I have been used Clairol products since I was 13! That’s 22 years, my first colour I used back then was a light baby blonde and since then I’ve used many of their shades; from the blondes to browns and even the reds! I have always found Nice’n Easy to have a great selection of colours and to give fantastic results – which is why I find it’s a brand I am always going back too and can trust.

It’s amazing to know that Clairol are celebrating 80 years of colouring hair! Almost everyone who has ever gone to get a hair colour will have heard of Clairol but many don’t realise just how long they have been around and how things have progressed over the years.

Recently I was sent some Clairol Products to try and review. As many of you will know I already colour my hair using Perfect 10 Dark Blonde (For the review on Perfect 10 and how to colour your hair click the link) and have also coloured 2 sets of hair extensions using the same product (For a post on How to Colour Hair Extensions click the link). As it’s the same brand and same shade I was more than happy to try Clairol’s Nice’n Easy Colour Blend Foam in Dark Blonde when my roots needed redoing!

Up until last year Nice’n Easy was available as a 2 part liquid you mixed up to colour your hair; then they revolutionised the process in 2010 and made their Foam formula with colour blend technology. Clairol were one of the first manufacturers in the field to make the foam formula.

The foam formula is much like the liquid formula in that you can use it as a full head application if you are colouring all of your hair and also a root application if you are just colouring regrowth. It still does everything the liquid did and has colour blend technology so you get multi-toned effects to your hair, has a lasting colour finish and also covers 100% of greys (If you are unlucky enough to have a few – but we don’t have to say if we have grey hairs!!). Nice’n Easy Colour Blend Foam state on the box, ‘Tones and highlights n a drip-free foam you can easily apply with your hands’ – let’s see if they live up too their words.

Inside the box you get;

The Colour (Bottle 1)

The Activator (Bottle 2)

2 x Conditioners (Packets 3)

The Foam Nozzle (To be applied once you have mixed the colour up)

Gloves

Full Instructions

Remember to always do a skin test prior to colouring 48 hours before to make sure you are not allergic to any of the ingredients in the colour!

Do a strand test to see how long you should develop the colour for on your hair if you are unsure!!

Firstly applying your gloves and make sure you are wearing old clothes you don’t care if you get colour on or wrap an old towel around your shoulder and secure it with a clip so you aren’t holding it on.

Take the Colour bottle (Bottle 1) and Activator (Bottle 2) and empty bottle 1 into bottle 2. Secure with the lid (Do not apply the foam nozzle yet). Shake firmly 3 times and then let the solution settle for 30 seconds. Once the lotion has settled unscrew the cap and put the foam nozzle on in its place. You will not need to shake the product anymore now. Also please note, the nozzle is not a push down nozzle – you get the foam out by squeezing the bottle and place the foam onto your hand to apply to your hair.

 

You are now ready to apply your colour. There’s 2 methods you can choose; root application (You have regrowth and your roots need doing) or full head application. I am doing the root/regrowth application but will talk you through both.

If you are doing a root application you want to first apply the colour too the root area only making sure you cover the hairline well and getting all the greys. I find this easiest using the hot-cross bun method (For those trained to colour you should know what I mean). Imagine you head with a cross over it. So a centre parting all the way front the front of your head to the nape of your neck, then complete the cross from ear too ear (So the cross is on top of your head if you were looking from above downwards onto the head). I always do the back sections first (The top of your head is where the colour usually will take faster as its the hottest part of your head and where the heat escapes) after the hairline, then do the 2 front top sections and redo the hair line again. This way you don’t tend to miss any bits if you section each part of the hot cross bun (I’ve probably not described that very well and will do a photo tutorial if anyone wants one next time I colour – just comment in the box at the bottom). Once you have done the roots, then cover the rest of your hair with the foam. Develop for the recommended time as per strange test – mine was 25 minutes which is what the instructions say but for very porous hair you may find its less (With hair of more than 50% grey you sometimes need to leave it longer but this can be determined by doing a strand test).

If you are doing a full head application apply the colour to the hair line and work it through in sections throughly coating the hair from root too tip. Once you have covered the hair, then re apply the colour to the hair line and let the foam develop for the recommend time as per strand test (Nice’n Easy recommend 25 minutes but this is just an average, you shouldn’t need to leave it longer than 25 minutes less you have extremely grey hair).

My hair with Nice’n Easy Foam developing

Once the colour is developed, rinse the hair until the water runs clean. Apply a small amount of water first and massaging the hair (With the colour still on) can help lift any colour thats stuck on your scalp – especially useful for very dark or strong vibrant colours). When you have rinsed, apply 1 sachet of the conditioner to the hair and massage it in well. Leave it for a minute or two and then rinse. You are now ready to style your hair! You also have 1 sachet of the conditioner to use at a later date.

I thought I’d share with you a before and after so you can see how Nice’n Easy Foam leaves my hair.

Before using Nice’n Easy Foam – You can see the sun has bleached the colour out again and I’m back to a level 8 medium Blonde

After using Nice’n Easy Foam Dark Blonde (Shade 7)

As you can see the colour is natural looking and glossy. I have multi-tones from previous high lights again in my hair so it looks natural. The coverage is even and all (mumbles) grey bits are covered! My hair feels soft and is not tangled or over-processed. It looks healthy. I would like to add I have not added any styling products before drying my hair after colouring. A bit naughty but I wanted to show you exactly what the colour does – all the shine is from the colourant!

I really liked Nice’n Easy foam. It is slightly more fiddly to apply but only because of the past 20 odd years I have used a bottle application when using Nice’n Easy products. The foam does take a little getting used too. Like the box says it does not drip at all! So less mess and an easier application. As long as you coat your hair with the colour evenly you should get an even result. If you hair is slightly porous in areas (Usually on the ends), apply the colour to roots, then mid lengths then the ends last. The ends will take quicker being damaged/porous.

The colour result was also spot on for my Perfect 10 Dark Blonde (Butterscotch Boom) and left my hair in as good condition as when I use that. Clairol are very good quality and having been around for 80 years its a brand I trust.

There are 54 shades in the range of Clairol Nice’n Easy so there really should be a shade for everyone who wants to colour their hair! They also have a great website http://www.clairol.co.uk/ which can help you choose the right colour for you, I recommend this as I used it when I was looking for my Butterscotch craving!

54 shades of Nice’N Easy Permanent Colour

18 shades of Nice’N Easy Colour blend Foam

27 shades of Nice’N Easy Perfect 10

I would definitely use Nice’n Easy Foam colour again as I got a good result, I would also use their liquid formula as I find that gives me the same result and also Perfect 10. I find all these products to be really good and great on my hair!

You can buy Nice’n Easy from most supermarkets and pharmacies. It usually costs around;

54 shades of Nice’N Easy Permanent Colour £5.49

18 shades of Nice’N Easy Colour blend Foam £6.99

27 shades of Nice’N Easy Perfect 10 £6.99

Shop around as you usually find in Boots and Superdrug they are on offer! I know Boots has had Perfect 10 for £4 recently!

I am going to try Clairol’s Root Touch Up which is around £4.27 when I need my roots doing next time and will review that separately.

Lots of Love,

Mel xxxx