You could say I’m almost an expert when it comes to dyeing my hair using everything except for hair dye. Coloring my hair has always been an adventure in my books, and if it means spending the least amount of money without having to sacrifice the quality of my hair – you can count me in!
My hair’s been through a lot. Having thick, wavy hair doesn’t make the hair-dying process gentle and smooth – even using natural henna is bound to turn my mane into a frizzy black broomstick, so you can imagine what state my hair is in after everything that I’ve had done over the last five years.
Worst of all – I never settled on having platinum blonde streaks that made me feel like a Hawaiian bombshell against my thick black hair. Instead, I experimented with moss-green highlights; half blue-half red blunt bangs; fire-engine red hair; and one of my favorite exploits – the Cruella DeVille effect by having platinum blonde hair on the right side of my mane.
Fortunately, that blonde side got me excited to try using pink food colouring to dye that side of my hair, but soon I grew tired with it, and here’s a word of advice – food coloring stains are way harder to remove than most dyes; so, my mom was hardly pleased that the bathroom tiles were turning even more pink as weeks past.
As soon as the pink wore off, it was back to blonde; and after a few months, I got bored and headed out to MagicBoo to see if I could find anything worth trying out.
And that’s when I found the COLOR UP Maschera Rigenerante Colore [ Color Regenerating Mask]. The saleswoman claimed it to be a form of hair-dye but it really just seemed like a color-restoration conditioner that tints your hair, bleached or naturally dark. It sounded worth trying because if I opted for any ammonia-based dye, my hair would mostly fall apart. And for RM59.00 , the quantity seemed like a lot more than a 4oz jar of Manic Panic – so, that’s obviously a good deal!
The colour range seemed quite limited, but what I found impressive that they even offered up basic colours like brown, blondes, and even platinum silver! I reckon the browns would be perfect for those who need touching up around the roots, especially if you have gray hair. But being the colour freak I am, I opted for purple and cherry red!
The instructions recommend leaving the product in your hair between 30 to 40 minutes depending on the intensity of color you’d expect from your hair. I’m assuming 40 minutes would give dark brown or black hair a slight tinge of color – which is quite alright since it won’t leave your hair frazzled like most hair-dyes would.
I first tried my hands at the purple tub, and for some reason I found it quite exciting to use! My favorite thing about this product is that smells exactly like grape jam – the kind that you’d get in the little satchets during the breakfast hours at McDonald’s – and that obviously makes it a win in my books! The texture seemed more like lightweight conditioner, and it spreads smoothly on my hair.
Application of the hair colour masque is absolutely easy – you can use a comb, a hair-dye brush, or just slather it on with your hands. As the product didn’t come with gloves, and I didn’t have any disposable gloves with me, I simply applied it on with my trusty Tangle-Teezer and hands, left it on for less than a minute, and then washed it off with cool water.
Since it was on bleached hair, the colour intensity was impressive. It works just as fast as food coloring, but the colour locked into the cuticles of the hair deep enough to make it last after a few washes. It’s only been a week since the first application, and for a colour hair mask, it works just as good as tub of semi-permanent hair dye – if not better. And for RM59.00, I think it’s a good deal for anyone with an urge to give their blonde highlights a bit of attitude without having to worry about damaging your locks!
COLOR UP Maschera Rigenerante Colore should available at selected MagicBoo outlets nationwide.
If you want you want temporary hair colour, here’s how you can do it with some cream eyeshadow.
