Salt And Pepper Beard Dye: Easy Tutorial For Beginners

In the past, people wanted to keep their distance from gray hair. It was seen as something for older people, which is why a lot of folks used to religiously darken their locks when gray hairs started to pop out.

That’s far from the case today, though. Nowadays, people are rocking gray hair everywhere. From the runway, all the way to the streets, and one of the most popular gray options right now is the salt and pepper beard.

A salt and pepper beard is a classic manly look. It has grown in popularity over the years and now stands as a symbol of maturity, manliness, and toughness.

But, how to dye a beard salt and pepper properly?

In short, to dye a beard salt and pepper if you have a white beard you need to spread the dark dye on your entire beard with a brush. On the opposite side, if you have a black beard you should use gray women’s eye shadow with your fingers.

There are many ways to get a salt and pepper beard, and we go through a couple of these methods and more in this article. So keep reading if you’ve been looking to turn your facial hair into a salt and pepper beard.

Let’s get straight into it!

What’s A Salt And Pepper Beard?

Before we go into how you can dye your beard to give it that classic mature look, we first have to figure out what this kind of beard actually is.

A salt and pepper beard is simply facial hair with a nice mix of dark hair and gray hair, hence the name. It works best for people with a thick full beard as it can be a symbol of maturity and masculinity. Plus, this kind of facial hair is starting to be seen all over the place.

Related Post: Does Shaving Make Your Beard Thicker?

Celebrities like Will Smith, Idris Elba, and Steve Carrel have all been seen recently rocking this type of beard with the gray highlights. For most people that grow thick facial hair, the salt and pepper look will come naturally with time, which is also why a lot of people associate this look with a mature man.

However, if you’ve been looking to speed up the process and get the mix of gray and dark hairs quickly, dyeing is another great option for you. You can either get it done at a salon or do it yourself, and we’ll dive deeper into this in the next section.

How You Can Get A Salt And Pepper Beard

Now that you know the look, it’s time to look at two ways you can achieve it.

Wait For Time To Take Its Course

This is the simplest and arguably the easiest way to grow a salt and pepper beard. As we get older, our hair starts to lose its pigment, which is why we can see some of our dark hair turn gray-silver as time goes by.

Aging is a process none of us can stop, which is why we have learned to start embracing gray hairs instead of hiding them. If you’re starting to notice gray hairs popping out on your face, you can simply wait until they start becoming more prominent and the next thing you know, you have a salt and pepper beard growing on your face.

Dye Your Beard

While it may be nice and natural to wait for your beard to start graying out naturally, sometimes the wait can be too long. If you’ve been getting impatient and want to grow a salt and pepper beard as soon as possible, you can also consider dyeing your beard.

This also works if you have a full gray beard and want to add some dark spots for a salt and pepper effect. You can either get this done at a salon or barbershop or buy a dyeing kit online and do it yourself.

Now be careful, to dyeing a beard right can take some trial and error, otherwise, it can look unnatural and obvious. But if done correctly, people won’t even notice the difference.

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In the next section, we’ll talk about how you can properly dye a salt and pepper beard all on your own.

What is the right way to dye a beard salt and pepper?

You can always go to a salon or barbershop and have someone dye your beard for you.

But that can cost some money, and if you don’t want to spend too much, you can always do it yourself, but you have to make sure you do it right.

What You’ll Need To Dye Your Beard

In order to dye your beard you won’t need a ton of things. The things you will need are the following:

• Mustache And Beard Dye

First and foremost, you’re going to need a quality dye. For beards and mustaches, it’s recommended to get a semi-permanent dye. This will stay on your hair around 6 weeks before you’ll have to reapply it.

It’s also best to get a dye that isn’t too strong that will be gentle on your hair. This will usually mean getting a dye without ammonia. There are many dyes out there created specifically for beards to give off a salt and pepper effect, and these usually work best for men with full beards.

• Vaseline

Applying Vaseline or petroleum jelly around the borders of your beard when dyeing will prevent the dye from leaking and sticking on your skin.

• Cotton Balls Soaked In Water

This is to immediately wipe off any dye that gets onto your neck and face. You can also use facial wipes to do the job if you have them on hand.

• Beard Shampoo

This is to clean your beard after the dye has settled. It’s best to get beard shampoo as regular hair shampoo might not work as well on facial hair.

Salt And Pepper Dye: How To Dye A Beard Salt And Pepper

Step 1: Do A Test

Before putting any new product on your beard, you have to do a patch test. This is to check if the shade is right for you and to check if you’re allergic to the dye.

The best way to do this is to grab a bit of the beard dye and apply it to your elbow. Leave it on for around 48 hours and check if there are any reactions on your skin. If there are none, you can proceed to the next step.

Step 2: Don’t Shampoo Your Beard

Your facial hair has natural oils on them called sebum oil. Sebum oil is important when dyeing as it will help retain the dye as well as serve as a barrier between your skin and the dye.

