L'Oreal • Excellence Creme Haircolor • Hair

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ontario88 on 4/25/2013 10:43:00 PM more reviews by ontario88

Age: 19-24   Skin: Dry, Fair-Medium   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Green    

Used L'Oreal Excellence Crème in DARK BROWN (G) shade
The colour came out exactly what it showed on the box and exactly how I wanted it.The formula was amazing, it didn't drip and wasn't overly foamy either.I read the directions carefully and did what it said.
PLUS, it came with this cool little tube to put on your dry/split ends before using the dye. The price was 9.99 at Shoppers in Canada.. so it is fairly cheap. I literally have found the holy grail of all box hair dyes... and I have literally tried them all!

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cinnamonpink on 4/7/2013 7:11:00 PM more reviews by cinnamonpink

Age: 19-24   Skin: Dry, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Green    

I'm not sure if I did something wrong as I've used this product before ages ago but this time I had a pretty bad experience.....
I bought the shade 6.13 Natural Light Frosted Brown. My hair is long and most of it is my natural medium brown colour while the ends were a golden brown (kind of brassy since it was died over a year ago). After dying my ends are BLACK ...so black I almost am convinced I can see a hint of green (everyone tells me it's not but it's this weird dull brown that it is convincing me I have a green hue in but that doesn't make sense as my hair wasn't blonde?) The top part of my head is a warm bright brown/red (I thought since the dye was labelled 'frosted' it wouldn't pull as much red but I was wrong). My hair looks NOTHING like on the box (I understand most don't show up like the box colour but this one isn't even close..)
I have no idea what went wrong...but my hair is not looking the way I wanted and I was hesitant on the hair colour I wanted to buy to begin with. I ultimately went with this because I've used Excellence creme before and didn't have any problems...I am disappointed to say the least but I don't want to dye my hair again for a while since I am paranoid about my hair's health. Hopefully the horrible dark brown almost black colour is gone soon !!

(For ratings I put packaging as 5 since it was the same as all other drugstore hair dyes, and price as 4 - pretty good as I got 2 for 11 pound in Boots)

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Laurenamy92 on 3/2/2013 11:46:00 AM more reviews by Laurenamy92

Age: 19-24   Skin: Oily, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I was a little wary about buying this because of bad reviews but went ahead anyway! I have naturally dark brown hair but about 6 months ago had some caramel/blonde highlights put in, however it was getting expensive to keep getting roots done so I decided I just wanted it a nice brown colour. I picked up the shade 'Natural Brown' as it's always advised to buy a shade lighter. They were also on offer 2 for 10.99 so I picked up 2 as my hair is quite long, but in the end 1 box was enough but atleast I have a spare!
Application was super easy and no mess! The end result was a bit darker than I had thought it would be however it wasn't black and this is what I was most worried about, and looking at it in natural light it has gone a nice dark brown colour. It has covered up my highlights nicely, some are showing through a teeny bit but I think it looks nice.
It also did a pretty good job at covering those nasty greys, I thought it had covered them all, however looking at my hair in natural lighting I could see a few pesky ones but they didn't look as grey and not that noticeable!
Overall I am happy with this dye and I would buy it again, but I would definitely suggest going a shade lighter than you think you need!

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Panda117 on 11/3/2012 12:26:00 PM more reviews by Panda117

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Hazel    

After funneling through reviews I felt confident giving this a try. I typically stick to non-permanent colors, but have had horrible results and excess damage with most wash outs. This product is amazing! I chose medium natural brown and was pleased that it cut the brassy was in my hair. My hair is more on the ash side, but easily picks up red in hair colors, and can easily make me look washed out if I use too dark or ashy a color. This was perfect. My hair feels great! None of the straw like feeling I've often gotten from other brands. The only put fall would be the strong smell. I didn't really mind the smell per-se but at times actually made my eyes water, making application difficult. I would definitely use this again and am SOOO glad I looked at reviews on here before buying anything!

