Advice/Help! I am going Grey in lockdown... Need Hair dye?
Discussion
I'm 34 and I have started going white. Not fussed at all as it's just hair. Women won't care about slightly grey (or white) hair, they will probably be more bothered that you dyed your hair!
Brush your hair, get a nice haircut whatever, just don't try to be something you are not as that is the off putting part.
Brush your hair, get a nice haircut whatever, just don't try to be something you are not as that is the off putting part.
Vasco said:
Road2Ruin said:
GT03ROB said:
Blokes who dye their hair look ridiculous…… it’s always obvious.
No it isn't. I do it and you would never know. My wife didn't even know. I also know another chap a bit greyer than me and has done it for years and I completely forget.
Personal opinion is that it looks awful. I keep trying to persuade my wife to embrace it but she insists on dying it.
I’m a lazy sod though when it comes to looks. I’ve had a beard for over 30 years to avoid having to shave every day!
anonymous said:
[redacted]
This obviously leads to one of the funniest topics ever to grace these hallowed pages, "shaving the old boy" :https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Radec said:
Tips from my sis who's a men's stylist and what she recommends to clients who want to colour at home.
Clairol root touch up kit, pick your colour and it comes with a brush. It's cheaper than Just for Men too.
There's less product so should be enough for a blokes head depending on hair length.
It's also less messier than the big box ones with a bottle.
Put a thick line of vaseline all around your hairline front and back and ears before putting the dye on.
It will stop most the colour going on your skin.
Put the dye on and wash it off as per the instructions.
She said you'll probably have a noticeable dye line around your hairline if you have short hair.
Get some facial cleanser like that miceller water stuff they keep advertising on TV and rub it around the dyeline with some cotton pads to take it off.
Do it the day before you are going out and once you've washed it a second time it shouldn't even be noticeable.
However me personally like others have said, just let it go naturally, seems a bit of a faff if you need to keep doing it weekly and seems expensive too and if you do get a new partner how long before she finds out.
I was same as OP a few years back aged 35, pretty insecure about looking old before I found “the one” & I did go down the dye route. (I’d had a knock back from someone late 20’s who said they “didn’t see guys with grey hair” & it shook me) I worked around women who dyed their hair & was pretty open about the fact I was going to give it a go & they were supportive rather than taking the mick. The advice above was bang on what I was given Vaseline/moisturiser etc. However The cycle for me was every 3-4weeks, I self coloured after getting it cut. I did use a women’s version for years before switching to just for men latterly. If you do give it a go, additional adviceClairol root touch up kit, pick your colour and it comes with a brush. It's cheaper than Just for Men too.
There's less product so should be enough for a blokes head depending on hair length.
It's also less messier than the big box ones with a bottle.
Put a thick line of vaseline all around your hairline front and back and ears before putting the dye on.
It will stop most the colour going on your skin.
Put the dye on and wash it off as per the instructions.
She said you'll probably have a noticeable dye line around your hairline if you have short hair.
Get some facial cleanser like that miceller water stuff they keep advertising on TV and rub it around the dyeline with some cotton pads to take it off.
Do it the day before you are going out and once you've washed it a second time it shouldn't even be noticeable.
However me personally like others have said, just let it go naturally, seems a bit of a faff if you need to keep doing it weekly and seems expensive too and if you do get a new partner how long before she finds out.
The packets have disposable gloves, use them.
Be wary around clothes & surfaces (including floors). Strip off & wear an old towel round your shoulders while you time it
Anything you get on your skin remove immediately (the colour is not dark immediately but it gets darker. (I had to scrub tops of my ears a couple of times!)
Set a timer, don’t guess/watch TV & forget!
Choose a colour a little lighter than your own
Some shampoo strips out the dye faster than others, I liked vosene but was told it was quite harsh.
Pillowcases/sheets are at risk for a day or so after doing it.
