Highlight Gray Hair

Woman with gray hair
Photo: Goodluz/Shutterstock
Q: If someone wanted to highlight gray hair (silver and dark) what would you suggest? She does not want to color her whole head.
 
A: This is a tough one. Most women and men who are going gray are looking either to cover the gray or think of the gray hair as a highlighting already.
 
However, when an individual with gray in their hair wants to add an additional highlighting color, you follow the same basic principles as for non-gray individuals. You have to find a color that will be complimentary to the existing colors.
 
Using the still-pigmented hair, you need to find the base color for the natural hair color. Once that is done, you can select a "highlight color" that will compliment that color. For example, if the non-gray hair is a dark auburn brown, then using a light auburn, or dark strawberry blonde would make a good highlight color, adding depth without trying to over-lighten the hair.
 
If the individual has a lot of gray (more than 50% coverage), you might want to use this technique to "lowlight" the hair and give partial gray coverage. By choosing a complimentary color (based on the natural color of the pigmented hair) you can blend the transition from pigmented to gray and give a more youthful appearance.
 
©Hairfinder.com
 
See also:
 
How to color hair
 
How to choose natural-looking highlights
 
Hair tips for looking younger