlight, thinking that as least did not really touch my scalp - but it smelled awful and burned my eyes -- and when I see how much goes back into our water supply, I just stopped and went natural.
I feel so free now.
I think natural hair can look vibrant all on its own. With a bit of lemon juice to cut soapy build up, hair can really shine.
A cute haircut can go a long way to helping you feel fresh and light. A smile that radiates from a strong heart and a twinkle in your eyes will do more for your overall "put togetherness" than anything. With a face radiant from any of the little joys you can grab from life, your hair's luster will follow even in it's most natural hues and changes.
If your hair is not very dark, you might put some lemon juice on it and sit in the sun, adding some glow.
====================
Mentioned by others in above posts, here are some links for study - but some of these do not list the ingredients. You would want to see all the ingredients.
. . . If it is in harmony with the lung, the hair of the body and head will be lustrous.
If the hair becomes dry and falls off, the lung is exhausted. . . . -
Posted by INEBG (Member # 27690) on :
My hair was always fine and thin, and a little frizzy because of extensive breakage. Because of this, It's always been more of a challenge than an asset. I had to work hard and use a lot of "product" to make it look good. There were a lot of styles and cuts I could not have because I didn't have thick enough hair.
Now, with not dying it, and one other hair-health thing I do, there is almost no breakage at all. That's why it is so thick, shiny and smooth. I just use a natural shampoo and conditioner, blow it dry and I'm good to go.
The hair-health thing is biotin. It's a vitamin pill available by itself or in combination with other supplements for hair/skin/nails. It's made an incredible difference in the health of my hair. My friends and family now take it too because they see what it's done for me. My hair is nearly twice as thick as it used to be.
Sorry to sound so enthusiastic, but I'm still getting used to having one of my challenging features become one of my best assets. I love the grey, and I love my hair. Never thought I'd say that!
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
Come to think of it, I have heard about the biotin before. I'll probably give it a try. I wear a baseball hat most of the time now, my hair looks so bad.
As for the dyes you all have used. If I opt to use one of the more natural ones, do you know if it can be applied right over the chemically tx hair, or do you have to grow it out first?
Posted by Heleneh (Member # 21207) on :
My doctor told me henna hair dyes are the way to go.
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
Hi Heleneh,
Have you used them yourself? I hear they can be pretty tricky to apply and are usually red in tone.
Not that I would mind being a redhead. My hair is reddish brown already.
Posted by kam (Member # 3410) on :
Application is also a consideration. So far, I have not had what it takes to cover the grey myself.
I have been so thankful for those who volunteer to cover it for me.
They just put it on and then leave.
So, I do try and get something simple for them to mix and put on.
I too have heard that henna is the best. But, the one time I was able to read a bit it did seem like it was more complicated as far as putting it on and mixing.
Posted by kam (Member # 3410) on :
Looks like there is some good info here. I will be back when I am able to read it.
Nails, hair etc do need help
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
I just ran into a friend today who has let her formally died hair grow out naturally. It looks really nice.
She is about 50% gray; I'm guessing mine is too, it's been so long since I've seen it without the color on it.
Her hair is really thick and healthy looking too. I think I'll do the same, at least give it a try. It will take some patience but might be worth it.
Life will at least be more simple. I always hated coloring my hair, such a hassle and mess!!!
And I'll always have my baseball hat to help me through it.
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :
- I am amazed sometimes, when I remember the time, money and energy that I used to spend on hair and nails.
Since dropping all that, I feel so much freedom. With a short stylish cut, I don't even have to style my hair. It's wash and wear. Sometimes I may fluff it a bit with the blow dryer and set my bangs.
Long ago I nearly passed out from nail polish but it took me years to see that connection. Nail polish is highly toxic and can damage the brain. I'm sure that contributed to my low grades in college.
About a dozen years ago, when finally learning guitar, the nails on my left had had to be cut short. I never would have accepted that in my younger days.
So, clean, clear and bare nails today look much healthier on my hands - even with nails shorter on one than the other.
Even without my blond lights of the past, I get compliments on how shiny and healthy my hair looks. When I lightened it, it was fried and I HAD to use a curling iron or other method to deal with that.
What shines is the delight we have inside. We can can let that come out, no one really cares if our nails are clear and our hair is natural. I actually WISH I had more than a few silver hairs but, at 57, it's amazing free of that. I am looking forward to some natural highlighting some time, though. Of the women I know who have let the silver show, their hair looks so much better - and so do their faces.
Streaks of silver can be very beautiful and striking.
==================
About nail polish - besides the fumes - is that it can harbor or spread MSRA and c. diff. I failed to save the articles I had read about that years ago but a Google search brings that up. I just don't have access to the full text.
BMJ 337:doi:10.1136/bmj.a938 (Published 24 September
. . . Removal of nail polish and finger rings to prevent surgical infection. . . .
. . . nail polish have been banned from the . . . where MRSA and Clostridium difficile may . . . -
[ 08-28-2010, 07:42 PM: Message edited by: Keebler ]
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Biotin sounds great!! I have sort of thick FINE hair. It didn't look as good as others' hair when I had it short... I needed thicker hair.. or more coarse hair.
It's in good shape and in a kind of "bob" now, I guess you would say.
Biotin here we come! ( I think it's in my vitamin pill... but let's go for more! )
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
In the past I have used a shampoo called Nioxin. It's not cheap, but the salon that's in the Walmart Supercenter has it the cheapest I've found.
It helps remove the chemicals and toxins from the hair and scalp. Took about four months to see results. But the hair looked thicker and healthier, so worth the price IMHO.
Esp. since I will no longer be spending so much on coloring.
Posted by novy (Member # 25987) on :
if i so much as look at a box of hair dye i get a chemical reaction- the last time i tried was a disaster ... and i was only attempting to give it highlights ...
i'm over it!
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
You're right novy, me too. I've been pumping that stuff into my system for 20 years and through two pregnancies. No telling what it did to my kids.
What a great feeling to let it go.
Posted by INEBG (Member # 27690) on :
When I was letting my dyed hair grow out to natural grey, to ease the transition I had a few highlights and low lights added just to the surface portion so that there wasn't a clear line of colored/not colored. The other thing I did was pull it up a lot, again to make the color difference less obvious. This may not be such a problem for people with less grey, but my hair is more than 50% grey, and the difference was pretty stark since my hair was colored brown.
I take 600 mcg of biotin twice a day. It's done wonders for my hair, but my nails are still awful. It took about 6-8 months for me to notice a big difference in my hair. I've been taking it for two years. My husband takes 5,000 mcg twice a day. He just started two months ago and already has a lot of new growth.
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
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