Going Gray 3: Toning and Enhancing Silver Hair

Going Gray 3: Toning and Enhancing Silver Hair- this is the third time I have used the Manic Panic Blue Steel to enhance my gray. I like it because it's easy and inexpensive but I have been cautious! First I mixed it with Pastelizer and used it all over. Then I did half diluted with the Pastelizer and half full strength, and now I did full strength all over and show you the results side by side and in full sunlight (and I didn't even burst into flame with my vampirish skin). Products and more at www.uniquemoniq...
• Going Gray the easy way! First time using Blue Steel.
• Going Gray 2: Silver &... Second time using Blue Steel.
Monique Parent is a Hollywood actress and model who has been in the biz for 25 years. UniqueMonique is not just her brand but also her view of life! We all deserve to be unique and to celebrate our individuality!
www.uniquemoniq...
SortaHealthy® is about healthy eating and getting more veggies into your body, and has evolved into all around health including acceptance of growing older. www.sortahealth...
Life. Style. Food. Fitness and feeling fabulous after forty!
"Leopard Print Elevator" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
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FTC Disclaimer: All items have been purchased by me with my own money.

[@karenfowler4623]

I thought I'd come back to one of your earlier Manic Panic how-to's as these tutorials have been the most instructive, encouraging and helpful so that I could again report back and say THANK YOU! All of your ongoing efforts in sharing your journeys in everything from going gray gracefully to evolving makeup and pallets to cooperate with new color have been INVALUABLE - and I don't know if people tell you nearly enough how wonderfully helpful your videos are, so I felt compelled to do that! I remember the night I stumbled across the first "how to go gray" videos you'd done, but I think it was pretty early on as you still had a fairly short faux hawk and were just doing the first of a few at-home applications of Manic Panic on a bleach job you'd had done at your salon. The thing is, what really stuck with me, was when you said there comes a time when you realize that your skin and complexion just no longer match your hair. That is PRECISELY the place I'd arrived, after twenty plus years of dying my hair to be the original brown-black I had (briefly, lol) when I was around 18. I'd gotten SO sick of "chasing the stripe" and worse, I'd reached a point where I thought my skin was looking sallow, washed out, just BLAH. And I'd started doing some vague research online as to what other women of my age (and of women my age - HOW MANY??? Is it really real that gray is now in, even among young women who are going to extraordinary lengths to achieve what I thiiiiink is naturally happening under layers and layers and months and months of root touch-ups?? LOL) were doing with going to their natural gray, or going to an enhanced version of their natural gray. I knew I had probably inherited from my mom her super frosty, almost sparkly, white - especially in the front and up top, and that probably there was salt an pepper around my ears in in back, but it had been ten years since, at 38, I got brave one night and literally buzzed my entire head to an inch of hair to reveal the salt and pepper and white happening back then. At that time, I did really like it - it was super funky and interesting and kind of punk rock without any help - and I grew it out to a short pixie, all naturally, for the first four or five months. THEN, I had cutter's remorse and decided i wanted to grow it out long once more and I wasn't liking the in-between stage, like, AT ALL, at that point. So, I dyed my growing out pixie Auburn, and then back to brown-black, and let it grow. While it did reach the longest it's ever been in my adult life, I had recommitted to the darn chasing the stripe and worse, I was not sure I was ready to fully commit to that much gray at that age. (I remember when it was super silver and short, at 38, that people would do this thing where they'd look at my face, then up at my hair and back again as though struggling to reconcile "just how the heck old IS this chick anyway?", and I really didn't like that and worried that the gray might be adding age rather than looking great. Fast forward to recently, now 48, when I decided that age confusion be damned, I was going to break this silly commitment I'd made to myself that I'd wait til my mid 50's to take the leap, mainly because aaaaall the love had drained out of dying my hair just a normal, blah, dark brown that just didn't do anything for my complexion and seemed to be making me appear OLDER. Well, it does seem that there are some psychological moments involved in this process, and THIS was what really has spoken to me in the moments you've shared with us. That it IS a personal choice that can be really emotional, and that it's ok to want support and encouragement, and that as women, we REALLY