Shampooing your beard removes some of this oil. So to make sure the dye sticks and your face is protected, don’t shampoo your beard for at least 48 hours before dyeing.

Step 3: Apply Petroleum Jelly To Your Face

This will prevent smearing and staining while you’re coloring it, especially if you’re using a dark-colored dye on gray hair. Apply the Vaseline or petroleum jelly on the barrier of the beard, especially the neckline and cheek line.

Step 4: Prep The Dye

To do this, you’ll have to follow the instructions on the packet. Most dyes have the same prepping process though, and it doesn’t take too much time. Most beard dyes will come with a dipping tray, a tube of dye, and an applicator brush.

All you have to do is put the dye on the tray and dip the applicator brush in the tray (some dyes come with more instructions). Once that is done, you’re ready to apply it to your beard.

Step 5: Apply The Salt And Pepper Dye

If you have a base of gray hairs and are looking to darken some spots to achieve the look, then you have to apply the dark dye over your entire beard.

This will not color the whole thing, instead, it will simply scatter the color across your beard. Most salt and pepper(gray) beard dyes include a specific brush to scatter the color around the beard for a natural look.

If you have a dark beard and are looking to lighten some spots, the process is different. You can use a bunch of things for this, but a lot of men testify to using gray women’s eye-shadow. This is because it’s temporary, looks natural, and is easy to remove.

Simply apply some eye-shadow to your finger, and distribute throughout your beard, twizzling tufts of hair between your fingers. If you do this by hand and practice a lot, you can achieve a natural-looking salt and pepper beard in minutes!

Step 6: Wash The Dye Out And Scrub Your Beard

It’s best to be strict with dyeing time. Set an alarm for ten minutes once you’ve applied the dye and when the alarm goes off, rinse off the excess dye with lukewarm water.

Then, get a towel (make sure it’s a towel that can get stained), soak it in lukewarm water, and scrub your beard well. This will get some dye on the towel, but it’s necessary to remove all the dye from the skin underneath your beard.

Step 7: Check The Results

Once all that is done, you should be left with a salt and pepper beard. Coloring your beard works best for people with a mostly gray beard looking to darken some areas.

Your beard should look like a sea of dark hair with scatterings of gray hair. If you like the look, simply repeat it every 5-7 weeks for the best results.

You should remember that not everyone gets it perfect on their first try, and it may take some trial and error before you get it perfect.

Also, it’s important to remember to use a new pack of dye every time. If there’s leftover dye on the tray after a session, you can’t reuse it, so simply toss out all the excess when you’re done.

How To Maintain The Salt And Pepper Color On Your Beard?

Using a color-safe shampoo and conditioner is important because regular shampoo can strip the color from your beard and cause it to fade faster.

When looking for a color-safe product, try to find one that is sulfate-free and specifically formulated for color-treated hair. This will help keep your beard looking its best and preserve the salt and pepper color.

Avoiding hot water is also important because it can open the hair cuticles and cause the color to fade faster. Using lukewarm or cool water is a good rule of thumb for maintaining the color and preventing damage to your beard.

This was a big one. Don’t understimate guys please.

In addition to washing your beard with color-safe products and avoiding hot water, it’s a good idea to limit your exposure to the sun. UV rays from the sun can damage your beard and cause the color to fade faster. By limiting your exposure or wearing a hat when outdoors, you can help protect your beard from sun damage and preserve the salt and pepper color.

Keeping your beard moisturized is another key factor in maintaining the salt and pepper color. Using a beard oil or balm regularly can help keep your beard soft and hydrated, preventing dryness and breakage. This can also help prevent the color from looking dull or faded over time.

Finally, touching up the color as needed is an important step in maintaining the salt and pepper look. Over time, the color may start to fade or grow out. By touching up your beard with a dye kit as needed, you can keep the color looking fresh and maintain the salt and pepper look you love.

Overall, these tips can help you maintain the salt and pepper color on your beard and keep it looking great for years to come!

Final Words

So if you’ve been looking to perfect your salt and pepper look, here’s all you need to know.

Whether you’re dying light hair dark, or giving your already dark beard some white highlights for a more mature look, all you have to do is remember to follow the instructions, and sooner or later, you’ll be ready to rock that mature, tough, and manly look anywhere you go!

To sum things up, a salt and pepper beard is very popular and common these days. More and more men want to have a long salt and pepper beard.

You can always go to a barber salon to dye your beard but if you do it yourself just follow the steps we discussed. It may sound like a lot but after some tries and errors, you will become better.

Practice makes perfect, right?

And that was it for today. I hope you learned something useful from my article.

If you have any comment or questions feel free to write them down below and I would be more than happy to answer.

Until next time,

Stay safe and…Let it grow!

Tasos