L’Oreal INOA Hair Colour – Two Weeks Later

CAUTION – LONG post ahead!

A few months ago I was asked to participate in a contest for L’Oreal’s new INOA hair colour. As part of the contest, I would have my hair coloured by my stylist (the AMAZING Rosie DiCarlo from Salon Testarossa in Toronto) and then my before and after could be voted on through their website. The contest is now underway and you can vote for me and Rosie once a day (voting is here through Facebook!) until Dec 3, 2010!!!

Now that my shameless self-promotion is out of the way, I can get on with my post… I wanted to wait a couple of weeks before I wrote a review of the colour so that I could see how it faded, how my hair felt and my overall experience with the colour.

First off, here is what L’Oreal has to say about their new INOA colour:

• Ammonia-free permanent hair colour
• 57 Shades from natural basic to fashion shades
• It uses an oil based delivery system – Oil maximizes the efficiency of the hair colouration system
• It respects the hair’s natural amino acids and lipid balance
• No odour
• No amonia
• No irritation to the scalp
• Provides even colour
• 100% grey coverage

Here’s my INOA experience (I got my hair coloured Sat, Oct 23):

For those of you that are unfamiliar, here is what my hair looked like before:

It was VERY long, very brown and VERY thick (it took three girls at the salon to blow dry it!). My hair had been colour-treated MANY times before (all by Rosie!) and was currently a dyed shade of brown about two shades lighter than my natural colour.

To achieve the amazing red that I ended up with, Rosie first had to lift all the different shades of dye from hair and turn me blonde (eeek!). 

Yes – that IS me!

 The bleach was stinky and burned my scalp, but no more than any other time (this wasn’t the INOA colour yet).

Finally, once we had my hair all one colour she began with the INOA. Rosie used four different shades of red (two of which she mixed together to make one) all over my head. She alternated the colours back and forth to create blocks of colour. 

The colour swatches

This colour did NOT smell (as promised) and did not burn (also as promised). I was impressed. When we washed my hair out I couldn’t believe how bright and vibrant the colours were and especially that they were ammonia free.

The finished result was amazing. My hair was shiny, soft, the colours were all bright and, well… my hair was awesome! Of course, much credit goes to Rosie and the 8 hours (as in 60 minutes x 8 or an ENTIRE work day!) she dedicated to my locks. The colours wouldn’t look half as good if it wasn’t for her rockin’ hair cut.

Me and Rosie at the end of the night (I’m looking a little tired!)

I have been pretty much every shade of red over the years so I know my red dyes and I know how they look fresh and I know how they fade. In case you’ve never had the fun of being a red-head; it is one of the hardest colours to keep in hair. It will transfer to clothes and it needs constant upkeep.

So – Two weeks later? Still love it!
Has the colour faded? Yes. A lot? Not really. In fact, it is much better than the other reds that I’ve used in the past. Plus I’m finding that as it fades it just loses its vibrancy a bit which is unlike other reds that start to turn to ugly oranges or muddy coppers.

Colour transfer? NONE! I’ve worn a white shirt, slept with wet hair and used my lightest coloured towels and there is no red to be seen except on my head!

Styling has also been fine. I’ve been flat ironing it most days and my hair doesn’t seem to be too bad with heat appliances. The hair texture has definitely changed though. You can tell that when I get out of the shower and it’s still wet that it needs some conditioner. But considering all the bleaching and dying that it endured, it still feels pretty healthy.

Finished product for the INOA contest!

I wouldn’t recommend doing the same extreme transformation as me unless you know your hair can take it – mine is very strong so I know I can abuse it and it will still be ok. J Check with your stylist first if you’re thinking of a change.

Overall I am still very happy and very impressed with the quality of the colour. The only downfall is that the colours are so vibrant and different than my own, I am already seeing my dark roots, which annoys the poop out of me!

I would definitely dye my hair with the INOA reds again and would recommend the product to anyone looking for a safer alternative to regular hair colour.

PS – Vote for me!

