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My Two-Year Cold Turkey Transition to Gray Hair is OVER!

katie goes platinum

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On February 22, two years to the day that I dyed my hair for the last time, I got the last of my dye cut off. Which means, after 25+ years of dyeing, I am finally sporting a full head of natural hair:

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Did I feel sad about getting the last remnants of my youthful brunette hair (even if it was artificial) cut off? Did I worry about looking older, or like I’d “let myself go?” Hell, no – I felt FANTASTIC!

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WHY I DECIDED TO GO GRAY

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I wasn’t always so free and easy about the whole concept of gray hair. In fact, I spent 25 years (or more – I lost count) frantically covering up the gray. Did I start dyeing my hair just for gray coverage? No – like a lot of young women, I started dyeing my hair for fun.

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As a teenager, I had lovely dark brown (almost black) hair, but got bored with it in college and started dyeing it various shades of mulberry, magenta, and burgundy. I didn’t feel like I HAD to color my hair, so I just did it when the mood took me… and grew it out without a thought when I was ready to grow it out again.

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Looking back all these years later, I think THAT was the moment I started getting self-conscious about my gray hair. I was probably only 28. What bothers me is this: I consider myself a feminist. I consider myself a non-conformist. But why did I never question the idea that we have to cover gray hair?

WHAT SHADE OF EYEBROW LOOKS BEST ON YOU?

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The Tedium of the Gray Hair Cycle Was it fun to go to the salon and choose new shades of hair color? Was it fun to sit there for two hours and chat with my hairdresser and read magazines and commune with other women? Yes, for years it was fun – until it wasn’t.

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