need to stick together and give each other just that!! At a time when I really wanted the change but had some doubts, when I wanted to move forward and realized I was lacking literally the how-to information, and when I was moving forward with it but wondering how I would implement some changes in other areas to accompany it - there were all your wonderful videos FULL of encouragement, how-tos, tips on a ton of relevant other stuff, as well as your heartfelt testimony as to what this journey has looked like, felt like and what it has meant to you!! I might not have forged on ahead without your resources, so I really do thank you :) And just as an fyi to other ladies and feedback as to how I've recently accomplished this, my steps went like this: I had crazy "cherry black" dye that I'd used in a last gasp effort to love any color on my hair, but which was a BIG no-no if one is planning to try to remove it. Before I got my hair cut (from an angled bob that had reach just about collar length) to a very short faux-hawk, I did one round of Color Oops to try to lift some of that God awful red. While it literally did NOTHING on the last five inches nearest the ends, where all those root touch-ups would overlap and just build up, it did lighten the hair closest to the roots for about two inches to a light brown. Partial success. I then let it grow for about two and a half weeks untouched, so that when I saw my hair dresser, I had about 1 solid inch of white roots and about two more inches of that crazy light brown. The photo you see in my profile is right after that haircut, where she left in some of the brown as "tips". My original plan had been to get a slightly longer faux-hawk and for her to bleach it out so I could Manic Panic it at home (or have her do it there)...but as we talked we both agreed that honestly, since I was already willing to go so short, no problem at all, that the effort and damage inherent in bleaching it might not even make sense, expense-wise, so I let her fringe in the tips and made a plan with myself to deal with those tips in a few weeks. About a month and a few days after that cut, it's already growing out to short pixie/ slightly longer faux hawk. I could conceivably just keep cutting out the faux hawk until it's longer, or I could just keep some rounder edges and fringies as it's more a pixie, but in either event, I recently took the plunge and bleached it and Manic Panicked it. I had never bleached my hair before so that was definitely a learning experience. I have very thick, course hair but it's sort of fragile, too, so I was scared to death while bleaching it, and when it got super hot, I got pretty worried I was scalding it. I might have been able to leave it on a little longer looking back, but I washed it out when I thought I needed to and it was very white toward the roots, fairly lemony yellow at the ends, with just a biiiiiiit of orange cast here and there. Given I'd read over and over that it should be pretty close to the inside of a banana for it to really take the toner, I was hesitant to tone it just yet. I let it breathe for another day, went out and got the toner the next and that night did a "bleach wash" to try to lift a little more of that orange and yellow....and I probably left that in for 30 - 40 minutes, and when I washed it out it had lifted considerably more and most of it was light banana with just a slightly darker yellow cast to the ends. I then followed your half Manic Panic, half Pastelizer instructions, and got pretty decent results with that right away! MOST of it is this beautiful white/silver with only just a touch of yellow cast - probably where that most intense color of the tips had been. As I finish writing this crazily overlong thank you (lol...sorry about that, I do tend to go on - but given how much effort I had to put into finding information to begin with, I'm hoping that my follow up will help another lady facing the bleach to Manic Panic turning point) I'm sitting with a head full now of just straight Manic Panic (Blue Steel, no pastelizer). I've gained some confidence in this whole exercise and now realize that I can trust the MP not to harm my hair in any way, and I don't need to fear it being overly purple or blue, so I'm pleased that I started with a milder color to then build up to trusting the full Manic Panic color straight out of the tub. I am also armed with my follow up Blue Shampoo, and given that I now know I can leave the MP on for as long as I want, I'm expecting that by later this evening, it's going to be the perfect shade and the one I've been going for since inspired to begin the process. I am sure that once I've got this color straightened out, I'll update my profile pic again so that anyone interested can see how this turned out. Monique - you're just the best! Thanks again and I look forward to your next installments. Best, Karen

[@karenfowler4623]

+Monique Parent Thank you !! I really love it... I do have periwinkle but I dig it! This is the most fun I have had with my hair in years!!

