Product review: Schwarzkopf Keratin Color Permanent Hair Color Cream - first time home hair color during COVID-19 pandemic

Like many folks due to Corona Virus, I am not able to visit my hairdresser, and the greys in my hair did not look good. I decided to color my own hair for the first time in my life.

I was pleasantly surprised that Schwarzkopf Keratin Color Permanent Hair Color Cream did not spell bad (note that the left-over color started to smell the next day, so dispose of it before the smell develops).  The overall process was pretty straightforward, my hair color looks good and natural (I selected Capuccino color, which made my hair slightly darker then it was before I applied the color).

I am writing this review two weeks after I applied the color so I can see how the color is holding up. It is doing okay.  By that, I mean that the roots lost some of the color, but the hair color still looks acceptable.  I can tell it will not last as long as the salon color job, but it cost me eight times less so it is not so bad if I have to do it every three-four weeks.

The package includes 4 containers (color, developer, pre-conditioner, and post-conditioner) and gloves. The package does not include a brush to spread the color and no mixing container (you are supposed to use the developer bottle and shake to mix).  The gloves are huge and I replaced them with my own nitrite gloves that fit better.  I also used my own bowl to mix (it works much better than shaking a container) and a brush to apply color (it is much easier to use than the container tip).

I started by pre-condition my hair per instructions.  Then I applied chapstick around my hairline so the color does not stick to the skin (I read about this tip on-line and it worked great).  Then I mixed the color and the developer. I first did it a bottle per instructions, and then poured it out into the container.  This is when I saw that the mixture was rather unevenly mixed, I was able to do a better job using my small brush.

I used the brush to paint color on my scalp, first around the hairline then all over the scalp. I used my gloved hands to work the color into the hair and scalp and left the color on my head for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes I applied more color to the rest of the hair and again worked it with my hands. I waited another 6 minutes and then got into the shower to wash off the color. Note that I was wearing a t-shirt, and even though I did not really care about it I realized that if I were to take it off before the shower I would get the color all over it, so I got into the shower wearing the t-shirt.

One of the fears I had is that the color will stain my shower, my shower curtain, the walls, etc.  Those fears were unsubstantiated. Once the water began running clear I saw that there was no staining on the tub, walls, or shower curtain.

I dried the hair and applied the post-conditioner.  After keeping it on my hair for a few minutes, I rinsed the hair one more time.  There was enough conditioner to apply it to my hair for another week.

The entire coloring session took about an hour including all the prep steps. I have short hair and about half of the color remained unused.  I am pleased with the results and plan to do it again in four weeks.


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Note that the pictures came out a little lighter than the hair color in real life.

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★★★