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yazmin77 on 8/5/2012 3:18:00 PM more reviews by yazmin77

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

i used this in shade natural brown, and OMG the results are amazing i got a very beautiful natural brown result, and close to the box colour, i had shimmering golden tones and a nice brown colour it was perfect not to dark not to light just perfect, i had some damaged hair before colouring so i dident want to colour but you get a serum that u use before colouring and the conditioner that u get with it really does nourish your hair, it really did give me excellent results, id pick this over any hair colour brand as loreal hair colourants are really true to their name and swatches.
thanks loreal.

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MintMermaid on 5/14/2012 6:18:00 PM more reviews by MintMermaid

Age: 25-29   Skin: Normal, Medium, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Green    

I use Dark Ash Brown 4A. It's a very pretty rich dark brown that looks natural. It's not too ashy and it doesn't give me any orangey/red tones(which I hate on me). It's a creme dye so it doesn't drip and it's very easy to apply. It does smell pretty strong and the chemical-ish scent does linger after washing the dye out, but it's only for one day. I never use the conditioner it comes with because it's scent is not my style at all, it's a very strong perfumey flowery scent. I just use my fav Biolage deep conditioner instead. The color/health of your hair after dying is what matter's most and this dye is great. My hair looks and feels healthy and shiney.

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SheilaLouise on 9/21/2011 9:11:00 AM more reviews by SheilaLouise

Age: 56 & Over   Skin: Combination   Hair: Other   Eyes: Brown    

LOVE L'Oreal Excellence. I have very long (nearly to my waist), thick and coarse hair. My roots are (heavy) grey and some even white. I am 58 years old. I alternate among Medium Maple Brown, Medium Reddish Brown, Medium Golden Brown and Light Golden Brown. I color every 3 weeks, Have been using this for over a year. Put most color on the roots, leave on 35 minutes, then "streak" through some color on rest of hair and leave in 10 minutes. I never have hot roots and my hair always looks NATURAL. Get compliments constantly --- which start out with "I can't believe that you don't color your hair, you are so lucky." Maybe I should not be honest, telling the truth. I believe that the trick is to alternate colors, and perform the process as I do above. I have extremely stubborn hair (to take color) but this works wonderfully for me. I think that the bad remarks here are due to not using the color correctly (time on hair). I stock up when it's on sale and always use coupons when available. Usually costs me about $4.00 per box.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

alleesha on 9/19/2011 9:02:00 AM more reviews by alleesha

Age: 25-29   Skin: Oily, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I have damaged baby fine, highlighted hair. I had recently gone to the Jean Paul Salon to get my hair highlighted and it turned super brassy on me, so I went back and had them tone it again and I swear within 2 days the toner faded away and left me brassy AGAIN. I didn't feel like going back even though I had already dropped a pretty penny. I just wanted to get this awful orangy color out so I used light cool brown. I LOVE IT. It toned my hair, wasn't too dark, left my hair shiny and natural looking. Best at home color I have tried, and I've tried a lot and had some horrible experiences. At this point its been about 4 days since I have colored and it still looks great, whereas other colors would have wrecked my hair by now. I think there secret is the pre-conditioner they give you for your ends. I plan to grow my natural color now but I will be using this again to match my colored hair to my roots.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

hetaera on 9/12/2011 5:12:00 AM more reviews by hetaera

Age: 30-35   Skin: Acne-prone   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Blue    

I used Dark Blonde 7, here in the UK. I am 29, have a few grey hairs coming though and wanted to cover them. I loved the protective serum for the ends of my hair. I applied the colour all over my hair and I found that after a while, the smell of ammonia was pretty strong. It rinsed off well and the conditioner left my hair feeling lovely. I absolutely loved the colour – a near perfect match for my base, not too dark or too much red. My greys seemed to have gone. It looked really natural, felt reasonably soft and I was happy. I left it two days before I washed it but I was NOT happy when I dried it – my grey hairs were peeping through and my roots looked lighter with a slightly reddish hue. I have since discovered that this is called ‘hot roots’! It is such a shame because I followed the instructions exactly and it left me with no better grey coverage than you would expect with a semi-permanent. I am writing this review three weeks after dying my hair with this product and my greys are completely visible. The hot roots seemed to have calmed down but I can see them when my hair gets greasy.
This is such a shame, the colour is lovely and the process was great – but it clearly has a tendency to over-develop at the roots and is not suitable for covering all types of grey. Just be mindful of these things before you use it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

