Clairol Perfect 10 Nice’n Easy Dye in Light Ash Brown

I’ve been dyeing my hair at home ever since my first greys appeared at... *drum roll please*..... 17. Yes that’s right folks, I act like I’m 23 going on 73 and I have the hair to match. My mother was totally white by 30. Sigh. I don’t feel the need to pay my hairdresser silly money to dye my hair as a.) it’s silly money and b.) I get pretty similar results at home as I never go for highlights etc. I did go through a phase where I had layers bleached out and dyed them all the colours in the rainbow but ever since then it’s been DYI all the way. 

I’ve gotten bored of the red tones in my hair. Typically I go for reds, burgundies and plums but I decided I wanted to go cooler and more brown. This box specifically promised me that it would “minimize the red/ orange tones in your hair”. Whilst it certainly toned them down a bit it is still visibly red when it catches the light. I think it will take a few more attempts to totally get rid of all the red. 

As for the dye itself I’m not in love. I used the comb applicator (you have a choice of that or a traditional nozzle) and the mixture is so thin and runny that it made a complete mess. It does contain ammonia and like most dyes with ammonia left my hair a little dry afterwards though the conditioner it comes with was nice enough. 

After 10 minutes the colour was nice and even and had taken quite well in my dark hair. Not a grey in sight either . Personally I wouldn’t buy it again though mainly because I found the runny formula difficult to work with though if you fancy it it’s currently on offer at Boots reduced to £5.14. Can anyone suggest any ash brown shades in other brands? On a random note here are some tips for any DIY novices out there:

·         * Vaseline! Smear it liberally around your hair line and ears to prevent the dye staining your skin. Just make sure you wash it off thoroughly afterwards or you will end up with spots. 

·         * Old towels and lots of them. I have known hair dyes to stain tiles etc in bathrooms so cover everything just in case. 

·     *   If, like me, you have a latex allergy be careful of the gloves that come in these sets. They are never clearly labelled and it’s just not worth the risk. You can normally buy packs of vinyl gloves from your supermarket. 

·         * Yes it’s boring when you have your new dye home and you want to get on with it but do the patch test 48 hours before. 

·         If it says it only needs 10 mins on the box it really does mean it. Leaving it on longer will only end up in frazzled hair and when using darker colours like this you may even end up with black hair.

*Bought by me*