Clairol Nice and Easy: A Review

Recently, I decided I wanted to cover some of my gray and give the color a boost. I'm normally a salon girl, and have always gotten my hair colored by a professional. This is because I'm related to a hairdresser and have gotten years of free service. Since he quit and moved on to a new career leaving me without a hairdresser, I decided it might be time to do something different. I wanted to see just how much difference there really is between salon and box color.

I decided to go with Clairol Natural Instincts after learning that it's one of the least abrasive brands on your hair. I selected their Brass Free line in Medium Brown. The box is labeled 5C and cost around $10. My hair had been highlighted and colored numerous times over the year, and I wanted to subdue the brassy tones that were coming through. I followed the directions it was easy enough to apply, though a bit messy. After ten minutes, I rinsed and once my hair dried, I was pleased with the results. It covered the brassy spots very well and gave an overall even tone.

After about two weeks, it seemed the color was fading quite a bit and leaving me with what I can only describe as the inside of a cigarette. It looked like my hair was peppered with streaks of rusty tobacco. In truth, it didn't look so bad that I was upset or embarrassed, but it was disconcerting. I decided to try the same color again, thinking I just needed to leave it on longer to maintain the color. I got the same results as I did the first time. It covered the brassiness and again gave an overall even color. But sure enough, my hair released much of the color within two weeks and my hair was left looking like the color of tobacco.

At this point, I went to the salon and had someone cover it, which resolved my issue. While I understood that my hair might have reacted differently to the Clairol product because it already had color residue on it, I didn't realize how Clairol achieves their color in the first place. Have you noticed the small tufts of fabric that are meant to look like hair at the grocery store advertising the color you'll achieve? This "hair" actually starts out stark white. So there are no traces of color to disrupt the look Clairol and other hair color companies are looking for. If you understand that everyone's hair tone is different and thus the color will turn out slightly different, you should be fine with the results. But if you're truly trying to achieve the exact color on the hair, you'll be disappointed.

My overall opinion is that Clairol Natural Instincts Brass Free is just okay. In an absolute pinch, I would consider trying a different shade of brown again. If you don't typically color your hair and aren't prone to brassy tones, you'll probably be fine with Clairol Natural Instincts. But remember that there is a reason why women pay $100 and more for color. The salon's color cannot be bought in a store and is far less abrasive on your hair. It also doesn't contain as much ammonia and chemicals as color from a box does. Using box color long-term can cause dryness, breakage, and damage to your hair. At the end of the day, you're unlikely to ever be able to achieve the same color from a box that you get in a salon.