CyanideLOVE on 7/30/2011 1:32:00 AM more reviews by CyanideLOVE

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

Omg. I love this hair dye! This is my favourite at the moment. When I was this off, I don't feel my hair being damaged at all. The packet of conditioner smells decent, but it makes my hair so freaking soft! I can't say much about the longevity of the product since I used blonde hair dye to lighten my black Asian hair so... no fading would occur and I recently dyed my hair black, and black always bleeds when I wash my hair no matter what hair dye I use. I love the choices between which nozzle you would like, but I always use the comb nozzle since I find it the most easiest to deal with. Because it's a cream formula, it spreads around like a dream so you can mush your hair around to cover any spots you've missed. I think there's a good amount for my long hair, so I don't need two bottles when doing an all over dye job.

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beautyofme00 on 7/20/2011 10:51:00 PM more reviews by beautyofme00

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Olive   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I had went a light black about 6 months ago. It had faded and was appearing as my natural dark brown. So I decided to go for something lighter which I always do in the summer time. Light in the summer; Dark in the winter. Never having any problems before. I went for E3 Light Golden Brown.

Dye felt great going on I agree with most of the reviews no dripping the problem came later. I rinsed and dried my hair the only place the colour was; was in my roots on the top of my scalp. Sorry I thought ok I have thick long hair I may need a 2nd box. So I went and got one. Second problem occurs afterwards ago. Now where is the hair dye anywhere on my head where there are roots for about a quarter of an inch to an inch.

Again I have dyed my hair from dark to light and light to dark continously over many years and I have never come across this problem. I actually want my money back!!!!

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Sapphirewold on 7/16/2011 6:39:00 AM more reviews by Sapphirewold

Age: 19-24   Skin: Sensitive, Medium   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Hazel    

I didn't have a big expectation on this product as some of the reviews weren't good. The smell is like most dyes and smells quite chemical and after I had applied the conditioner it still felt quite straw like. I had to put in a product that smoothed my hair out.

For the colour I honestly wanted a nice browny-orange but because I have red undertones my hair would turn extreme orange with an orange dye. So to get my desired result i used the dark ash blonde. I naturally have medium to light brown hair and I wasn't expecting the dark blonde like on the packet.

So after sitting down for 30 minutes I washed the colour out and it seemed to come out almost instantly so I didn't have to wait in the shower to long. I had mistakenly forgotten that the roots become brighter then the rest of my hair but I am happy with the result.

In darker lights my hair does have a dark blondish look to it but in high light or the sun it is this beautiful orangy-brown. However I know it didn't come out like the packet but I didn't expect it too as I was dyeing it blonde from brunette.

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missmelodya on 5/21/2011 12:15:00 PM more reviews by missmelodya

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Brunette, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Hazel    

**this is a copy/paste from the other link for this exact product, found here: http://www.makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=69497**


purchased #5 'natural brown' not expecting very much due to mixed reviews on here. in fact, said reviews almost put me off using this product entirely / exchanging it for something else.

today i got brave and went to apply this. first, let me say that the consistancy of this product is really something. it didn't run down my face (or anywhere really) and i could tell as i was applying that it was actually getting through to all of the hair. this is especially notable for people with long hair (mine is down to the small of my back.) one box of this creamy product covered all of my hair perfectly, there was even a little left over at the end. i must add: the comb applicator = genius and very effective!

i did not bother with the enclosed serum and all of my hair turned out to be one solid shade. it shimmers in the sunlight and looks velvety in the evening / lower lighting.

this dye turned my hair darker than i'd intended or hoped for, but to be honest the color is so natural looking (and my skin is so pale) that it actually works out well. i do think in the future i will go for a lighter shade as this brown ran very dark (so dark, that i actually washed it out 5-7 minutes before the suggested time because i thought it was turning purple!)

this works very well, the smell isn't anywhere near as bad as say nice n easy (lord have mercy that stuff hurts / stinks) , the application is easy / almost effortless, and above all my hair feels very very soft. this rinsed out easily and cleanly, did not tangle my hair during rinsing like most other products, and has left me with absolutely stunning looking hair. who needs to visit a salon when you can get results like this at home?!?

