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

MAC Makeup Tutorial-ish

Today I attempted to do a tutorial for the first time while I applied some bright colours from MAC. Two things happened: 1) not my best work and 2) I apparently suck at taking pictures.
I posted the pictures that did end up somewhat in focus below.
Enjoy!

I used three main colours to create this look (all MAC): Bitter (the green in the top left), Orange and Chrome Yellow. On my bottom lash line I added some of the dark green which is Humid.

I started the eye by applying Amazing Cosmetics eye primer. It looks and feels like a foundation and leaves a powdery finish.

This whole look was done with water-based mixing medium and the eyeshadows. I chose to do it with the mixing medium because I wanted the colours to seep into one another like a water colour painting.

First I applied the yellow with a 252 MAC brush. Once it dried I went back over it with the same eyeshadow, but with a dry brush.

Next I applied the Green in the centre of the eye.

I then added the orange and blended the yellow and orange together until I had the look I wanted.

I went back into the centre of the eye with dry shadow of the Bitter and enhanced the green.

I put the Bitter green shadow under my brow bone.

I lined the top of my eye with MAC liquid liner and the inner rim with MAC black pencil liner in Smolder.

Using an angle brush, I brought the orange shadow (dry) out along the bottom lash line about 2/3 of the way. I lined the rest of the bottom lash with Humid.

The mascara was L’Oreal Voluminous in Carbon black and Maybeline Lash Stiletto. I really like the Lash Stiletto for separating lashes, but also for the bottom lashes because it has such a precise brush.

I have Stila lip liner on and MAC lipglass in Underage.

That’s about it!!!
xoxo,
DG

E.L.F cosmetics – my first encounter!

This weekend I got my very first order of E.L.F. cosmetics. They are an American beauty brand that offers affordable (almost criminal!) prices on a wide range of makeup and skin care products.

Always a bit skeptical (and a bit of brand snob), I decided to order a couple eyeshadows from each of their lines to see if their 1$ (yes, as in uno, singular, one) eyeshadow could compete with my brand name Naked or M.A.C shadows. I was pleasantly surprised.

Since I also had a nasty cold this weekend (thank you lovely Canadian winter), I only got to try out a couple products, but here are my thoughts on the ones I did get to play with.

Mineral Eyeshadow in ROYAL and ELEGANT
$3 each
eyeslipface.com

These are small pots of loose mineral powder. They say they are eyeshadows, but I find that mineral powders are great as a multipurpose product – you can use them as a highlighter on the cheekbone or even as lipstick if mixed with a clear lip balm. Naked cosmetics offers some great mixing mediums to get the most out of a mineral powder.

I tried the Royal (a deep purple) and Elegant (a creamy vanilla) and compared them to the Naked and MAC pigments that I had at home (below is a gallery of the ELF colours and comparable Naked/MAC colours).

The consistency of these are very similar to the Naked pots. I find the MAC pigments to be a bit silkier, but all in all they went on very smooth. The colours were intense and stayed on.
The only thing I would say about the Royal is that it did get a bit muted and muddy when mixed with another colour.

When compared to my MAC pigment, the MAC was richer and more concentrated, but for the $3 versus MAC’s $25, it is worth the purchase, especially if you’re not a serious makeup artist.

The ELF pots are the smallest of the three products at 0.03 oz. The MAC pots are much larger at 0.15 oz, and I couldnt find a size for the Naked powders, but they are also larger than ELF.

If you are going to use these a lot for professional use, these may be a bit small. But otherwise there is more than enough product to last for a very long time. Especially with pots and mineral products where the makeup is so concentrated, a little reeeeally does go a long way. I only had to dip the tip of my brush in the excess on the lid to get enough makeup to apply.

I really like these pots and they are a new bang for my buck that I think I’ll definitlely be getting more of. They dont have any of the flashy colours that MAC carries, or any of the intense reds, greens, etc. that Naked carries, but they have about 10 colours or so of rich neuatrals and warm earthtones (think browns and beiges).

The shimmer in them adds a nice touch for the holidays too.

Final verdict – I wouldnt switch altogether from my pro brands, but I will certainly be getting more for myself.

http://w138.photobucket.com/pbwidget.swf?pbwurl=http://w138.photobucket.com/albums/q243/dgragor/ElfReview/e3daf613.pbw

Eyeshadow Duo in MOCHA SWIRL
$1 each
eyeslipface.com

The second item I tried was the E.L.F eyeshadow duo in mocha swirl. These duos remind me a lot of the L’Oreal HIP shadows, though I think I prefer the L’Oreal ones. The intensity of the colours are ok, but definitely not as pigmented as the loose mineral shadows.

The colours are pretty standard (no neon pink here!), but they will give you a well rounded set of shades that will work for any occasion. The packaging is super cute too. I know this is a factor for some of you (it is for me)!

One thing I did notice with the duos is that there is a bit of fallout from the powders when you apply them so be prepared to have to do some cleaning up around the eyes.

My favourite of the colours combos is the Olive, which is a brown and green duo. The green carries a decent amount of pigment and with my complexion; they are a really nice winter set.

There are twelve duos to choose from and for $1 each, I’d say buy ‘em all! They are a great addition to any makeup lovers closet.

Sooooo, overall a pretty positive first outing with the E.L.F products. I’ll review the eye brightening quads and the brushes next!

Stay positive; stay beautiful.

xoxo
Dg