6 Easy Ways to Hide Your Gray Roots

From Gray to Yay

Hair grows approximately 1.27 cm a month, causing the appearance of a visible line between the new growth and the rest of your colored hair. Your grown roots start to show 1-3 weeks after a coloring service, depending on how fast your hair grows.

If you’ve opted for coloring your gray hair, root touch-ups are needed anywhere between 3-5 weeks. Touch-up appointments can be costly and time-consuming. You also don’t want to damage your hair by dying it too often.

Touch-Up to Lighten Up: Hair color touch-up kits are easy to use at home and keep your hair looking its best in-between color treatments. Because you only apply the product to the roots, it takes a fraction of the time you need to dye your entire head of hair. However, these products also contain the same harsh chemicals that can be found in a full head color.

woman's head with parted gray hair

Ways to temporarily cover grays: Fortunately, there are some fast and commitment-free ways to cover unwanted regrowth without using ammonia and peroxide. Temporary root concealers provide a safe and effortless way to hide your regrowth. You can use them to cover your roots for a special occasion or to buy you a few extra weeks between touch-up appointments.

There are several types of temporary root touch-up products. Each product comes in an array of shades to blend with your current color. These products come ready to use, which is a nice convenience. Root concealers are particularly helpful for covering gray roots.

Are you ready to move from gray to yay and let your hair take center stage?

the effect of using a gray roots concealer

Undercover Haircare: Best Root Concealers for Gray Hair

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1. Power Powders: Root Touch-up Powders

Hair color powder touch-ups deliver temporary coverage and keep the unwanted gray at bay between hair appointments. The pigments in the powder adhere to your hair and stay there until shampooed out. You need to apply the powder to dry hair by pressing a small brush into the roots. They work perfectly for covering up bigger patches of gray hair. Hair color powders are also suitable for masking areas with thinning hair. Are you ready to go undercover?

Brand Blitz:

WOW NOW: COLOR WOW Root Cover-Up: This product uses mineral powder to provide very good coverage for gray roots between touch-ups. It allows for precise application and doesn’t leave a stiff or waxy feeling like when using mascaras and crayons. The formula is waterproof, so you can swim with the product in your hair. Calling all mermaids and merman! It can also be used over the areas where your scalp is showing to create the illusion of denser hair.

Dream with Premium: Premium Root Touch Up by PROTÉGÉ comes with a two-sided brush that allows for precise application. Your hair should be clean and dry before the application. The product blends well and lasts until you shampoo it out. This mineral-based powder doesn’t make hair sticky and gives a natural shine to your roots. The color is waterproof, so it won’t run off when you sweat. Zumba, anyone?

2. Spray Away Gray: Root Touch-up Sprays

Root concealer sprays are probably the quickest way to camouflage gray roots and delay your next salon visit. Root touch-up sprays provide better coverage than other types of root concealers. They’re easy to apply and will cover a larger area at a time. You just need to spray the color over the gray areas you’re trying to hide. The spray dries in seconds and the color lasts until you wash your hair. They can also be used to hide thinning areas to visually increase the density of your hair. Let’s pray away that gray!

The downside is that some of these products can rub off on your fingertips if you touch your hair, but any residue will likely come off with soap and water.

Brand Bonanzas:

Rita Hazan Root Concealer Touch Up Spray

This transfer-proof touch-up spray is formulated to cover grays until shampooed out. It is scent-free and doesn’t run when you are exercising. The nozzle applicator enables precise application onto the gray areas, providing full coverage exactly where it’s needed. It may leave a sticky feeling in the hair but at the same time, it creates the illusion of having more hair.

Root Touch-Up Spray by STYLE EDIT

This touch-up spray comes in 5 shades: black, dark brown, medium brown, light brown, and auburn/red. The spray is easy to apply right at your roots. The liquid pigments dry quickly and don’t spread once it is dry on your hair. The product is sweat-proof and rain-proof but washes out easily with one shampoo.

3. Fairy Godmother: Hair Color Touch-up Wands

Feel like you’ve inherited a real fairy godmother with these touch-up wands! This is another home option for covering grays between color treatments. A touch-up hair color wand comes in a tube with a mascara-like wand. It works best if you need instant temporary coverage for small areas of gray hair. The wand helps to precisely apply a tinted semi-liquid content to areas with gray hair. You can either use the hair dryer or allow the color to dry naturally. The color washes out with the next shampooing, so you should reapply it after each wash.

The color in the tube can be enriched with argan oil or other hair straightening agents to nourish your hair while coloring it. Be fairytale fabulous!

Brand Fans: Gray Root Concealer by Mineral Fusion and Hair Color Wand by Grey-free.

4. Get Zen from the Pens: Root Touch-up Pens

Root touch-up color pens deliver a liquid hair dye in a tube, with a sponge or brush applicator tip. The product should be applied to dry hair. A color pen targets scattered grays, covering them until the next shampoo and enabling you to prolong the time between color touch-ups. This type of root concealer is suitable for smaller areas of gray hair. A gray coverage pen can also be used to create highlights. Grab some Zen with these touch-up pens!

Brands: Magic Root Precision Pen by L’Oréal has recently entered the market. It comes in three shades: medium brown, dark brown, and black.

5. Conceal and Heal: Root Concealer Touch-up Sticks

A root touch-up stick is like a thick crayon or lipstick and usually comes in a plastic tube. To get better results, certain brands need to be moistened before sweeping across gray hairs. Using a touch-up stick makes it easy to cover gray hairs along your hairline. The stick glides over hair smoothly and covers grays until the next shampoo. Conceal those grays and heal your self-esteem today!

Brand Bingo: Root Cover-Up Stick by STYLE EDIT is formulated without harsh ingredients and comes in convenient packaging that fits easily in your make-up case. It will not leave a sticky feeling or rub on your pillowcase.

6. Mark and Park Grays: Touch-Up Hair Color Markers

You have so many choices to mark and park your grays away. This portable and easy-to-apply root touch-up product dispenses temporary color that bonds to the hair and covers gray roots until shampooed out. The application is mess-free. Once you push down the applicator, color flows evenly and bonds to the strands, providing precise coverage. You can brush your hair after application, and you can also apply styling products over it. Hair color markers efficiently cover individual grays.

Brand: TouchBack Instant Root Touch Up (available at Walmart). This marker color applicator comes in eight different colors.

a woman's hair after hiding gray roots