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claudiita305 on 3/29/2011 4:45:00 PM more reviews by claudiita305

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Cool   Hair: Black, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

This dye smelled awful and stayed in my hair forever. i had bought it in a light brown, my natural color. it left my hair ashy dry and damaged.

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*TOP REVIEWER* luluhalabaloo on 3/28/2011 12:11:00 PM more reviews by luluhalabaloo

Age: 44-55   Skin: Sensitive, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Blond, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Hazel    

OH my, what a disaster! I am having trouble finding Dream Blonde and this was on sale. Gals, I am starting to believe that whenever something is on sale, there is a good reason for it. I tried it in BB, soft light blonde. My hair is med to light blonde with 50% gray roots (mostly white hair, actually), and it lifts super easy. It was in great shape before I used this. My hair today is sitting in coconut oil after not washing it for 10 days because it is so dry and damaged. I am scared to colour it now because it is so dry and breaking. I am SOOOO unhappy. I was left with hot roots (never happens to me), brass and bleached white strips. It is horrible and I look horrible. I have been colouring my hair on my own for 34 years and no hairdresser feels the need to fix it. I just go in for highlights once in a while. It always looks natural and great. Now, it looks like brass straw. Terrible. Let's hope this coconut oil helps, I have tried everything else including Extreme, Moroccan oil, all kinds of expensive treatments, nothing is working. This is my last ditch try before I need to colour again. YUCK!

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*TOP REVIEWER* theurbanhippie on 12/8/2010 9:53:00 AM more reviews by theurbanhippie

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination, Medium, Warm   Hair: Brown, Curly, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

I used 5 - Medium Brown a few days go and I have hot roots. I'm only 5% gray!!!

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typeAgirlie on 9/6/2010 8:05:00 PM more reviews by typeAgirlie

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Hazel    

I've tried this hair dye twice now and have found it to be long-lasting and very easy to use. The smell is never overwhelming and application is simple due to the dye's cream-like consistency. I like the scent of the included conditioner as well. I use 6RB, which is basically my normal haircolor with a bit more red, and I'm always pleased with how the color turns out overall. The only trouble is that this dye absolutely refuses to cover my grays. I only have maybe 20 gray hairs, but they are all on the top of my head and somewhat noticeable, at least to me. This dye does nothing to them. In fact, since it initially darkens the rest of my hair a bit, it makes them even more noticeable. I've tried leaving it on longer, to no avail. I'm going to have to switch to something that will take care of the grays.

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FarmerDeluxe on 7/30/2010 5:56:00 PM more reviews by FarmerDeluxe

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Combination, Fair, Cool   Hair: Brunette, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Hazel    

I had high hopes for this product after reading the reviews here. I started with dark brown, reddish, hair which I loved. In an attempt to go back to my natural roots, (save money) dark ash blonde, I had my hair bleached and then dyed by my regular hairdresser. It was fine, but a bit too warm even after having it dyed dark ash blonde twice. As it faded, it was becoming way too brassy.


So I took matters into my own hands. I used Perfect 10 "light ash brown". It was perfect, but faded significantly in only three washes. After a week, it was back to the brassy dark blonde. After that I decided I wanted to go dark brown again. Lighter colors just do not compliment me, even if my natural color is light.