Xoxo,

DG

Hair Colour – The Basics

Hair colouring at home can be a lot of fun – if you know what you’re doing. I have heard many horror stories of bad dye jobs from people that let their friends or family dye their hair without an understanding of how hair coloure works. So, in hopes of keeping a few less heads of hair from turning green, here are my basic hair colour and hair colouring tips and tricks.

To understand how dye works, you have to understand how hair works. Hair is made up of three parts: 1. The Cuticle; and outer layer that is clear, the Cortex; the largest layer and where your hair colour is found. 3. Medulla; the very centre of the hair shaft. (see diagram courtesy http://www.emmetthenley.com)./

If you have grey hair, then that means that your hair isnt producing the Cortex in your hair shaft any more – only the Cuticle and the Medulla.

TIP: If someone says they have light greys and dark greys in their hair this is FALSE. There is hair with colour and hair without (clear). If someone has “salt and pepper” hair it is an illussion of the black hair and the clear hair.

Natural hair colour is found in the hair cortex and that is where dye is deposited to change the colour. When you bleach your hair, you are taking the colour out of the cortex.

COLOURING BASICS
Now that you understand where the colour is deposited in the hair, here are some tips and information on what to look for when your are buying hair dye at the store.

THE RULES

- Hair colour lightness or darkness is measured in levels.

There are ten levels: 1-10. 1 being black and 10 being very light blonde. All hair colour companies use this numbering system to label their colour.  For example, if you are looking for a really dark brown with some red in it, you may see a box that is labeled R26. The R is the red, the 2 is the level (darkest brown) and the 6 is arbitrary. Usually if a company carries more than one colour in a certain level, they will add an extra number to differentiate them all. You may see a company carry a 26, a 24, a 28 and a 22. The key thing to remember is that the they are a level 2. The rest is undertones. You can get colours with cool undertones (blues and violets usually described as Ash colours) and those with warm undertones (reds and oranges usually described as Golden colours).

- You can only change dyed hair 1 or 2 levels with consumer hair dye (usually). This means, if you’re hair is super dark and you think you’re going to get that Cameron Diaz blonde with one box; you’re wrong. The number one thing women do wrong when they buy hair dye is to buy a colour that is too many levels or shades from their hair and then they are dissapointed when the colour doesnt show up like the box.

- You cannot lighten dyed hair without lifting colour. This is a big one. A lot of women look at a light medium brown and their hair is currently a dark brown or darkest brown and they think that because it is within two levels, it will show up. Not true. Unless you lighten or lift (bleach) your hair, dyed hair will not take a lighter colour. It’s the facts.

- If you lighten your hair it WILL turn orange or yellow before it turns light brown or blonde. Bleach is not a colour. You must dye and/or add toner to your hair after you lift your hair or you will end up with orange hair.

- If your hair is past your shoulders it will take two boxes. I’ve had many clients complain of blotchy or spotted hair when they dye it. This means you arent using enough dye and that the box isnt able to cover your whole head. Generally, if your hair is to your shoulders or longer, you’ll two boxes of dye. I know, I know, the whole point of dying it at home is to save costs, but the $25 you’ll spend on two boxes of dye to achieve even coverage is way better than a) the $70 you’d spend to get it done professionally or b) the $100 you’d spend to get your bad home job corrected at the salon.

- Natural or “virgin” hair will process a lot quicker than dyed hair. If you are dying your hair and there are parts of your hair that are already dyed, they will take longer to absorb the new dye than the virgin hair at your roots. If you are doing your whole head and your hair is already dyed, leave your roots until last. As I mentioned before, dyed hair will only change about 2 levels. This ISNT the same for virgin hair and it can change dramatically. To ensure that you get an even colour over the whole head, put colour on your roots last so they have the least amount of time to process. Of course, this rule doesnt apply to root touch ups.


I didnt make the rules ladies, Im just here to enforce them!


So those are some of the most common mistakes or questions I tend to get from women about home haircolouring. Hopefully this little guide has tought you something you didint know about hair colour before.


Happy colouring!


xoxo,
dg

NOTE: none of the images used in this post are of my work or styling I have done. They are images from the internet.