BANISH BRASSY TONES IN BLONDE HAIR

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE DON'T-EVEN-BOTHER

Okay, so I am not saying I have got my hair perfect by any stretch of the imagination. I permanently crave the icy, bright blonde look but ALAS... my tuppence just doesn't stretch far enough to visit a Bleach London salon. That said, I can't really complain. L'Oreal hair dye has stood me in pretty good stead since the tender age of 14 (wouldn't recommend starting quite so young!) and all for a mere £6.63!! Incase anyone is curious, I use Recital Preference 10.21 Stockholm, and as you can see from my picture is doesn't quite match the picture advertised on the package. Although, for a couple of quid it doesn't do too badly at giving a bright blonde that isn't the dreaded yellow. After a couple of weeks it does tend to tinge a bit caramel... that's where these bad boys come in. I have so many silverising shampoos because as you will read some were simple just crap. Blunt but true. 

Right to Left: 1. Bleach London Silver Shampoo and Conditioner- both £5.00; 2. Aveda Blue Malva Shampoo-  £27.00; 3. Osmo Colour Mission Silverising Shampoo- £7.50; PRO:VOKE Touch of Silver Brightening Shampoo- £3.09

I'm going to try and keep this post brief for each product but if you want more info on each just leave a comment and I'll do a more specific post for it.

1. Bleach London Silver Shampoo and Conditioner

The HOLY GRAIL of banishing the brass! I can't contain my excitement about these two products so I have to write about them first. I was starting to lose hope then BAM... Bleach London dropped there line into boots. It wan't easy to get hold of (sold out everywhere) but when I did, oh boy was it worth the struggle. The shampoo is so heavily pigmented it tints your hand a slight purple, only for a couple of hand washes, which means that it actually works! It leaves your hair with a silvery shine, no purple in sight and doesn't strip the moisture out at all. The conditioner in all honesty isn't the star product, but when I loved the shampoo so much I couldn't help myself so I bought the conditioner as well. It really deeply conditions and I do think it probably maintains the effects of the shampoo. If you buy any silver shampoo make it this one! I use them every other wash. Oh and only 5 smackers, the amazingness just continues.

2. Aveda Blue Malva Shampoo

Well... I'm going to address the big elephant in the room. Price. £27. Yikes... Was it worth it? No. I saw barely any difference in the colour following the shampoo. Yes it looked clean and shiny, but for christ sakes its a shampoo, surely it should do that anyway! Yes its natural, yes its gentle on the hair, but for me that's not the be all and end all. I want something that does what it says on the tin and I'm afraid this didn't cut it. Great if you have very damaged, fragile hair and just want to maintain the colour rather than visibly tone down brassy tones.

3. Osmo Silverising Shampoo

Now this story is a sad one *pause while I shed a tear*. I bought this several years ago, it works wonders for the colour. It gave me the brightest, whitest blonde I have ever had. I was loving life. Until one day, it came at a cost. My hair basically fell out. I don't think I can entirely blame the product though. When I started using it I was so pleased with the results I used it every wash and left it on for about 3 minutes. Eventually one day I was blow drying my hair and noticed it was so sparse and thin. The ends were all different lengths where they had broken off. So basically, great if your hair is either naturally blonde and in amazing shape, or you just have very resilient hair. If like me, it has suffered years of dyeing and straightening and is relatively fragile. STAY AWAY.

4. PRO:VOKE Touch of Silver

This was my final purchase before landing on the holy grail a.k.a Bleach London. I think I was pretty desperate to be honest, sadly roaming the isles of Boots and hoping by some miracle for £3.09 it just might be The One. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be. It does diddly-squat, no shine, no colour, no moisture. For the price, it was worth a gamble.