[@BBMc107]

I really appreciate seeing these toners on you before I try them. I have spent 6 years growing out my white the "easy" way. My hair grows VERRRRRRY slowly and every beautician sees white hair and chops it off. I finally stopped going to a pro for a year and Damn! my hair went from chin length to APL. Soooo, I do not want to experiment too much. I put in demi perm pink last year and it stayed from May to November and I finally colored it out. Tried a denim blue for that and it turned greenish. Yeuch. Manic Panic and Artic Fox Sterling have been the best at toning my hair a natural silver. The sterling is darker, more of a medium gray than a silver, but very pretty and it toned out the weird strip of golden blonde at the nape of my neck left by a pro stylist.

[@1darklydreaming]

Fantastic! Your hair has a lovely texture too. Just a tip for anyone who usually uses pastelizer - you can also use plain white conditioner to dilute the Manic Panic.

[@1darklydreaming]

+Monique Parent I think it depends on how porous your hair is. I do find lately I've been using the majority of dye and just a small amount of conditioner. I also use Directions dye rather than Manic Panic as it is cheaper in Australia.

[@mama_silver_9103]

this looks amazing... I have the virgin snow toner and will try it without bleaching..... again.... YOU LOOK AMAZING!!!!

[@CopperBooom]

Loving your videos about embracing silver/gray hair! I've had a white streak and lots of white/gray hair since my late twenties. I'm 43 now. As a brunette, keeping up with my roots became a CHORE! My mom is a hairdresser and encouraged me to go blonde in my 30's; best idea EVER! But I can't wait for the day I get to be just silver/white. (Actually yes I can wait...who welcomes the passage of time?) just wanted to say, you're awesome and gorgeous and I love your hair!!!

[@333peppy333]

It is absolutely gorgeous on you! I am not sure I can pull of that much lavender though. I am super thrilled that YOU did this experiment, and also to know I should leave the product on longer. I only processed mine for 50 minutes. When I do this again over the weekend, I'll leave it on a couple hours, and use less of the pastelizer. Thank you for sharing all of these grey hair related videos!

[@333peppy333]

You are truly awesome! I hope your channel continues to grow in leaps and bounds!

[@pjmundy8257]

Beautiful!! The whiter, the better. You do excellent videos by the way, very down-to-earth. Thanks!!

[@plume1639]

Wow what a difference! Beautiful

[@giaquinto5064]

LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! I USE A DAB OF "MANIC PANIC PURPLE HAZE" AND MIX IT IN TO GIVE MY HAIR MORE OF A (VERY SLIGHT LAVENDER) GRAY/SILVER EFFECT. IT'S GREAT! THANKS FOR THE VIDEO!

[@carmenroupp653]

love the way it turned out

[@paula3280]

Gorgeous! can't wait to do mine. thanks Monique

[@cheriutube]

Love your videos, Monique! Have you tried the ChromaVivids hair colors? The silver is really beautiful. It will be very steel color used full strength and diluted with conditioner it will be the color you see in the bowl pretty well. I like it because it is a blue based silver, as opposed to the purple base that is Manic Panic. The color seems richer. It lasts well, too. I leave it in about 45 minutes. Thanks again for the fun videos!

[@love-yourself-1st]

Wow! :) that silver with your eye color! :) beautiful :)

[@melindavermes7705]

Wow! Beautiful colour!

[@msolupi]

Looks amazing Monique!

[@joann2348]

Can you please let me know , how is the best approach to enhance silver streaks that are natural ? I want to pull out the areas mostly at my temples underneath my natural dark brown hair . I want my white hair to look like I have streaks. l

[@divajayde01]

It looks fabulous. Love it.

[@sonjarule4238]

So beautiful! Monique, do you do anything special to your hair before you tone it, other than wash it with clarifying shampoo? Do you condition with the purple conditioner before the coloring?

[@deyodie]

Beautiful head of hair Looks great on you

[@yvonnevandenherreweghe7031]

Very pretty hair color.I enjoy your beauty tips.HUGS!

[@robicarm]

I've been letting my grey pepper hair grow out and enhancing it with semi permanent dyes. I also have highlights weaved in to blend the gray. It is a lot of fun without all the damage of permanent dye.

