Big Chop vs Skunk Stripe! - YouLookFab Forum

The colour and texture of my hair is a big part of how I identify myself, and I am a bit obsessed about it. When it is good, it is very, very good...and when it is bad, it is horrid. Sometimes I look like Orphan Annie, and sometimes like Einstein! Straight I can look like Tilda Swinton or Andy Warhol.

About 5 years ago I started to get some white. For 3 years I got red 'highlights' in a copper penny red very close to my natural colour (mixed metals?). 2 years ago, I went all over with the colour. 5 months ago I had a dye job before I relocated to a new community, and I haven't had a touch up. DH doesn't comment much about things fashionable, but a week ago he pointed out that I had quite the 'skunk stripe' going.

I want to go back to my natural colour, so won't dye again. A hair appointment looms for mid December and I'm torn between keeping a longer style (and dealing with the skunk stripe for a little longer) or going for the big chop.

I'm a wash and wear kind of person, as I'm at the gym daily, and often have to shower once and sometimes twice a day!

Any thoughts or suggestions? In particular any practical advice from those who have been through the process?

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11 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Well, first off, I imagined a much more obvious line of demarcation.

But I hear you -- it's important to do this right. I don't have the experience yet, so I'll let wiser minds prevail. But my impulse would be to go for at least a partial chop.

thimblelina

I stopped coloring cold turkey about two years ago. I'm a brunette shot through with silver which I had been hiding in dirty blonde highlights. The grow out looked like a low rent ombré job for about 6-8 months. But now it's great! All I can say is winter is the perfect time for a color grow out...One word: hats!

Jaime

Big chopper here! First of all Carla, in the picture the stripe is hardly noticeable. Probably it looks different in real life to you. I went for the big chop because I am impatient and I was sick of my hair and my stripe was very, very stark because my dyed hair was very dark. That was about 2 years ago and I haven't looked back, but my hair is longer now, at least on one side.
Anyway, I suggest you don't go super short because your hair is such a big part of your style. Do you have any shorter hairstyles that interest you? This is the time to try!

Elizabeth P

Your skunk isn't very skunky

Does it bother you? If not, I say go for the cut you want, and ignore it. You're in the hardest part of the grow out, when it looks like you're lazy and haven't bothered to colour. A great cut will alleviate some of that. I pulled a big highlighted streak to help me look purposeful at this stage, but I was a SKUNK! I'm not sure you have enough growth to cut and get rid of the dye, so there's probably no point in a big chop just yet.

Firecracker (Sharan)

Carla, I think it's too early for the big chop. Maybe you'll want to get a trim, do one more color, and probably another couple of trims. Then the chop. I haven't done it, but my best friend did, and she has no regrets. She looked terrific in the super short 'do that she got, too--shorter than she had ever had it. (But her hair is straight, quite different looking than yours.) Let us know what you decide or what your stylist advises!
Oh, and I was expecting a much more defined streak, too. The difference isn't all that noticeable in your photo. More like a tiny bit of spotlight effect, if you ask me.

crutcher

You really don't have a defined streak...I get wanting to go back to your natural color...And as to the chop, its just hair and will grow back...Good luck...

Kim

How about having the stylist put in a bunch of gray highlights to break up the "line" and get you closer to your goal? Thats what i would do til it was all grown out.

Highlights and lowlights is a great way to break up the line, if the line bothers you. However you can't get grey highlights on hair that has already been coloured... trust me, I tried :). They will end up blonde. And then brassy. But if you are planning to chop, the brassiness won't be an issue. I suggest just a few lowlights in the part area, if you are thinking at all of getting additional colour to help you along. I found that once I had "come clean", I didn't want to do anything to delay the growing out process.

Neelie

I'd go gradual on the cutting. Can you get a semi permanent dye (perhaps henna) every few weeks until the growth is long enough to cut the rest of the coloured hair off? That way it will not be as noticeable to you.

texstyle

If the line bothers you then I'd probably go for a few highlights using something really gentle just to blur the line for now. I would also wait for a big cut until after I had it grown out a bit more. Maybe just a trim now with some light highlights near the top? Or maybe just try a few highlights and no cut at all right now?

For me, I'd do this on my own using Garnier or some other gentle product. Maybe even in 2 different sessions on the same day so I don't overdo it the first session. That's what I used to use when I did highlights. I've stopped for now as I don't seem to have a "line" any more and I wanted to just let it go natural. The silver/gray streaks are now my new highlights.

Anonymous

My recent bleach blonde adventure was also an experiment in seeing if the greys could be allowed in without huge drama. I too used to be a red-head (it's closest to my natural colour) but the recolouring and upkeep was so ridiculous I finally went blonde. I'm keeping mine short to see if a grey transition can happen easily.
I;m not sure if I'm answering anything here - but I get your issue . Low and highlights are definitely the way to go, and cutting may help you assess where the areas are that grey will be coming in (temples, sides, etc) . I love your red hair, by the way.

SandyG

You look terrific in red hair. I'd add a few highlights and lowlights to blend everything as it grows. This lets you have freedom to get any haircut you want without having to go short all over.

Runcarla

Thanks for the advice. (Sorry to be late getting back - lost Internet connectivity for 24 hrs!)

Indoor IPad pics leave something to be desired, however, I will agree that my stripe isn't as high contrast as white roots on dark hair. My dyed hair has faded to strawberry blonde, and the regrowth is white, red, and (surprise!) what seems like some grey! The white is strong at my crown, and temples. In natural light the stripe looks 'cool' whereas the dyed hair looks 'warm'...if that makes any sense. Other than DH's comment, I had a picture taken at a company event and the contrast was pretty obvious. Before that picture, I was pretty oblivious to what was going on...now I'm obsessing!

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Missey

I love the hairstyle in #1 and think it would look amazing on you. A shorter hairstyle would lessen the line of demarcation just by the fact that there would be less hair. Does your hair get unmanageably curly whyn it's short. I think you could pull off a shorter do. A good stylist should be able to add some highlights to your hair to help it blend better while it grows out.

annabelle

Ask your stylist what she thinks about giving you a foil with a demi-permanent color. The foil will blend in your existing colors and not be an all over color, and the demi permanent color will fade gradually. At your preferred length, the color will be cut off before it fades all the way. I love the idea of going natural. I can't wait to see the result.

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