NEW Schwarzkopf LIVE Red Luminance (Schwarzkopf Live)

Member Name: salem_witch

Product:	Schwarzkopf Live
Date:	31/01/04 (6568 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some great colours

Disadvantages: Can be very messy!, Only 3 colours at the mo

Schwarzkopf LIVE Red Luminance

Red Passion

I have been colouring my hair now for nearly 10 years. I do go to the hairdressers to get it done properly but I need to ?top it up? as red shades fade quickly. I now get parts of my (dark brown) hair bleached for maximum effect.

I am constantly looking for new brighter shades and I was very impressed when LIVE first came out. Well now for those who go for the red shades there is Red Luminance. These come in 3 shades: Hypnotic Red, Red Passion and Black Red.

The Red Passion caught my eye in Boots and I assumed it was a new shade of the LIVE range. I grabbed it and bought it. It was only at home under closer inspection I realised it was indeed a new shade but of a new range within LIVE. I was chuffed when I read that this new range promised intense and vibrant colour. It uses an intense pigment that they have called The Red Energizer.

I looked luminance up in the dictonary and this is what it said: the intensity of light emitted from a surface per unit area in a given direction.

Precautions

The leaflet enclosed tells you all you need to know. It lists some of the ingredients that are worth noting. Please note, not all shades contain the same chemicals so if you have any allergies this is important to read. For example some shades contain ammonia. This product CAN cause an allergic reaction and they strongly suggest you do a sensitivity test before colouring your hair. This is done by applying a small amount of the colour crème somewhere discreet (they suggest the inside of your elbow). You need to keep the crème on for 45 minutes and then wash of. You then need to wait 48 hours to see if there is any reaction. DISCLAIMER: they do state that even if you ?pass? this test the product can still cause an allergic reaction.

Still with me or have I scared you off?! I have personally never experienced any reaction from ANY hair colourant. I do not have sensitiv

e skin and I must be honest I have never done a sensitivity test with any cosmetic product!

Preparation

Put your gloves on and you?re ready! Unscrew the top off the developer bottle and squeeze the LIVE Color Crème into the bottle. When you are sure you?ve squeezed it all in replace the nozzle and give it a good shake to ensure they have mixed properly.

Be careful when doing this as it can be messy. I managed to spill some on my carpet (ooopps!). Then again I can be clumsy. You have been warned!

Oh its worth mentioning that whatever you are wearing may get covered. I usually wear an old t-shirt so there is no need to worry. Also if you put Vaseline around your hairline then you don?t end up colouring your skin!

Application

You apply this to DRY hair. Normally you have to damp your hair but with this you simply apply it to dry hair. This actually was a good thing because you could see where you had applied it to and where you needed to put more on. Plus it saved the hassle of damping your hair, much quicker!

Apply the entire contents to your hair and make sure you massage it through from root to tip (you don?t want uneven colour). If it?s a first time application you leave it on for 30 minutes to develop. If this is a regrowth application then you apply this slightly differently. You have to apply 2/3 of the mixture to the regrowth area and leave for 20-30 minutes and then apply the rest to the ends and leave for a further 5 minutes.

I?m forever using hair colourants and I usually whack it all on and leave it on for maximum time. My hair IS dark though so if you are blonde this may look odd if you don?t do it properly.

When you?ve waited 30 minutes you need to wash it out. First rinse it a little then massage it. Then you need to wash it all out until the water runs clear. This can take some time but it saves staining towels and pillowcases! Then apply the LIVE Color Conditioner a
nd le
ave it in for 2 minutes before washing it out. They say that it has 1-2 applications but I have long hair so I used it all in one go.





What?s the colour like?

I was very impressed when I saw the result. I actually could see a big difference. Some hair colours I don?t really notice much of a difference. However, this was vibrant. It still wasn?t in your face bright but this is because my hair is so dark and the colour was only noticeable on my bleached bits.

Price

This product was £4.19 in Boots. I haven?t seen in anywhere else to know whether this is competitive but seeing as it?s new they may not stock it as yet. The normal LIVE range is £3.99 so I think a 20p increase is fine.

Please note:

You can pre lighten your hair for a very intense colour.
In the leaflet it says advice should be seeked before using on bleached hair (obviously I never did this!)
They advice not using on hair that has been permed (2 weeks before or after).
Have I mentioned this is Permanent? No I don?t think I did. Well you know now!

A week on:

You can still see the colour but with all red colours I find they fade quickly anyway. This is one of the better hair colours I have used.

Conclusion

I really liked this hair colour. I loved the fact that you don't have to wet your hair. However, I found it messier to mix than other. The squeezy tube was probably not a good idea. I much prefer the liquid form, especially the ones that 'lock' together. All in all a great colour but messy!!

I have knocked a star off for it being so messy!



If you have any questions:

SCHWARZKOPF PROFESSIONAL ADVICE FREEPHONE HELPLINE

0800 328 9214

**UPDATE**
This does not cover grey hair!

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