I have always embraced my brunette locks. Call me boring, but I’ve never had the inclination to change my hair colour. While blonde’s may have more fun, I think brunettes have it a lot easier when it comes to colour maintenance and upkeep.
I have my hair professionally coloured at the salon every 5 to 6 weeks – not because I’m unhappy with my natural brunette, but because I have so many damn grey hairs. Because of this, I’m always on the lookout for products that can extend my hairs colour between salon visits.
Recently, I was sent an AMAZING press drop from John Frieda containing some hair products from the Brilliant Brunette range. These products are exactly what I’ve been on the lookout for.
I was excited to see two very innovative colour treatments; the Brilliant Brunette Visibly deeper Colour Deepening Treatment and the Brilliant Brunette Visibly Brighter In-Shower Lightening Treatment. These products help women customize their hair colour to create their own unique, contemporary hair shade.
These transformative treatments are incredibly easy to use and are designed as a quick in-shower solution, offering an ease not usually associated with colour treatments. The dispensers the products come in are designed to negate the need for messy mixing, or the use of gloves, allowing women a speedy and fuss-free solution to their hair colour requirements.
John Frieda’s international Creative Consultant, Harry Josh, had the following to say about these products: “Colour tweaking is something that a lot of my clients need and can’t do at home. These products bridge the hair appointment gap, so you can wait just a little longer before going into the salon. We’re talking about colour treatments that lighten or darken your hair by just one level. The effects are subtle and soft.”
John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Visibly deeper Colour Deepening Treatment (R150) BUY HERE
This in-shower treatment creates a rich, sultrier brunette hue with a highly reflective shine. It works to restore colour evenness to dark brown hair, giving it a richer, more intense colour. The formula uses basic dyes which are attracted to dry/damaged/porous hair, which tends to lose colour faster. The dyes deposit more colour on these faded, porous areas to create even colour and added depth and is designed to deliver around one level of colour darkening. I found this product super easy to use.
Once a week after shampooing, replace your regular conditioner with this treatment. Massage a generous amount (I used a good dollip) through the lengths of wet hair, concentrating on faded areas. You don’t need to use gloves either! Leave product on hair for 5 minutes, then rinse well. It’s safe for use on both natural and colour-treated brunette hair and can also be used if you’ve had highlights or lowlights. Continued use will intensify the colour effect. The resulting colour is temporary and colour effect will fade if not used regularly.
John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Visibly Brighter In-Shower Lightening Treatment (R150) BUY HERE
This treatment allows brunettes to achieve a more radiant, sun-kissed colour that is up to one shade lighter than their actual colour in just one 5-minute treatment. It has a unique two chamber dispenser (even though you can’t really see the other tube in the picture) that releases both a low-level peroxide developer and a surfactant activator which, when combined, react to melanin to break it down, thus lightening the hair.
The activator is a mild shampoo base that helps the product foam for a thorough mixing of the two parts as it is worked into the hair. Again, this is an in-shower product that does not need to be used with gloves. You need to use the entire tube and dispense the treatment in 2-3 handfuls, lathering it into wet hair. Leave it to work its magic for 5 minutes (if you have course hair, leave it on for a little longer – 7-8 minutes), then rinse. Follow with your John Frieda shampoo and conditioner after. One thing to note is that while this product can be used on colour treated hair, it works more effectively on natural, unbleached hair that hasn’t been colour treated.
John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Colour Protecting Moisturising Shampoo (R115.95) BUY HERE
The John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Colour Protecting Moisturising Shampoo is really great at helping counteract colour fade, as it preserves and protects colour-treated brunette hair. Also, because it’s a moisturizing formula, it hydrates and replenishes – making it a great choice for my wavy, slightly dry and damaged hair. It’s suitable for all shades of brown hair and is formulated with sweet almond oil and crushed pearls that bring out the hair’s natural highlights and multidimensional shine for ultra-rich, luminous colour. Oh, and it smells fantastic! I think that if you do colour your hair, it’s a no brainer that you should seek out products that help maintain your shade, wash after wash.
John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Colour Protecting Moisturising Conditioner (R115.95) BUY HERE
This conditioner works to maintain your brunette hairs vibrancy and shine, while combating colour fade. It does not deposit any dyes or pigments and is not designed to change the colour of your hair. It is suitable for all shades of brown hair and is a great choice if you regularly colour your hair (colouring is a chemical process which dries the hair out). It is specifically formulated to be used on colour-treated hair or natural brunette hair.
The John Frieda range is available at Clicks stores nationwide.
