Transitioning to & Caring for Grey Hair

You only need to look on any one of the many grey hair # to know that dye free hair is beautiful.

greyhairmovement #grombrehair #silversister … there are thousands of wonderfully unique heads of grey hair, silver and white to be inspired by.

But is it normal to feel daunted at the thought of transitioning to dye-free hair, ditching your regular colour appointments and embracing what’s underneath?

YES! Absolutely. 

As we always say, the first step is changing what’s in your head, before you change what’s on your head. If you’re not quite on the positivity train just yet, that’s more than ok, just have a read of our guide to embracing grey hair and we’re sure you’ll start to think differently. 

It can feel like a huge leap, with some people going totally cold turkey and embracing the grow-out line, the contrast between a darker dye colour like brown or black and allowing the pure white or bright silver come through, experimenting with different styles along the way.

Others however, go for a softer approach, perhaps seeking advice from a hairdresser who can fully support them along the way, perhaps blending some lighter highlights through their hair, to ease the transition. 

Preparing for Your Transition to Grey

One of the best pieces of advice we have right at the start of going dye-free, is to find positive examples of dye-free hair, on Instagram, Pinterest, Tik Tok, and Facebook communities like ours. Find a great pro-grey hairdresser to follow can also make you feel confident on your journey. 

As mentioned above, great stylists can blend the dye line as your colour grows out, gradually encouraging you into less and less dye, while keeping your length and style that feels most comfortable. 

An exciting option is to go for the chop.

Now, what’s ‘the chop’, we hear you ask?

Well, that’s cutting your hair into a super chic pixie cut, or slightly less ambitious bob and speeding up your grow-out process…by having less length to grow out!

We have only ever heard positive experiences in this department, as people often feel liberated and empowered by such a bold change. Many stay with a shorter cut after this as they find they love it so much, while others use it as a chance to boost their hair health and get rid of any dry ends before starting to grow their hair long again! 

If you don’t fancy getting a stylist involved and want to go for a more purse-friendly option, you could even experiment with root concealment sprays if you’re not enjoying embracing your grow-out line.

Five Popular Methods to Transition from Dyed Hair to Grey

So let’s dive into different ways you can ditch the dye, shall we?

#1 Cold Turkey 

Cancelling your dye appointment and letting nature take its course. It’s cheaper, it’s a slow journey that allows you to check in along the way without taking any drastic steps and it enables you to play with styles such as braids, plaits, claw clip twists and headbands. Plus, it’s a great story to document!

#2 Blending with a Hairdresser

What it says on the tin! Finding a great pro-grey hairdresser and using highlights and lowlights to blend your grow-out line to ease your transition and seamlessly blend your new grey hair in.

#3 Dye down 

Shifting gradually from super dark dyes to lighter shades to match both your skin tone and undertones of your natural hair colour coming through. Many finish as a blonde, before allowing the semi-permanent dye to fade out, leaving your dye-free hair to shine. 

#4 Big change 

Don’t want to wait too long to be dye-free? As mentioned above, many with lovely long hair decide to have a big chop, trying a pixie cut or short crop to reduce their grow-out journey time. Or even a buzz cut! Liberating and a fresh start.

#5 Big change no.2 

Another speedy suggestion is to dye your hair grey, if you find your natural colour is a little bit patchy and you want to even it out. Not necessarily our thing, but it’s certainly there if you want it.

Timeline and Expectations

We are often asked how long it takes to transition to grey.

The answer?

We can’t possibly say.

Everyone is different, everyone’s hair grows at different speeds and depending on many different factors, so time isn’t an exact science. For some, it only takes a few months, for others, a couple of years. Rome wasn’t built in a day! (Although, opting for a buzz cut can make your transition feel nearly instant!)

Our best advice is to be patient, enjoy the journey and embrace the lessons along the way.

Join communities such as ours on Facebook for support and encouragement, follow aspirational Instagram accounts and document your own journey. It feels good to be a part of something! Stay motivated by following people that fly the flag for the finish line, sharing stories of freedom, celebration and silver positivity!

Caring for Your Gorgeous Grey Hair

Once you’re dye free, this isn’t time to drop the ball. Looking after your grey hair is key. 

Focus on boosting moisture and hydration through gentle creamy formulas such as Glorious Shampoo, Gloss Bar and Luminous Conditioner. Maintain your mask routine with Intense Lustre Mask (also wonderful for brightening). 

Combat brassiness and yellowing by reducing heated styling if possible and keeping up with your soft violet Brilliant Shampoo use every few washes. 

Improve texture and enhance gloss by gentle brushing and cleansing, again less heat styling and injecting some added moisture with Lifeshine Oil. 

A Cleanse Routine to Try

At White Hot, we celebrate mixing and matching your routine depending on how your hair feels. We would always suggest starting with Glorious Shampoo or Gloss Bar as your regular cleanse paired with Luminous Conditioner. 

For most, we recommend swapping in soft violet Brilliant Shampoo every few washes to combat brassiness alongside Intense Lustre Mask if you wish.

Styling Tips for Grey Hair

When it comes to styling grey hair, we suggest Shooshing Crème for shorter, more textured cuts in need of some oomph and volume. Less is more and a little goes a long way! 

Infinity Mousse is gorgeous for effortless bounce and lightweight body, great if you like air-drying your hair and are looking to cut out heated styling and embrace your natural waves. 

Reach for Lifeshine Oil for taming any strays, frizz or flyaways, or apply as a fragrant revival in-between washes.

FAQs

Here are a few questions we get asked pretty often and thought you might also like to know the answer to…

How often should I use purple shampoo? Many think that more purple shampoo = more brightness. It’s actually the opposite. Overusing purple shampoo can cause dullness and darkening, especially if the formula is dark and inky. Luckily for you, our Brilliant Shampoo is a soft violet formula that won’t cause a purple tinge, but we still only recommend using it every few washes to combat brassiness. 

Do I have to wait to be fully dye-free before I use White Hot products? No! Not at all. We recommend starting with Glorious Shampoo and Luminous Conditioner if you’re brand new to us, to boost your hair health along your transition.

Why does my fringe look yellow? If you only have brassiness on certain areas of your hair, the issue is most likely use of heated styling tools. We know it’s so frustrating, but unfortunately heated styling singes your hair, causing it to look brassy. We would suggest at the very least trying to reduce the settings on your straighteners for less damage.

Owning Your Silver Style

Loving your grey starts from the inside. Release expectations, stereotypes, negative connotations and ageism and rock your natural style proudly and loudly. That doesn’t mean you don’t ever have reservations or hesitations, but overall, you celebrate who you are, as you are. 

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