Three approaches
According to Alexandre Sénécal, co-owner of hair salon Espace K in St-jean-sur-richelieu, Que., no matter what your natural colour is, you’ll have to go through a transition period before arriving at your desired result. The main goal? Go grey without compromising hair health. 1. LET IT SHOW
The pandemic (and the closure of hair salons) didn’t give us much of a choice in letting the greys grow and show. The downside, for some, was dealing with regrowth over a period of several months. A great way to reduce the drastic look of this option is to update your cut and chop off the dyed ends every few months.
“Without going very short, a little punchy cut will help eliminate a good part of the coloured lengths,” says Sénécal. Determine the cut that’s best for you according to the shape of your face and the texture of your hair. A short layered or angled bob, for example, gives the hair a lot of depth, he says.
2. BLEND IT OUT
For a smooth transition without too much chopping, gradually lightening the hair colour to blend it with your naturally greying roots is an option. Thanks to paper highlights (also called babylights), the salt and pepper regrowth can be merged with the rest of the hair. It takes two or three salon appointments to get the subtle effect, says Sénécal.
Another technique to consider is foilyage, a sort of hybrid between balayage and highlights, which brings depth and light to your colour while requiring little maintenance afterward. With this treatment, the focus is mainly on colouring the lengths, the ends and around the face.
3. LIGHTEN IT UP
Say goodbye to the stark contrast between the greys and your natural colour by bleaching, which consists of making all of the hair as light as possible. This option should be spread over several months so as not to damage your hair too much. Sénécal recommends a break of at least three months between each bleaching session. This technique sometimes requires colour stripping if you have been dying your hair a dark colour for many years, he says.