Get your e-readers ready, Going Gray’s e-book Color Me Gray: Inspirational Stories from Women Gone Gray is almost here.

The contributors of Color Me Gray are women just like you.  It is a collection of short stories in which they share their personal journeys and tell you what led them to decide: no more dye.  These tales of epiphany, transformation, struggle and success are sure to put a smile on your face.  It’s not just about going gray, it’s about getting real.

The e-book, compiled by Momentum Health and Life Coaching, also features chapters from life coaches about how to live authentically, along with tips and tricks for managing your gray hair from a professional makeup artist and hairstylist.

Color Me Gray will surely be an excellent addition to your virtual bookshelf.

Until then, do you have your own going gray story to share?  E-mail it to us and we may feature you on our blog.

The representative from a New York City salon is still looking for a 20-something with at least 45 percent gray hair to be interviewed and featured on a national TV show in a story called “Embrace Your Gray.”

E-mail us if you are interested – info@goinggrayblog.com – and we’ll help you get set up for your national TV debut!

Were you made for TV?

Going Gray readers, a representative from a New York City salon is looking for a young woman in her 20s who made the decision to go gray and turned down the hair dye.

The ideal candidate will be interviewed and featured on a national TV show in a story called “Embrace Your Gray.”  She needs to be at least about 45 percent gray, and the show would like to film the week of April 26 (next week!)

If you are interested and fit the general description, send us an e-mail – info@goinggrayblog.com – and we’ll help you get set up for your national TV debut!

"The blond did the work with an electric shaver," Carolyn said. We think both hairdressers did a fantastic job!

"They treated me like a queen!" Carolyn said of the service at Jean Louis David salon in Florence, Italy.

One of our readers recently found herself in beautiful Florence when she realized her hair was just “not working.”  Fortunately, Italy is a pretty perfect place to be when you’re having a bad hair day.

Carolyn went straight to a salon on the River Arno where two hairdressers expressed love for her gray hair.

“The blond did the work with an electric shaver, and the managers looked on and checked it all out before I left,” Carolyn said.  “They treated me like a queen!  They loved my hair!”

Carolyn said, “The more I think of this experience, I felt not like a 66-year-old white-haired woman, but just like a 24-year-old blond being doted over as young blonds get doted on each day.  I am not saying anything against young blonds ([I] was one once), but it is rare that I have this experience at this fantastic time in my life.”

“I love my silver platinum tresses!” she raves.

We think Carolyn’s new look is absolutely stunning.  Plus, how wonderful is it that her hairdressers complimented her gray hair?

If you have a story you’d like to share with the Going Gray community, go to the “Contact Us” section at GoingGrayBlog.com or send us a message via Facebook or Twitter.

Don’t forget to share your photos with us on Flickr!  Just join the Going Gray Blog group.

I’m a 50 something Asian-American women that has been coloring my hair since my thirties. I would spend exorbitant amounts of money and time here in the S.F. Bay Area to upkeep my hair. The 6 weeks between touch-ups became 4, then 3. I found myself scrutinizing overly dark dye jobs on women of a certain age. I didn’t like what I was seeing. I had toyed with the idea for years but finally made a steadfast decision in March of this year.

Collaborating with my stylist who blinked only slightly at the substantial loss of income, we embarked on a journey together. An amazing amount of support ensued from friends and family, many jealous of their own perceived lack of courageousness.

We utilized low lights to ease in the initial outgrowth as well as temporary allover coloring if a special event arose during this painful time. I used Prell (I know…) & high quality conditioners (products with Argan oil are a miracle) to help wash out the remaining color.

It’s still a journey but I’m almost there w/o nearly the trauma I envisioned and this is coming from someone with black hair. It’s looking more salt and pepper by the month. A good stylist, a great cut (can’t overemphasize this) and an open mind helped me through the dog days of skunkdom with no regrets. It became a valuable education for my youthful stylist seeing as how a trend may be emerging and she will be well positioned with tips and techniques for other Boomers ready to go for it. P.S. I’m also thinking of of low lighting again once all the gray grows in. My stylist will be very happy!

Come join us to share your gray story, meet others who are going and loving gray and keep up with what’s happening off the blog!  And don’t forget to “like” posts you see here on the blog – it’s an easy way to share something you like with your Faceboook friends!

Going Gray Facebook Page

Also, don’t miss our new Flickr Group.  We’d love to see your “Going Gray” photos because we all know gray hair rocks!

Going Gray Blog Flickr Group

Do you have a question about gray hair? Ask us! Photo courtesy of goodhousekeeping.com

We love mail!

A lot of you have reached out to us about growing out gray hair, and here at the Going Gray Blog we take your courage to make this step very seriously. From here on out, we thought it would be a good idea to highlight your questions (with your permission, of course!) and open them up to our readers. Last week, we received this message:

“Hi my name is Christy, and i know that i have salt and pepper gray under my dye job. I color it a medium golden brown; I’ve been coloring it for a long time. I’m now 53yrs old and curious, but I feel I will need to go to my hairdresser to make the transition because it will be something that makes me nervous. I used to go to my hairdresser and she would do my hair a medium blonde with highlights. It was pretty but i was getting tired of doing all that so now i do it one color myself at home, and i still have never seen my gray.. do you think i should try letting it grow out some and decide from there?”

- Christy

Thank you Christy for allowing us to share your question and we hope you know there are many others just like you thinking about the same thing. Feel free to chime in, and keep those questions coming!

Thoughts, anyone?

Gray is Gorgeous. Photo courtesy of Complete Woman Blog

Wanna show off your gorgeous gray hair?

Let us give you a chance to do so! We’ve been working on a special project for a while now that’s all about the gray movement. Like we said in our previous post, gray hair is all the rage—and we’ve got proof. Here’s your chance to inspire others and get in on the fun.

We’ve been collecting stories from women of all ages who have made the choice to go gray. There has been a nice mix of stories—from one woman who had her first gray at 14, to another who decided to keep her silver locks to honor someone special, and other tales of acceptance, courage and newfound confidence.

What’s your story? Shoot us an email at goinggray.ebook@gmail.com for a chance to be published in our eBook.

We’re very excited to hear from you!

Photo Courtesy of Obrag.org

Today is an extra special day at the Going Gray Blog headquarters because… we just turned two!

Here’s an excerpt from one of our favorite 2009 posts by Claire Douglass. Remember her beautiful painting?

"Venus Deleted" by Claire Douglass

“The whole process of revealing my ‘old lady’ hair has also been interesting. The reactions of other people have not always been predictable, and I’ve had to accept my own very visible maturity.

Whenever I am confronted with issues to resolve, I make art, so I want to share this painting with the readers of this blog. Because you’ll get it.”

Read the full post here.

So it’s our birthday and you want to get us something right? Great news! All we want this year is for you to…

1. Be a fan of our blog on Facebook

2. Follow us on Twitter

3. Re-Tweet this to your friends!

Thank you, dear readers, for making this blog what it is today. Keep coming back, we’ve got BIG plans for 2010.

Happy New Year to you all!

Photo Courtesy of MSNBC

How many of you out there are thinking about saying bye to the dye in 2010? We want to hear from you!

Tell us all about your decision and get the chance to be featured on this blog.

We’re also working on a very special Q&A post with a celebrity hairstylist (cross your fingers). Ditching the dye and don’t know where to start? Need suggestions for a gray makeover? Tried and tested gray hair care tips?  Send in your questions about going gray through the comment box and we’ll get our stylist to help you out.

We hope you enjoyed the white Christmas!

Happy Holidays from the GoingGrayBlog Team