So I then bought L'Oreal Excellence Creme, in "Dark Natural Brown". During application, I almost ran out of dye, even with medium length hair with lots of layers. It did not irritate my sensitive scalp one bit, which was a plus. I left it on for 45 minutes, because I really did not want it to fade like the last dye I used. It was not hard to untangle in the shower, and I loved the conditioner. When drying my hair in my room, I was happy with the results. It was very soft and not damaged at all. My hair is usually like silk, so what I consider "damaged", is probably just normal textured hair, haha. Anyway, after styling I walked into the bathroom in the brighter lighting and almost had a heart attack. I expected it to be darker, but it was seriously dark. It was a natural black, not "dark brown". I was not very happy, but thought it would fade (my friends liked it though). After five washes with a normal shampoo and conditioner (not color protecting) , it has faded maybe a half a shade. I like it now, it's not quite as harsh. I am very pleased that it has such staying power, though. And with it being so dark, It has room to fade. I'd rather it be too dark than too light. I assume it will fade a bit more in the next few weeks, and even then, it still will not get too light. This is why I have rated it a 4. It does not dry hair out, does not fade, and is a reasonable price. I cannot rate it a 5 because it was not true to the color swatch on the side of the box. I do think that is my fault though. My friend dyed her hair "dark brown" with Revlon Colorsilk, and it turned out JET BLACK. I think with almost every brand of box hair dye, that will be the outcome. I would buy this again, but next time in "medium brown". :)

Here is what it looks like, after fading half a shade:


http://filesmelt.com/dl/asdf2.jpg

UPDATE: Two weeks later, it has not really faded much more. Possibly 2 1/2 shades lighter. I am pleasantly surprised, because I wash my hair every day, use heated styling tools, AND I don't use color protecting shampoo. This dye really stays. Usually, box hair dye has already faded almost completely by now.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Rezarific on 4/17/2010 8:19:00 AM more reviews by Rezarific

Age: 30-35   Skin: Very Oily, Fair, Cool   Hair: Brown, Straight   Eyes: Brown    

After years of being dissatisfied w/ box color but not enough to stop trying, I've found the PERECT box dye. Last night it saved me my monthly $70, as I've been going to a salon for all-over light ash blonde highlights to my medium brown hair. So needless to say, my roots are pretty high-contrast to the rest of my hair. This week was the everyone-can-see-your-roots-look-crappy week, so it was my make-or-break moment. I almost went with a light brown from herbashine, because I didn't think I could get away w/ anything interesting while blending the nearly-platinum blonde all-over highlights in with the medium brown of my roots, but then the L'Oreal Excellence Triple Protection Color Creme, Light Reddish Blonde, a beautiful, low-key strawberry blonde color (8RB?) caught my eye. I looked at the back color guide, and from the results legend, I could see that the med brown would take a pretty true light red, and the light blonde would be a subdued and elegant strawberry blonde, and they'd blend together very well if the color guide/results legend was correct.


It was more than correct!! My roots are GONE, and my hair is a gorgeous subdued strawberry blonde, with the roots being more of a light red, but it's such a natural-looking transition that it doesn't look like a dye job at all. I've never been so impressed with box color. I saved so much money on my salon visit this month, and hallelujah, I'm not going back until I need a haircut. Woo hoo! It looks so beautiful!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

*TOP REVIEWER* bisco on 1/4/2010 10:38:00 PM more reviews by bisco

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Blond, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

I think I finally found a great box dye. I'm surprised it doesn't get better reviews. I recently bleached my hair trying to go strawberry blonde. I was told I didn't need a color stripper, so wrong! Thanks, Sally's. My roots ended up being dragon ball z yellow, but my ends were a burnt brown color. I dyed it a copper from Sally's, and it faded so terribly quick. Then, I had a orange/strawberry root and natural looking red at the bottom.

So tonight, out of disgust, I went to CVS and tried finding a brown/red. So glad I went! I ended up buying 5RB medium red brown. My roots aren't perfect, but at least they aren't clown orange. I think if I dye it again in a few weeks, I might be able to even out my hair. The application comb was like heaven, I swear that's what gave me an even color! Definitely will buy again! My hair doesn't feel dry or anything, and it was a breeze to wash out.

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