I think I found my replacement for my beloved discontinued Clairol 2nd Nature! I tried this two weeks ago and so far the results have been VERY similar (if not indentical) to the results I used to get with the 2nd nature. No hot roots and natural, shiny color that has not turned brassy at all. I used blue-violet based browns and ended up with a nice, dark, rich neutral shade of brown that lacks any orange/gold tones. Two weeks have gone by and the color looks as good (actually I think it looks even better because it has softened a bit) as it did on the first day. My hair seems smoother and healthier too. My hair was a bit brassy and dried-out looking after using Clairol Soy 4Plex and using this has restored my hair to smoother, shinier, and totally brass-free state. Very impressed thus far. I most definetely plan on using this again next month.

UPDATE: I am just a little bit past the 4 and a half week mark and the color still looks lovely and has not turned brassy. It has faded a bit, of course- but it still looks quite shiny. It has faded in such a way that there doesn't appear to be a visible root line. Quite impressed so far. When I am not feeling lazy, I have to do a touch-up soon!

UPDATE: I am at the slightly over 5 week mark and the color still looks great! No brass and it is still shiny. No obvious root line (though if I look very closely, I can see some dappled greys coming in). It looks so good that I don't want to touch it up- I don't want to ruin it! I think I'll be able to push this until at least the 6 week mark. So awesome for a demi!

This product makes my hair look so much better! And I am not just referring to the color! My hair is softer, shinier and healthier after using this!

Pros:
Inexpensive if purchased online and self-applied.
Incredible shine!
Excellent color quality!
No harsh smell.
Works with low peroxide developer, so very little damage.
Easy to find online.
Makes hair look super conditioned!

Cons: Washes out in approximately three weeks, but that is to be expected with a demi perm hair color.

My natural hair color is a cool level 9 - I am a very fair blonde. My hairdressers have used Shades EQ for years as my lowlight color, and I've always loved it.

After some training I now do my own hair color. I recently went to an all-over caramel brown with 05G Caramel. Of course, it faded and I wasn't so in love with the faded color as it was a little too gold against my fair skin although it did still look nice, just not for me.

I took a bold step and used 06CB Amber Glaze to get a rich red. I LOVE IT! And apparently having the base color of the caramel brown done first helped the color to really be bold - I'm certain that if I had gone straight from blonde to red that my results wouldn't be as pretty. Four weeks later, my only reason to color again is to cover my blonde roots peeking out that make me look like I'm balding, otherwise the color is beautiful. I have gotten a ton of compliments on my hair, and a lot of people think that I'm a natural red!

I love these colors when they fade, as you get a lot of dimension (especially if you have highlighted previously). I wash my hair every other day so that helps stop the fading process. I'm not sure how I'll get back to blonde when I'm ready, but I'll go to a professional for that for sure. (I have learned the horrible results of dying red hair back to blonde before! :) )

I just colored my hair at home using 08CB Golden Topaz ( shade discontinued ) to revive my golden /copper hair and it came out great! I have long hair but thin and I used half the bottle with 30ml developer which was just enough to cover all my hair. Applied on dry hair, left it on for 30 minutes covered with a plastic bag to keep it warm, then 5 minutes to cool uncovered, rinsed and shampooed. The color is natural and vibrant, but maybe just a tad darker with than I would have liked but this is expected with shades eq and it will wash off to a lighter tone eventually. This is by far my favorite shade for a natural warm redhead look but sadly it has been discontinued so I will be trying 1oz of 08WG Golden Apricot, half orange kicker and half Papaya on my next attempt so will update.

03V + Violet kicker is my color, yo!
Constantly on the lookout for a violet based color that is actually visible on the hair. Every color brand has an RV but my beef with them is that there is too much red and not enough violet. I hate that this color is only demi-permanent as it fades so quickly in my hair (fine/very oily, I usually end up shampooing daily) but I keep coming back to it because there simply is nothing else that even comes close to being as pretty as this.

As a plus, it does leave your hair very shiny and has a pleasant smell. The low volume developer used equals less damage and better overall condition of the hair after coloring. The price is great and as a liquid, it goes a long way. Overall Redken is a great company to go with if you're unsure about color or just plain don't know what you're doing.. there are tons of color charts, videos and formula recommendations on their website.

I used Redken Shades EQ for the first time yesterday but I have been dyeing my own hair for about 5 years, with a couple different hair colors, mainly Ion Demi.

First of all, I am about a natural level 7 with warm tones and like to go about a level darker and to stay warm. I used a formula (rec by Miamoore) for a warm/rich tones: 9NB Irish Creme, 7NB Chestbnut, 7CB Spicestone with equal part Clear. I also added a tiny bit of 06RB Cherry Cola for a bit more red.

