My hair has been a terrible washed out gray color for more than five years. Since I am a cheapskate, I always color my hair at home rather than paying a professional close to $100 a month to dye my hair. I have used a handful of different hair color brands. The two brands I have used the most are L’Oreal Preference and Revlon Color Silk.
Coloring your own hair at home is simple. Each hair color kit you buy will provides step by step instructions. Basically, there are two bottles of chemical that must be mixed. One bottle contains the colorant, and the other bottle contains the fixative. You slip on the plastic or rubber gloves that are provided, carefully pour the colorant into the fixative, put the cap on, and shake well. You apply the color to dry, unwashed hair, and wait for the prescribed amount of time. When the time is up, you rinse, dry, and style. Most home coloring kits these days come with an extra bit of conditioner to use immediately after you color your hair. This is important, since the chemicals can make your hair feel like straw.
L’Oreal Preference costs over $9 if you buy it at a drugstore. Walmart usually carries it for slightly less – around $8. Not bad when you consider the price of going to a hairdresser and having it done professionally. The plus for L’Oreal Preference is that it comes with a generous tube of conditioner. Actually, it boasts of being up to six treatments of conditioner. I usually find it is enough for only four hair washes. However, four uses of conditioner are helpful, to be sure. By using the conditioner once a week, it lasts until I need to color my hair again.
Revlon ColorSilk costs $2.97 at Walmart. This is significantly cheaper than the L’Oreal Preference hair color. The first time I contemplated buying the Revlon, I was skeptical about getting it, since I have had great experience with the old adage, “you get what you pay for…” There have been many times when I have regretted purchasing something because it was “cheap.” Hair color grows out in a month, though, so I went ahead and tried it. The first thing I noticed was that the conditioner provided was a one time use only. After inspecting the kit contents, I decided for the most part, the two brands were about the same. The real tests would come after I colored my hair.
The color I use (Light Golden Brown) is as close to my original hair color as a person could get from a home coloring kit. I find that for me, L’Oreal’s color is not as true as I would like it to be. It hints of fake. Just a hint, but as I’m an “all natural” kind of girl, even a hint of fake is too much for me. However, all things considered, I would recommend L’Oreal Preference to anyone. I trust the brand, and for the most part, I liked the results. On the other hand, Revlon’s “Light Golden Brown” is fairly right on – I like Revlon’s color just a little tiny bit better for my hair.
The conditioner provided by both brands is about the same and very good. After applying the conditioner, my hair feels like silk. I come with more than my fair share of frizz, and thankfully neither brand aggravates the frizz. Or, at least, after using the conditioner, any extra frizz is not noticeable. The amount of conditioner provided by the two brands is vastly different, but I find that I really do not need the extra uses of conditioner that L’Oreal Preference provides. My regular conditioner works well enough, that just the one time use provided by Revlon ColorSilk is sufficient.
My conclusion is that I do not need to spend $4-5 extra for the privilege of using a special conditioner a few more times.