Update though, I grew a beard, I got a year or so of that before it got grey in bits & I decided at that age I was comfortable to stop the colouring . This year (42) my tinder profile pic is current, greyish & I still get dates.
Edited by AndyAudi on Monday 2nd August 09:17
Edited by AndyAudi on Monday 2nd August 11:56
Road2Ruin said:
GT03ROB said:
Blokes who dye their hair look ridiculous…… it’s always obvious.
No it isn't. I do it and you would never know. My wife didn't even know. I also know another chap a bit greyer than me and has done it for years and I completely forget.
It would certainly look ridiculous on me as my hairs are multi-coloured. Some black, some grey, some blonde & some ginger! Fortunately they are random so I don't look striped!
Bill said:
AlexC1981 said:
Anyone who is 40-ish will understand because they will have had the same dilemma at some point.
I'd wager the vast majority of men in their 40s who have enough hair to worry about it are just grateful they don't have to shave what's left off and pretend they like being bald. 
Dont do it.
People will know, but just be too polite to tell you.
If you have colleagues they will ridicule you behind your back.
If you have friends they will ridicule you. Relentlessly. To your face.
Your potential partners (those that you would like to have) will not care if your hair is grey/falling out/whatever. They will run a mile if they see hair colouring.
Your potential partners (those you really should avoid) who see your hair colouring as a positive thing will be superficial and vacuous. Or worse.
Your dog, should you have one, will be embarassed to be taken for a walk by you.
Your choice.
*the above may include some generalisations/fabrications...
People will know, but just be too polite to tell you.
If you have colleagues they will ridicule you behind your back.
If you have friends they will ridicule you. Relentlessly. To your face.
Your potential partners (those that you would like to have) will not care if your hair is grey/falling out/whatever. They will run a mile if they see hair colouring.
Your potential partners (those you really should avoid) who see your hair colouring as a positive thing will be superficial and vacuous. Or worse.
Your dog, should you have one, will be embarassed to be taken for a walk by you.
Your choice.
*the above may include some generalisations/fabrications...
Benni said:
This obviously leads to one of the funniest topics ever to grace these hallowed pages, "shaving the old boy" :
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Having had a quick skim read it seems like a thread well worthy of a reboot shame it was locked down. https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
First, sorry it took so long to reply, but had a bit of a long week(s) in work, so trying to catch up with things...
Thanks to all lots of good advice here, I haven't decided if I will just live with the grey or not yet... but don't expect me to post a pic
As I have had a few grey hairs for years, I don't want to go back to full colour as will be too obvious to everyone (including me, and I have to live with me, and me doesn't like me much at the best of times), so might try one of the wash in shampoo things if I decide to dye...
Might give it a go while I am still WFH and if it goes disastrously wrong, no-one will know, and it will give me a laugh!
Thanks to all lots of good advice here, I haven't decided if I will just live with the grey or not yet... but don't expect me to post a pic
As I have had a few grey hairs for years, I don't want to go back to full colour as will be too obvious to everyone (including me, and I have to live with me, and me doesn't like me much at the best of times), so might try one of the wash in shampoo things if I decide to dye...
Might give it a go while I am still WFH and if it goes disastrously wrong, no-one will know, and it will give me a laugh!
glenrobbo said:
OP, I dare you to dye it ginger. 
Ha ha, funnily enough, as others here said it is noticeable if I dye it, I just thought, "well lets see how much fun I can get out of this..." also might work as a chat up line... everyone goes grey when they get old... but oh no, I have to go ginger!!! (no offence intended to anyone ginger).OP: I'm 51 and naturally blonde haired. The sides are cut short around my lug holes, but the hair there is WHITE for about 2" height and back to behind my luggies. I really don't mind WHITE hair, to the point that, most winters I grow a beard, which is also WHITE.
IDGAF what other people think of that or me.
(Don't forget that when white hairs set in, your skin tone changes too. It's often a dead give away for hair dye.)
