Ion

Ever since my late teens I have always been the type to change my hair color often, even if its mostly by just throwing in peekaboos with a pop of bright color here and there or a caramel colored ombre. Throughout the years in my search for an effective yet more gentle bleach to keep up with my hair chameleon ways while still aiming to keep my hair from breaking and falling all out I am happy to say that this has now become my new go to.
I just finished my second tube and Its the only bleach that I have ever used on myself and my sister that still manages to keep the integrity of the hair in a decent state afterward and lifts super quick! The consistency is creamy and smooth, perfect for application without running or bubbling up or leaving any chalky powdery residue while developing on your strands.
It claims to lift up to 8 levels and they aren’t kidding. I used it with a blond brilliance 25 volume developer in a 1:2 ratio and my natural dark brown hair lifted easily. As a matter of fact, I just used it to lift my entire head of hair from dark to deep auburn red for the fall and oh lordy was I scared. Just to give you an idea of my hair type: length wise it’s halfway down my back and my hair is thick in diameter meaning I have a lot of it but the strands themselves I believe to be more on the thinner than thick side despite my hispanic heritage. (I wasnt blessed with our usual super thick and luscious looking hair... le sigh =,() so despite me being confident in this product’s abilities from my experience of using it in the past on smaller pieces I was still scared as hell to throw it on my entire head. so I just said a little prayer, crossed my fingers and went for it. I used the same 25 volume by blond brilliance (sold at sallys) and left it on for the full 45 mins (since I know thats when it stops oxidizing) after then I washed it off in lukewarm water and proceeded to use my aphogee two step amino acids deep repairing and conditioning treatments that I usually always use after processing with bleach which always help. Prior to blow drying, I was so surprised to find that my hair didnt feel gummy or on the verge of breaking off and snapping like usual bleaches in the past would leave it feeling and it was lifted enough to throw on my red auburn color, YAAS!!! The feeling of dread was gone! I got to keep the hair that I worked so hard to grow after nearly 2 years which usually doesnt happen for many after bleaching your entire head of thin hair on a whim! at least not for me in the past without it looking drab and completely lifeless. Prior to the experience with this product, I would notice that despite following directions and using the knowledge that I had for chemically processing hair, most of the bleaches that I used would shrivel up my poor thinner strands and would make them somewhat gummy and sometimes felt like they were just a gentle pull away from snapping off. Yeesh..just remembering that makes me Cringe.. needless to say, I would end up just having to cut much of it off.
Now, down to the nitty gritty.. yes this is a great bleach. But to say that I couldn’t feel any damage done to my hair at all after using it would be a big fat lie. I know some people get a little hype and exagerate after finding a HG product but I’m still gonna be honest..yes you could feel that it was bleached and it did look less healthier and felt drier than before despite how well it worked. But with any bleach that will always be a given no matter what. Bleach is always just going to do what bleach does so unless you can afford going the olaplex route with a professional hairdresser at a salon, dont expect it to be this miracle product that lifts without any type of damage. However, compared to most other bleaches on the market the damage with this one seemed tolerable if not definitely minimal than the rest if used correctly. Overall, for such an affordable price tag, good amount and ease of access to purchase (again at any sallys) this bleach is exceptional. Believe me, I have tried nearly every one of the “go tos” on the market i.e clairol quick white, loreal quick blue, kaleidecolors, salon care, manic panic, blond brilliance, one and only argan etc. and none of them were as good. Perhaps for lightening they were but only if you want to play Russian roulette with the possibility of needing to cut your hair off afterwards for thinner hair types when it comes to damage control. Off the product subject, I will say blond brilliance liquid lightener and argan oil bleaches are better than the first ones that I mentioned above but still, this one by ION remains the best.
Bottom line, being a bleach, of course expect some damage but rest assured that if you use it correctly and mindfully it wont damage it as much as other traditional powder bleaches.
Just make sure that you use a really good protein treatment along with a really good deep conditioning treatment afterward and up keep with good leave in conditioning sprays and heat protectants (as you always should) and your hair will be ok for the most part. I am so glad that I got to keep my hair and that it still looks somewhat healthy and I know that it will get better as I continue taking care of it.
So, If you are gonna use bleach and cant afford or cant have the acess to olaplex do yourself a favor and reach for this tube, just be mindful of how much lift you will need to choose the right volume of developer for minimal damage and again, make sure to follow with conditioning treatments to keep your hair’s integrity.
Sorry for the bible long review y’all, but i have always believed that when it comes to bleach things are not so black and white. Especially when it comes to different hair types. So I just wanted to give a full disclosure of my experience for anyone who might be scared and wondering about doing the same.
Will definitely be purchasing again.
Holy Grail status fa sho

This review is for the formula WITH sulfates as I only wash my hair 2 times a week and I really need something that will protect my level 5 light chocolate brown hair color that I get done in a salon while throughly cleaning my hair of all of my built up dry shampoo from the days I don't wash. This works for exactly what I need it to do. It's a light, pink gel consistency that lathers very well but keeps my ends moisturized at the same time.

Once in a while, I have to change my shampoo because it gets discontinued or doesn’t work on my hair anymore. For more than a decade, I used a shampoo from Creme of Nature until it got discontinued. Then I used a similar product from the same brand that did not work at all. It left my scalp itchy and irritated. On top of that, I had a lot of hair shedding. So I went to Sally’s and since I know everyone there, I talked to my old buddy who asked me to try this. Not sure why my co-reviewers are so critical here but this does not make the roots greasy or leave it dirty. What you feel is true moisture. As soon as you dry your hair, it feels very clean and moisturized. Within the past couple of months, I have tried lots of shampoos and this is one of the best, if not the best. It has helped the itching and irritation. Most importantly, it takes very little effort to style my hair. Highly recommended!

I used rose, shark blue, and lavender to get a mermaid effect. The color is thick but I love the coverage I get. I want expecting the rose to get so pastel but I'm really happy with the results! I used shark blue on most of my roots for 3 inches then rotated the other colors for the ends. The top layers I was able to get 3 colors per section. I used rose on my front roots for a faux bang with blue or lavender on the ends.

I’ve used this in neon purple (when my hair was dark purple) and natural brown (as my hair is now medium brown). It's a very good color depositing conditioner that moisturizes and tones. I leave it on about five minutes but you can go longer and you should if you want deeper/richer results.

For purple, I definitely prefer Overtone deep treatment (in extreme purple) as it is extremely pigmented and I love the smell, but this is a good locally-available alternative. Unfortunately Overtone doesn't make a brown conditioner so this is my choice in the brunette range.

The scent is pleasant, fairly neutral, and it rinses out clean without staining my towels. Good stuff.