How To Grow Out Your Roots

*nails not done...sorry!

We are so lucky that we live in a time where ombré is in style. I remember a few years ago when growing out your roots pretty much implied that you were either too lazy or too cheap to maintain your hairstyle. Thankfully this is no longer the case since many of us aren't those two things and just plainly want to grow out our natural hair color!

Shortly after I stopped competing in pageants, I began growing out my natural hair color. I am a natural blonde but I used to have regular highlights to lighten up my color, done approximately every 1-3 months. After a while however, I began to feel as though the continuous dying of my hair was taking a toll on its texture. With the combined past of having extensions and continuously curling my hair, I felt as though it was time to switch back to a more natural color. I've successfully grown my hair out to a stage where it looks rather ombré.

Achieving this state was a rather awkward journey. The point between your roots showing a little and growing them out to full-fledge ombré, isn't the most appealing. For this reason, I'd like to share some of the tactics I used to mask my growing roots.

1. I wore my hair up...a lot!

This was especially convenient for my lifestyle, since I had a lot of laboratory work in my final year of University. If I was in a rush, this was also a great option. Pinterest was a godsend during this time, since I also learned how to put my hair up in elegant and/or cute updos, for those times when I was going-out.

These are my favourite hair elastics.

2. When I wore my hair down, I made sure a portion of it was pulled back

Braids along your crown blend your roots in with your highlighted color very well. In addition, wearing your hair half-up and half-down also creates for the same allusion. The benefit of this, is that it also looks like you went to great lengths to do your hair, even though creating these styles often takes only a few minutes!

*An example... not me

3. I used a lot of dry shampoo! 

Ask any blonde and they will tell you that dry shampoo is a staple in their beauty routine! Unfortunately, blonde hair tends to look dirtier quicker than brunette hair does due to the greater contrast in the accumulation of build-up. Spraying dry shampoo or sprinkling baby powder on your roots helps lighten them up and diminish this contrast. My favourite dry shampoo is the Dove brand. Unfortunately this one sells out quickly, so for now I am using the John Freida, which still works relatively well!

4. I wore headbands!

Now, this is tricky. Wearing headbands tend to remind us of our childhood, and so we steer clear of wearing them. Luckily, there are many stylish and cute headbands out there that do not make us look "immature". I personally love the way the Lacoste headbands look - they are very simple and come in many colors. Headbands are a great way to mask the separation between your grown out roots and your highlighted hair. 

some of my favorite colors

5. I did not let myself feel self-conscious about my un-styled hair.

This one is important. No matter how insecure you may feel about your hair or any other part of your body, you must remind yourself that the opinion of others does not matter. This may sound cheesy, but it is the truth: your beauty radiates from the way that you feel about yourself!

Have you ever transitioned back to your natural hair color? How was your experience?