IDGAF what other people think of that or me.
(Don't forget that when white hairs set in, your skin tone changes too. It's often a dead give away for hair dye.)
Bill said:
Being slim and having hair puts you at a massive advantage on the looking old stakes. That alone should give you some confidence.
When I say slim, well... I am an odd shape! I am 6 foot, so not particularly tall, but my waist is less than 32" (and shrinking due to more time to exercise due to WFH) but my chest of 44"/46" and getting bigger, I am actually powerfully built, so basically I look like a friendly neighbourhood psycho; I just look a bit malformed, think of those Orcs in Lord of the rings (except with greying hair, and I tend to wear a shirt as apparently armour isn't suitable office attire...), looking like that has only been a positive to women who are a bit timid and looking for some kind of protector, which is a bit weird in my book.Blib said:
PiesAreGreat said:
Before I get all the "brave the grey/silver fox" crap, I have almost zero charm, confidence, sophistication or charisma, so will fail miserably at the silver fox, Clooney esq stuff.
I doubt that you would describe any of your best friends in such a disparaging way. In my opinion it is unfair for you portray yourself in such harsh terms. Few individuals are bereft of any charm, confidence, sophistication or charisma.
Save money on spurious hair dye 'solutions' and deal with your underlying self esteem issues. See a therapist.
I am happy to see a therapist, my preference is Female, 35 to 45, about 5,8 (taller is good ), I had a bit of thing for blondes a while ago (dyed blonde is fine too
, I can't afford to be picky; I am going grey!)Mastodon2 said:
If your colleagues, family and friends like you enough, they won't joke about it in your presence.
Oh course my friends, colleagues and family don't like me! I don't even like me, that is one of the reasons I am considering dying my hair, sadly I am trapped in this incarnation, so I am trying to look slightly different when I look in the mirror. My friends and family know they can trust me, count on me, but none of them actually like me! they are not crazy! More importantly, they know single men die younger than average and I don't have kids, and with my family history it probably won't be too much longer... So the family are just waiting to inherit, sounds like a plan to me.Vasco said:
You could always build up a reputation for colourful hair (like some girls do) - so you could be ginger one month, blonde the next, brown then black, mauve, pink (!) etc.
Make a feature of it.
Now that is the sort of thinking I needed. The only problem with that suggestion, is that most of the women who do that are in their early 20s, not their very early 40s (like me).Make a feature of it.
Still, thanks for the suggestion
I will consider.Vasco said:
You could always build up a reputation for colourful hair (like some girls do) - so you could be ginger one month, blonde the next, brown then black, mauve, pink (!) etc.
Make a feature of it.
This is new, what happens?Make a feature of it.
my skin still makes me look pasty and a bit ill, it has always been like that, so what will change?
Edited by PiesAreGreat on Sunday 15th August 18:51
PiesAreGreat said:
This is new, what happens?
my skin still makes me look pasty and a bit ill, it has always been like that, so what will change?
If you go deep red, you'll look like a match. HTHmy skin still makes me look pasty and a bit ill, it has always been like that, so what will change?
Edited by PiesAreGreat on Sunday 15th August 18:51
In all seriousness, I went through this - doing the Just for men shampoo thing. It looked s
t, as in un-natural colour. Just accepted the grey and to be honest I prefer it and so does everyone else.BobsPigeon said:
Jesus, just go fking grey man. There's nothing more desperately sad than a middle aged man dying his hair...
In my opinion... No offence to anyone who does like... Obviously.
Absolutely agree, or shave your head. king grey man. There's nothing more desperately sad than a middle aged man dying his hair...In my opinion... No offence to anyone who does like... Obviously.
I have completely white hair, had it since I was about 40, never bothered me, still have a full head of hair but now shave it because it's easy and I got used to it during lockdown.
Dyed hair on men, looks like dyed hair, even if you're a multimillionaire it still looks sad
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