Grey Lady Down

So I'm at my mom's house on guard duty yesterday (she was recovering from an outpatient surgery), and amidst floor cleaning with my new toy, I get sucked into the Project Runway marathon on Bravo. Keep in mind that DH and I haven't had real cable for a while, so I've never watched before.

Some things I learned: Heidi Klum is a real person, not a fembot. "Fashion" and I have a nodding acquaintance (still not too fond of outfits that look like they've been through a crosscut shredder first). And reality shows really do bring out the absolute worst in people.

Case in point: Wendy Pepper. Nice mom from Middleburg, VA, we think...until she gets on the show and starts scheming in order to win. Commentary I've read names her the show's Cruella De Vil. She's very straightforward about it, too, and says she'll do whatever it takes to make the final three.

I admit I was interested in Wendy initially because we're more of an age than most of the wunderkind designers--most of whom are way telegenic. But her personal look gave me pause. She had a big white streak of hair near her part. At first, I thought it was grey, but later found out there had been a makeover involved. (Wonder if Kara Saun was thinking subliminally about Cruella during the process?) There was no doubt that Wendy looked older than all the other contestants. But a couple of them were 37 to her 39/40 (she must have had a birthday during the filming), yet they looked much younger.

All of this is a long preview to the real point: going grey. You see, my hair is turning grey much faster than most folks I know. My dad's hair was practically white when he was fifty. I'm Daddy's girl. And since it's been a while since I did my roots, I'm noticing that the white is exploding all over my head. It doesn't help much that the last time I colored, I tried a new type. The box said "Permanent." It was two weeks' worth of permanent, maybe. The color just sheeted off my new greys--which are white--and left me with a Bonnie Raitt streak right along my part.

So now I have a quandary. Do I go back to coloring, or do I go ahead and let nature take its course? Turns out the color I've been using (Medium Golden Brown) isn't even close to my natural color, which is decidedly cooler in tone. But my natural color, increasingly, is white. Badly-dyed white hair doesn't look like anything but badly-dyed white hair. And there is no way I'm ever going blonde. A problem, n'est-ce pas?

I'm young at heart. Very. I am outright silly with the kids at church--how many "grownups" do you know will pin on a towel cape for Superhero Night? I wear Christmas Chucks to school. I drive a Beetle convertible, for heaven's sake. But my hair isn't lying about my actual chronology. So should I help it, or give in? One part of me says I should just give in, but decades of beauty advice scream otherwise. Is it possible to be a MILF if you have grey hair? Can you be grey and curly and keep it long without looking like a granola girl? Or should I give in and keep the Garnier gods in business a while longer?

Heidi--for all her fabulousness--is no help. She's a blonde. I'm navigating these waters alone, and they're kind of freaking me out. Suggestions?