Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only. Always perform a patch test and strand test to avoid allergic reactions, hair damage, and uneven results.
Blending gray hair with highlights is an excellent way to begin to go gray naturally. At one time, seeing grays on your head came with panic and eventually dyeing your hair a darker color. Since gray hair has become more trendy, many choose to let their aging hair shine through.
Can I Join the Trend Without Naturally Going Gray?
While full-head silver color transformations are popular for all ages, this guide focuses specifically on using highlights to seamlessly blend and enhance your natural gray growth.
If you want a full-head grey trend color, your hairstylist may need to completely bleach your existing hair color for the gray dye to show up, which can damage your hair greatly. For a softer option, talk to a professional hairstylist about highlights that blend into your natural grays.
Why Do People Want to Dye Their Hair Gray?
Many believe that gray hair gives off a sense of wisdom and experience, and many stylists have stated that this is one of their most requested dye jobs throughout the last decade.
The icy, silver-blonde tones seen in fashion and pop culture over the last decade have helped destigmatize gray hair, making silver a highly requested salon shade.
If your natural hair is becoming gray, read these common gray hair mistakes.
Why Do People With Natural Grays Want Highlights
Aging can be a difficult process for anyone. However, lately, people have begun to embrace the beauty of aging instead of attempting to stop it. Many women opt to dye their hair back to their original color when they begin to gray.
However, many others are beginning to add blonde highlights instead of making the gray seem more color-rich and more youthful.
Which Hair Colors Blend Best With Gray Highlights?
Usually, those with blonde or lighter hair are the best candidates for this type of hair color. It can be challenging for those who have slightly darker hair or black hair.
If you have darker-colored hair, your stylist will need to use lightener (bleach) to lift specific sections of your hair, creating highlights that bridge the gap between your dark base and your natural grays.
Safety Tip: If your stylist needs to use bleach to lift dark hair, always request a strand test first to check your hair’s strength. Ask for a bond-building treatment (like Olaplex or K18) during the process to protect your hair from breaking.
How to Blend Gray Hair with Highlights?
Blending your gray hair with highlights is a different process for each type of hair. Here are a few different methods of adding highlights to your gray hair.
Brunette
If you have a brunette base, your stylist can add lowlights that match your natural dark color alongside fine highlights. This creates a soft salt-and-pepper effect that blends the gray seamlessly.
Blonde
If your natural hair color was blonde before you started going gray, adding pale, pearl-toned highlights can seamlessly bridge the gap between your remaining natural blonde and your new gray growth. This will result in an ash-looking color that is unique and is sure to stand out.
Redhead
If you are a redhead, blend with warm, multi-dimensional tones. Think strawberry blonde, light copper, or warm honey highlights and lowlights. Skip dark brown. It can make red and white hair look dull and muddy. You could also ask your stylist for a color glaze—a semi-permanent gloss treatment that adds shine and temporarily deposits tone—to enhance your natural red hair.
Types of Highlighting Techniques
It is essential to choose the correct technique to dye your hair properly. There are a variety of techniques, and choosing the correct one can significantly affect the overall look.
With this technique, your hair is hand-painted, which helps the highlights to look more natural. Balayage allows you to customize your highlights’ look entirely and allows them to begin at the roots. This technique is ideal for gray blending. It softens the harsh root line, so your natural grays can grow in without a clear stripe.
Foilyage
Foilyage is similar to balayage; however, when each highlight is applied, the hair is wrapped in foils to make the effect pop. The purpose of these foils is to trap the heat generated by the lightener, accelerating the lifting process for maximum brightness.
Babylights are best for those with a lighter shade of gray. These highlights are applied using micro-fine sections tightly woven into foils, creating a seamless, naturally sun-kissed look. These light blonde applications will bring out the rich color of your gray hair. Because the weaves are so micro-fine, babylights are the best way to mimic natural gray growth. They look soft and real, not chunky or stripey.
Final Thoughts
Gray highlights are excellent whether you are naturally going gray or if you chose to dye your hair. Gray promotes a sense of wisdom and is highly sought after by young and old women.
Receiving highlights is a great way to bring out the gray color and make your hair stand out.After highlights, use a toning routine to stop brass. Purple shampoo for blonde or gray bases. Blue shampoo for brunette bases. Add a salon gloss every 4 to 6 weeks to keep it fresh.