HELP w/ coloring mostly silver/gray hair

Hi all! --- I'm a Newie!

And I need HELP!!!  I'm hoping that there are some other mostly silver-haired ladies on this board and they can help me.  I used to color my hair all the time, but recently decided to cut my long blonde (colored) hair really short and stop coloring it.  Well .... I have discovered that I am REALLY, REALLY gray!!!  It actually looks more silver.  I'm not ready to look 60 in my 40's!!!!  Sooooooooooo ... it's back to coloring my hair.  I need some help!

The back of my hair actually looks more salt and pepper, and the front and top of my hair is predominately silver.  I want to dye it to a medium blonde color, but I'm afraid that what is left of my natural hair color will turn a reddish color.  So, here are my questions.

Since I'm mostly gray, should I go to a lighter color (like medium blonde) even though what's left of my natural color is probably closer to light-medium brown?  Everywhere I read about coloring mostly gray hair says go a couple shades lighter than your natural color.  BUT, I don't want red!  I don't want to go too dark because of the contrast in color when my gray hairs start growing.

I purchaseed L'Oreal Excellence in both Dark Blonde and Dark Beige Blonde.  They also make a Medium Blonde and a Medium Beige Blonde (this is the color I would really like to be vs. the dark).  Anyway, would the Dark Beige Blonde keep my natural hair I have left from turning a reddish shade better than the Dark Blonde because it is a cooler shade?  (Says it helps tone down red).

Would you go lighter or darker with predominately gray hair?  Should I go back and get the Medium Beige Blonde?

HELP!!!!!!!!!  I'm soooooooo confused!

Thanks bunches for any ideas!

P.S.  I have a picture of the front and back of my hair that I can post so you can see the color my hair is, but I don't know how to post the pictures.        

And here's the link to what the back of my hair looks like:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v629/2423kids/backgrayhair 2.jpg

Any help/opinions greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!

Thanks ladies! (and guys)

Hi,

You, could go either medium blonde or darker. Light to medium brown, it really would depend on your skin tone , if your skin is a little pale I would go for the warmer colours, ie, light to medium blonde. If you have a warm skin tone , then you could go for cooler tones of browns. I have coloured a few clients with your hair type and I recomend an intense colour because of the % of white/grey hair, which will cover the grey hair better.

I hope this helps a little..........karen

Hi:

I can't offer advice on coloring grays because I don't have any (yet).  However, I can say this...I had some less than great experiences using over-the-counter L'Oreal color (specifically Colour Experte).  I've come to the conclusion that the most accurate way to predict the end result of your hair coloring is to go to a Sally's or some other place where you can acquire the professional hair color lines such as Miss Clairol, Wella or L'Oreal.  If you read the super post put out recently by Claude on haircoloring basics, you see how she addresses grays and you'll better understand what color you'll need for your desired end result.  The professional lines will indicate the base colors in the bottle. 

For instance, I use a Miss Clairol color called Hazy Mist.  It has a base of blue-violet.  I use this because when I take my level 6 hair up a level or two, I tend to get a warmer tone than I want (specifically a orange-yellowish tinge) so the blue-violet helps to counteract this effect.  By doing several test strands, I felt so much more comfortable in what the end result would be with the professional line than with the Colour Experte (over-the-counter with no base color references).  Plus the supplies at Sally's were less expensive than buying several boxes of color at Target!

I wish that I knew a specific solution for you.  I do know that you'll probably get to your desired color if you are patient, read up, ask for advice, and do lots of test strands!  Best of luck!  Maria

I'm 50 and about 50% white and 50% dark brown.  My daughter says I look like a barcode.  I completely understand why many women would hate to have it, but I love it and have no intention of ever dying it again. In fact, I'm looking forward to 100% white. 

Your hair is a very even colour compared to mine.  If you keep a modern style and really look after your skin and figure, there is no reason why you should look 60. I get a lot of "double-take" looks and even compliments.

I'm not against colouring, but my roots used to show after 2 weeks.  Now they did look awful!!  I'm enjoying keeping my hair in good condition and experimenting with different shampoos and conditioners. I admit that the lovely colours on the boxes still tempt me, but nothing would make me dye again. 

I still love reading all the colour stories on this board though.