Friday 23 August 2013

Schwarzkopf Live Color XXL Colour Intense Blonde Absolute Platinum

After trying quite a few brands and types of hair dye, I've eventually settled on Schwarzkopf Live Color XXL Colour Intense Blonde Absolute Platinum - phew!
With some other brands I've experienced more damage to my hair and less intense blonde shades, but this lightens to just the creamy shade of blonde I desire and it seems to leave my hair in a better state than some other dyes.

So, let's get down to what comes in the box:

Developer lotion
Lightening Creme
Blonde-Booster Ultra Plus Powder
Conditioner
Disposable gloves
Application bottle
Instruction guide



You start by adding the lightening creme and blonde-booster powder to the application bottle (which already has the developer lotion in), screwing on the lid and giving it a shake to mix it all together. One minor annoyance is that you need a pair of scissors to open the powder packet, something I always forget to grab beforehand!

The supplied guide provides different methods of application depending on whether you're dying a full head of hair or just doing your roots. I only do my roots now but I don't comb it through later despite the guide suggestion to do this, as I'm sure it would be far more damaging to my hair. Fortunately I've never been left with any lines between my pre-dyed hair and my freshly dyed hair, so this method seems fine as long as you continue to use the same shade.

To help evenly distribute the hair dye I use a sectioning comb. Starting from my normal parting, I gradually work my way down the right side of my head in horizontal partings, spreading the dye on with a dye brush. I repeat this method for the left side and then add an extra covering of dye to the front of my hairline. Lastly I attempt to section the back but I do find this quite difficult, partially because the dye in the rest of my hair makes it more difficult to part and partially because I just can't see the back of my head! I tend to apply a bit more dye to the back and rub it in well to ensure I don't leave any of my roots un-dyed.

You're instructed to leave it on for 30-40 minutes and due to the light coloured dye, it's really easy to tell how well it's developing so you don't have to worry about accidently washing it out too early or too late. It's not the most comfortable hair dye in the world, it's mildly itchy whilst developing (but I've never had any sort of skin reaction) and it has a strong dye scent, it doesn't seem like Schwarzkopf have attempted to disguise the smell at all.

It recommends washing it out with just warm water until the water turns clear, but as the product is white anyway you can't really tell, however it's obvious to feel if you have any dye left in as it's got an obvious grainy feel to it. They provide a conditioner to use once all the dye has been washed away, but I chose to take a different approach by using my Lee Stafford Bleach Blondes shampoo and conditoner (click for review) as it really helps to get rid of any brassy yellow tones I get from using lightening dyes.
Before
After

I've been using this shade of Schwarzkopf Live Color for several years now because of it's consistently good results, always returning to it after brief stints of trying other brands. I'm not sure how effective it would be on darker hair, have any of you tried this shade with different results?

4 comments:

  1. Great result :)


    Lovely greetz from germany.

    xoxo
    Ina :*

    ReplyDelete
  2. I find when I use blonde box dyes it makes my hair ginger although my actual hair is naturally blonde my roots are a lot darker and look almost chocolate brown. I have always wanted the colour you have but it just seems that I can never find a home dye that does it :( even this one turns it ginger. Any tips? This constant £65 ever 4-6 weeks at the hairdressers is ridiculous lol x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep! In the post I mention the Lee Stafford Bleach Blondes shampoo and I've recently swapped this in for Bleach London's Silver Shampoo. Both of these will help get rid of the ginger tones. Mine's a brassy shade until I use a toner too :)

      Delete
  3. You can use a product called, "Red Out," which can be purchased from Sally's. I'm an aging redhead who turned white, colored platinum and uses the product to stay white.

    ReplyDelete