Can hair that is dyed or has some grey can be donated? Yes, as long as the hair is healthy. Had I known this, I would have donated my hair a few years ago. When I learned of this, I had just had several inches trimmed off so had to wait. I waited and procrastinated because a minimum of 8″ is needed and that is a drastic change
Children with Hair Loss, a non-profit organization in South Rockwood, Michigan accepts grey and dyed 
hair. Their website is http://www.childrenwithhairloss.us The hair pieces made by this organization are provided free of charge to children with hair loss. Founded in 2000, they originally made hair pieces for children with cancer but have expanded to provide hair replacement for children who have lost hair from other illnesses and from trauma such as fire. Children with Hair Loss currently helps over 300 children per year. The site has instructions and donation forms for those wishing to donate their hair as well as inspiring photos.
I had attempted to generate interest in this as an event to show that dyed and/or grey hair could be donated but there wasn’t enough interest for that, so I spontaneously went on an afternoon when I had a cancellation in my schedule. I chose Hair Cuttery in Round Lake since both I and my Mom-In-Law (isn’t that nicer sounding than Mother-In-Law?) and I both had great service there in the past and because I knew appointments were not required. I was delighted to see that my favorite stylist, Stephanie was available. She was excited to be part of the hair donation.
Stephanie and I consulted about the donation and about how I wanted my hair cut. She took photos of 
my from both the front and back to show how long my hair was. Since Stephanie has done many cuts for donation and I wanted a layered cut, she separated my into several pony tails. The lower part of my hair generated 9″ pony tails while the upper part allowed Stephanie to cut 11″ inches off. These pony tails were then carefully placed in a zip lock bag.
We proceeded with the cut much like any customer getting their hair cut. Stephanie washed and conditioned my hair, then combed it out and went to work. We chatted as she worked and before long it was time for the blow drying. I liked how quickly my hair was dried. I love the look of long hair but when you have both long and thick hair, it takes a long time to dry. More often than not, I would wash my hair at night and simply let it air dry – which took about four hours. When I used the blow dryer it would take 25-30 minutes. It took Stephanie about ten minutes and only that long because she was playing with the styling. She used a rounded brush to flip the hair upward, then tried it under.
Stephanie had turned my hair away from the mirror as she did the styling so I would have a reveal moment. When she turned the chair back and I saw my reflection I was very surprised. My hair was shorter than expected but did look nice. My hand came up reflexively to touch my hair. My head felt light and fluffy.
I’m not yet sure how I feel about my new hair style. It will take time to get accustomed to. At this point I neither love it or hate it. My husband likes the look and a few friends have also given me thumbs up. The thing about hair is that it grows back, so if I decided this is not for me, a few months from now I will have a new look. I do feel very good about cutting my hair to donate. My hair will be combined with hair from other donors to create a hair piece. I’ve read that it takes 9 donations to make a single wig. Maybe since my hair is thick and some pony tails were 11″ that number will go down. Still, probably 7 more donors are needed? Who’s next?
All the best,
Valerie