Welcome to Silver Foxes!

Yasmina Rossi

Silver Foxes is a lifestyle blog dedicated to silver-tressed ladies and gentlemen everywhere! Are you a Silver Fox?

Recently, I discovered the Gray and Proud group on Facebook. We all have hair in varying stages of gray/silver/white, and we're all dealing with the challenges of going "au naturel." But aside from having gray hair in common, I'm discovering an interesting, witty, vibrant, and adventurous group of people from all over the world, determined to live life to the fullest! And my hope is that they ~ and you ~ will join me and use this blog to share thoughts, ideas, and tips on how to be a Silver Fox!

Society says "dye it ~ youthful is in ~ looking older is OUT!" Well meaning friends encourage us to cut it, color it, and fit in. And our own inner voices sometimes tweak us as well. But we know we've got a good thing going ~ we love our silver hair, and wear it with pride!

This is how I got here ~

Two years ago I experienced a serious health crisis that left me drained physically, emotionally and spiritually. When the smoke cleared, I was at least twenty five pounds overweight, and hopelessly out of shape. My face was pale and puffy, with dark circles under my eyes from stress and lack of sleep. And my long, brownish-blond hair was stringy, lifeless and turning gray.

I'd always been very upbeat and energetic ~ very young in spirit. But suddenly, I was feeling old and my self-confidence was shaken to the core.

I began to have this dialog with myself ~

Maybe you should start wearing more age appropriate clothing to hide the belly fat ~ maybe you should wear more blush ~ maybe you should cut your hair into a more mature, adult style ~ maybe you should color the gray hair to look younger ~ maybe...

Then one day while looking through a fashion magazine, trying to get some kind of inspiration, I saw a photo of lovely, silver-haired, Yasmina Rossi. I think it was an Eileen Fisher ad. For those of you who don't know Yasmina, she is in her fifties...slim, fit and beautiful...with long silvery-white hair. Inspiration jumped off the page and slapped me in the face!

A voice inside said ~

You're not a quitter! Don't lay down and die! Get up off your butt and do something! Don't hide the belly fat ~ get rid of it! Don't wear more blush ~ go outdoors and exercise!

And don't cut and color your hair ~ wear it long and flowing and silver! It's your crowning glory!

I know, it sounds kind of dramatic ~ but that's the way it was. I began to lose weight. I resumed my yoga practice, took a pole dancing class, and started bike riding again. I was writing, and taking pictures, and reading. I was enjoying my life again. It was a metamorphosis from the inside out. I wasn't trying to look younger ~ I was just trying to feel like the best me that I could be. And the better I felt, the better I looked.

I started using hair products to emphasize the silver in my hair, and stopped using curling irons and dryers and just let it flow wild and free. The more shiny and silvery my hair was, the livelier I felt.

These days, I'm feeling great! Is there a moral to my story? Only to love yourself fully and unconditionally ~ enough to trust your instincts and do what's best for you. And only you know what that is. So do it ~ because you're worth it!

C