Colorful hats
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It's easy to hide gray roots without hair color. Depending on your hair length, time of year, outfit, and whether you'll be indoors or outdoors, there are a variety of ways that you can hide gray roots without coloring your hair. So if you're in between touch-ups, have just a few grey hairs, or prefer to go gray naturally, follow these tips to hide gray roots.

Hats. These are the easiest way to hide gray roots and work well when spending time outdoors. If you have grey hair at the temples, select a hat style that sits low on your forehead. Hats work well to hide gray roots whether you have a little or a lot of grey hair.

Scarves. If you have grey hair around your hair line, pull the scarf (or bandana, depending on your outfit and look) down low to cover roots entirely. If you have gray hair near the nape of the neck, use the scarf as a headband. Scarves can hide gray roots, and depending on the design and colors, can distract viewers from focusing on your roots.

Comb over. If you have more grey hair on one side of your head than the other (and near the hairline), then play with your part. Obviously, this works better with longer hair. Men hide bald spots by combing their hair over from one side to the other. Women can do this to hide gray roots. When thinking of deep, low parts, consider emulating Meg White of the White Stripes.

Hair accessories. Try in conjunction with the comb over. To hold the part in place, use a hair clip. Else, tuck the part behind your ear and place a clip with a large flower on the other side. This works well if you need to cover gray roots on both sides of your head.

Touch up stick. Hide gray roots without using hair color; instead, use other types of make-up. If you have dark hair, consider using mascara (swipe the wand over the roots and let dry). Eye liner and brow pencils work well too. You can also purchase root touch up sticks designed specifically for grey hair. While there have been many positive reviews of Oscar Blandi's Pronto Colore Root Touch Up and Highlighting Pen, I found it too thick, it didn't match my hair color, and it drew more attention to my roots. Color Mark is a temporary liquid hair color as well--please see Resource section below for more information.

Tips

  • Experiment with a variety of these tips. You can hide gray roots in multiple ways. For example, if you will be spending time both indoors and outdoors, wear a hat outdoors and try the comb over or touch up stick when indoors.