It turned out nice--definitely not too dark for me much more like a glaze of color and it fixed my roots, which were growing in. I was concentrating on my roots, but I brought it all the way through to my almost boob length hair to the ends just because I wasn't sure about the color match. It colored my hair super evenly too.

Next time I might add less clear to get a stronger color? Not sure because I do love the shine. And I will probably play around with the colors... This is a nice medium dark auburn color, but I feel like it's the color I always end up with.

Post coloring my hair feels a *tad* dry--it's shiny but a little dry anyway.... Like post-coloring coated. And as I was applying the color it was less conditioning feeling than Ion Demi. Also, much more watery and runny. I was using a brush to apply and it got everywhere.

Overall I would definitely use this color again because it has such a wide range of shades and options. Oh and I ordered from sleekhair.com (not affiliated) and my order came super quickly!

Shades used: Butter Cream (09GB), Golden Apricot

Current shade: Golden blonde with some platinum highlights

Shade desired: What girl doesn't dream of beautiful Botticelli "Birth of Venus" hair, that glowing, warm, golden blonde hair with just a healthy hint of rose gold? Oh, I do know a lot of them that don't. But I did, and as it turns out, I still do.

Research: By now, I could have worked at Redken. There isn't a color chart belonging to that company I haven't looked in to. I've read hundreds of reviews, making sure it would't end up ashy or green or purple or blue. I mixed thoroughly and correctly, and applied it as recommended.

Outcome: Have you ever seen a homeless person, waking up after a long drug-induced sleep in her own feces? Well, there you have it. It came out a deep, ultra dark ashy brown, almost black, with an unhealthy tinge of pond green. Keep in mind that I used the lightest shades offered.

Aftermath: With twenty-something harsh washes behind me, I can safely say that it has staying power. I've used baking soda, chelating shampoo, heated oil, super hot water, regular soap and conditioner, and while it is not as dark anymore, it sure is unflattering.

Bottom line: The scissors and I look at each other with want-to in our eyes, but at least for me, baglady brown is better than Bruce Willis bald.

I love this stuff. I blow dry & flat iron my hair almost every day but you would hardly know that thanks to Shades EQ because my hair looks so shiny and conditioned. My hair is naturally around a Level 6 and pulls A LOT of red tones, so I use a ½ oz of Blue Kicker with 1B Onyx & 3N Espresso to get a very cool, very beautiful tone of brown-black (more on the black side though). Supposedly the Blue Kicker is discontinued or at least it was at a beauty supply store in the area that requires a license... it's still plentiful online though. It knocks out any red tone in my hair like no other product I've tried. continued >>

Thanks again MUA reviewers! I was very happy with Naturcolor but tried this after reading the reviews here and won't go back to it. This stuff rocks.
It makes my hair shine like it never has in my life. And the colors are amazingly gorgeous, unlike any color I've ever tried. I left it on for 40 minutes and only after the sixth shampoo ---I use Wen- did I notice it starting to fade. Since I only shampoo twice a week, this lasted a month.
This really improves the texture, taking my hair from frizzy and dry to smooth and shiney. I have always been a blond but tried a darker shade of this, a light brown, and it looks fabulous. The developer that goes with this is only 2-3% peroxide so I don't mind coloring with this more often.
Plus it covered grey much better than Naturcolor. This is the best there is.

I have been highlighting my hair all my life and have never really had my hair natural, so from time to time I try to go brown and its a big fail every time. (I highlight to a light blonde). Recently, I tried to go brown because I just get very tired of the damage highlighting does to my hair and also the dark roots. I went to a professional who should have known better than to put dark chestnut blonde/light brown on my porous hair (I have since learned you need to flll pale blonde hair first before going brown) and my hair turned weird tones. Then the same person kept trying to fix my hair and my hair ended up a multitude of weird colors and fried big time. Heartbroken, because my blonde hair was long and pretty before this mess, I went to another stylist and asked to somehow cover my mess with a glaze. She used Redken Shades (Saffron mixed with Vanilla Bean) and thank GOD. We also did a protein treatment. The color was not my top choice but we needed to use something very neutral to just bring my hair into normalcy again. The color went a little darker than anticipated but it was a good thing. It has been 2 weeks and has faded (as expected due to it being a demi), but my hair color is still consistent. I can even see my blonde highlights coming back in a very even way. I am going to glaze again soon with the Redken Shades but a different color and will repost. This product totally saved my hair and I'm so relieved!