I remember when I visited my 70-year-old aunt, who still looks amazing, and I asked her what the secret was to looking young. She said "Color your hair."
Since then I've noticed that it's true. Older women who color their hair seem to look about 10 years younger than they actually are.
If you had asked me 10 years ago if I would ever get highlights, I would have told you that I would never color my hair. A friend's mother always insisted that she thought I did but I just had natural blond summer highlights. That all changed after having kids. That's when the dirty blond hair became my prominent color. It doesn't suit me.
I started getting highlights about 3 or 4 years ago. I always hated the smell of the coloring. I know it's not good for me or the hair stylist. I've asked several times about whether there were any natural options and I had always been told no, but I knew there had to be some other options.
Toxic Hair Dyes
A study by the Harvard School of Public Health and the University of Athens Medical Schools suggested that women who use hair dyes five or more times a year have twice the risk of developing ovarian cancer.
And if that's not scary.....my friend's hair grows so quickly that at one point she was going to get her hair colored every six weeks. She stopped after a few months because her hair was falling out.
Yikes!
A natural option at the salon
A few weeks ago I saw an ad in my local paper for a salon that now has organic hair coloring. Whoo hoo! I was so excited, I went and booked my appointment.
It was wonderful. When the hair stylist was putting in the highlights, it didn't stink like it usually does. And I was really impressed with how the color turned out - it looks fantastic!
I will definitely go back again the next time I need highlights. I've already told several friends.
Look for salons that carry natural hair color in your community! I bet you will find it, if you look hard enough.