[@seniorsusan7946]

HI Monique! It's me again! I just LOVE your tutorials...First of all....YOU are amazing and look SO beautiful!! Took your advise.....I used the Manic Panic Blue Steel full strength..left it on my hair for 90 minutes and it is not giving me that silver color like you have! Any suggestions or advise??? Your answer and direction will be great for me and any one else having this problem...... Thanks Monique...keep those videos coming!!! xoxoxo

[@RavenVargas27]

It is so beautiful I love that color thanks this helps a lot

[@rosecityremodel2015]

Love it. I also LOVE that wallpaper!

[@claudettethauvette5129]

Amazing Monique

[@wubbie2002]

I am doing the process starting dark brown natural color, then went auburn red, and finally blonde in my 50's, I saw what you have and I wanted it! Hairdresser left me too much dark, with highlights of silver white. I want white with with the low lights such as yours, went back and had more highlights and she said she used the highest lifting stuff she had, she just did not want to strip it out in case my hair would fall out! I just do not know where to go from here?

[@twosiciliansisters5747]

what amazes me you didn't have to bleach it before hand I have salt and pepper hair Im wondering how it is going to work on my grays streaks

[@deyodie]

How long does it last?How often do you have to put the manic panic on your hair.Thank you

[@alibat258]

Hello Monique, I'm entertaining to let my grey hair grow in naturally. I don't want to bleach the ends while the roots grow. Do you think I could use a blue shampoo to kind of camouflage the grey hair or is that not going to do much until all the grey grows out? I appreciate your opinion. Thank you, Ali.

[@zainylainy1]

I loved the video where you showed what your products looked like on your mom too. Please Bring your mom back, so us transitioning girls can see it on blonde hair. Thank you for your gutsy wonderful videos. I think your my best friend!😀

[@animalrescuegeek]

Stunning!

[@chuckmcveigh1896]

My God, you are a gorgeous woman!!! Funny, articulate and down to earth as well...all that and the bag of chips!!

[@rosariovacchi7573]

you should have more subscribers. you are so pretty and witty.

[@rosariovacchi7573]

You are one of the best and certainly you have a style of beauty a maturing woman should appreciate.

[@djmelotte8220]

Wow!! Your hair is gorgeous!!

[@kerrybun]

As your hair grows out is the new growth at the roots noticeable?

[@pattydriver9562]

Why haven’t you selected virgin snow? I love this color but curious as to why?

[@paula3280]

Very pretty lady ! Love the hair

[@mingla66]

Stunning! 😀

[@deadendrite]

I'm curious if it leaves a stain of any kind? Like does it fully wash out eventually? I've finally grown out my gray but have had semi colours stain it permanently in the past...

[@deadendrite]

Yes... that makes sense... thanks... I recently used this Surya Brasil henna creme product that was supposed to be a semi permanent but it's not seeming to budge... I suppose at some point it will fade... I hope... which is a shame because it's a drab yellowy kind of colour which sort of sucks as it took me so long to grow out the gray! (why I did that I have no idea... I'm just can't seem to leave my hair alone... :-))

[@preciou2005]

Hello gorgeous my God thank you for sharing your transition I’m in the process too and there’s days don’t know what to do to enhance the demarcation so my question to you beautiful lady the maniac thing every what do you apply it and thank you again for sharing your journey God blessings

[@cat-yz2ew]

I'm curious as to how the color took on your virgin roots. thanks!

[@cat-yz2ew]

+Monique Parent ..Courious as to how often you will have to do this..keep us updated..thanks!

[@samvue9219]

thanks I hate to be complicated, and this one is not.

[@themamachar]

Wow you are gorgeous!!!!!

[@andykukta9694]

What about silver hair on a man, should we enhance it, dye it or leave it alone?

[@killianlarkin1879]

Tempting. Looks so good.

[@yocelinpe3627]

how long did you leave it on for?

[@LyndaMakara]

How long does the color last?

[@arsyamsasy7626]

thanks

[@susanhull1098]

Did you have two different earrings on?

[@susanhull1098]

+Monique Parent, it did look cute. And, handy for you!

[@cathiedancek5017]

Great videos beautiful lady!

[@farjado1]

You are a beautiful women

[@lisbusch]

Love the blue! Sexy!