Change your hair colour in just 25 minutes (Garnier Nutrisse)

Member Name: JT86

Product:	Garnier Nutrisse
Date:	24/06/08 (2290 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to use, doesn't drip

Disadvantages: Strong smell

I've been dyeing my hair since I was 18, but the last few attempts at home dyeing haven't been very successful.

I was a good girl whilst pregnant and stayed away from the dyes, despite a few pesky grey hairs creeping through. As soon as I'd had my daughter - well, not literally straight away, I did wait a week or two - I went and bought a Herbal Essences dye kit. My sleep-deprived state led me to buy a shade that was way too dark, and I spent the next few months waiting for it to fade like it normally does. But it didn't, it stayed dark. A few days before we were due to go on holiday I decided to attempt one of those home highlighting kits to lighten my hair up a bit - big mistake! I ended up looking like Cruella de Vil on a bad hair day. Not wanting to leave the house in case I scared any small children, I sent my husband to the shops with instructions to get a mid-brown colour. He came back with the same dark shade I'd used previously. Never mind, it would have to do, and at least it covered the hideous highlights.

Recently, both my husband and mum took great delight in telling me the grey hairs were returning on top. At the age of 33 this doesn't impress me.

Off I went to Boots and found this reasonably priced Garnier Nutrisse, which promised in bold text to "cover 100% of grey hair." I studied a few different shades, and the little colour result photos on the side, but the brown shades all looked pretty similar, so I went off the photo of the model and her hair colour on the front of the box. My hair is a sort of mid-brown colour, and I chose shade number 5 - Mocha Brown, a bit darker than my hair colour.

It's a permanent hair colour, which is enriched with avocado oil, promising to protect your hair from drying out.

The yellow and green box contains 1 x 60ml bottle of developer mix, 1 x 40ml tube of nourishing colour cream, 1 x 20ml sachet of nourishing after colour conditioner, 1 instruction leaflet and 1 pair of gloves.

A tab on the box lid shows the shade name, so you can cut it off and keep it for next time you want to buy the dye and you can't remember which shade you used last time.

The box also has a perforated circle you can punch out to give you somewhere to place the bottle and prevent it from tipping over while you're mixing and colouring.

I shut myself away in the bathroom and studied the instruction leaflet. It started off by telling me to conduct a skin allergy test, which should be done 48 hours before colouring, even if you've used the colour before, as allergies can develop suddenly. To do the test you are supposed to apply a little of the unmixed colourant to behind your ear, using a cotton bud. I have to hold my hands up and admit I've never done this, and didn't do it this time. You should really do it, as allergies can be very severe.

I peeled the gloves off the instruction sheet and put them on. They were very flimsy, and kept slipping off as they were so big. The next step told me to mix the nourishing colour cream tube into the applicator bottle, which contained the developer milk. Give it a good shake, and then break the tip off the bottle. Make sure you don't take the tip off before shaking, as you'll end up with one heck of a mess!

I went for the full head application rather than the retouch application. This required me to apply the full contents of the bottle to my hair, working it in thoroughly, then leave it for 25 minutes. If your hair is resistant or has lots of grey you can leave it for 35 minutes.
The chemical-type smell of the dye was slightly overpowering and not very nice, despite it promising a "fresh, fruity fragrance." The smell also stayed on my hair until the next time I washed it two days later.
The gloves which had been falling off before were now welded to my hands since becoming wet & proved difficult to get off. I ended up peeling them off inside out, meaning that I couldn't use them again for the next step.

If you go for the retouch application you only need apply the colour to the roots and leave for 15 minutes.

The non-drip formula lived up to it's name & I was able to sit for 25 minutes without hairdye running down me.
After the development time it says to apply a little water and massage gently to create lather, then rinse thoroughly. I prefer to do this bit in the shower. My hair lathered up as promised, and it took a few minutes to rinse until the water ran clear. The conditioner is in a sachet which was a bit tricky to rip open with wet hands. There was just enough in to last two hair washes, and it had a pleasant fruity smell.

Despite me rinsing my hair thoroughly until the water ran clear, a bit of dye did come off on the towel afterwards.

I always manage to get myself and the sink covered in hair dye, but I'm pleased to say it wiped off easily using a bit of soap and water so I wasn't left with nasty brown stains on my ears, face and arms.

My hair felt quite soft, although I had a bit of trouble brushing it through, which I don't normally. The colour came out a bit darker than my regular colour, but exactly like the model's on the box. Only time will tell whether it fades significantly or not, so I'll report back and update this review in a few weeks.

Practical advice given on the instruction leaflet-
If using a shade much lighter than your natural colour, use Garnier Nutrisse Pre-Lightener first.
Use the whole mixture, even if you have short hair.
Colour ever 6 weeks for best result.
If your hair is permed, wait 2 weeks between perming and applying colour.

Safety advice given-
Don't use if you have had a reaction to a hair colourant.
Don't use if you have an itchy or damaged scalp.
If you've ever had a black henna tattoo, even a long time ago, you are very likely to have become allergic without realising it. Never use this product unless you've done a skin allergy test 48 hours before.
Don't use on eyelashes, eyebrows, beard or moustache.
Do not inhale or ingest.
Do not use on children.

The developer contains hydrogen peroxide.
Hair colourant contains phenylenedimines, resorcinol and ammonia.

Garnier Nutrisse retails at around £4.90.
26 different shades are available, ranging from light blonde through to black. There's even a striking deep burgundy shade available for those who are a bit more daring!

Made by-
Garnier, London W6 8AZ
Customer careline - 0845 399 0104

Summary: As good as any other home hair colourant I've used