The Gray Hair Coloring Technique Perfect For Older Women Who Want A 'Lived-In Effect'

More women are embracing their gray hair than ever before, but that doesn't necessarily mean giving up color altogether. Rather than opting for a stark transition between natural gray and previously colored hair, many colorists are recommending softer, warmer tones that blend seamlessly with silver strands. The result is a more dimensional, "lived-in" finish that allows gray hair to grow out gracefully while still looking polished and intentional.

The success of this technique comes down to the way we naturally perceive color. "Our eye is naturally pulled toward two things — lightness and warmth," Travis Ogletree, celebrity hair colorist exclusively tells Women. "When we inevitably start to gray, our base starts to lose its warmth as we simultaneously start to see the lighter grays and whites come in. Our eye naturally travels right to that newfound lightness."

Because of this, instead of covering all of your gray a single color, Ogletree recommends applying strategically placed highlights or lowlights in a warm tone. This can soften the contrast between incoming grays and the base color, creating an overall brighter, more cohesive appearance. "Adding in a neutral or even golden highlight can help diffuse our eye to take in the hair as a whole and not notice grays as much," he says.

For those interested in this gray blending technique, Travis Ogletree has a few tips. He recommends "rich reflective low lights that add dimension the same shade or one shade lighter than your base tone, or soft hues of light baby blonde that [have] a reflective golden to neutral tone." He also advises asking your colorist for "super fine sectioning that mimics the amount of gray that you have," which creates a seamless blend between your natural silver strands and the added color. For a celebrity reference, see Sarah Jessica Parker. 

That philosophy is echoed by celebrity colorist Farah Hurdle, who told Allure that gray blending is "all about distraction." She further explained, "Initially we're trying to highlight the areas where they have more silver, and then on the areas where they might be darker, we're lowlighting." This helps soften harsh lines of demarcation while creating the effortless, lived-in effect many women are looking for.

According to Ogletree, this approach can be most flattering for those with "existing warmth in their color, or former color prior to graying." As for the upkeep, you may be able to space out appointments six to eight weeks or longer, depending on your base color. For those with a blond base, they can generally wait longer.