LOreal Paris Preference Fade Defying Packaging

This is a review for the L'Oreal Paris Hair Color Preference Cools Dye: 5C. I was so excited when I saw that a hair color company finally made a line of cool brunettes to minimize brass. I always vacillate between really wanting red hair and wanting zero red at all in my hair. The problem with a lot of brown hair colors are that they aren't cool enough to get rid of the brassy tones from one of my last red-brown experiments, so I was stoked when I saw this new line. I chose 5C because I thought it would be darker than it is - however, unlike most dyes, this one was the exact color on the box and I should have gone darker. My hair is a little past my bra strap, so I bought two boxes and there was just barely enough, which was a little surprising, because I typically have a lot left over when I use two boxes of dye - so keep that in mind depending on your hair length. I left the dye on 5 minutes longer than recommended due to how vivid the red still was at my roots. The biggest issue for me was how drippy the gel was. It went everywhere and it made the dye more difficult to apply, since I use a bowl and brush for application. At least the dye did not stain my skin as badly as other hair dyes tend to do. I generally lose a lot of hair when I dye, but not a lot came out this time, which was great - but whenever my hair is wet now, it feels like lead. The good thing is that my hair feels light and fluffy when dry, as well as very soft and very shiny! My hair looks exactly like the color on the box, except for in certain areas where the previous red had REALLY clung. It actually makes my hair quite interesting in the light, as bits of cherry randomly pop through the silvery brown areas. In lower light, it's an incredibly rich, beautiful brown. I'm not going to lie, I still prefer L'Oreal Feria. I think it's more multidimensional, less drippy, and has much more shine. 4 stars because I like it, and I think I will go for L'Oreal Cools 4C the next time to get that silvery dark look that I was going for, BUT there was not a lot of dye even using two boxes, it was very drippy, it didn't fully cover the red-brown that I had, and WOW, did it have an overpowering chemical smell that made me see spots at times. Pros: +Exact color on the box for me, coming from 5 weeks old L'Oreal Feria 41, Crushed Garnet +Beautiful silvery highlights +Incredibly soft +Dye washed out quickly +Didn't stain my skin as much as other dyes +Lots of shine +Little hair loss after dying (usually there is a lot of hair fall-out when I dye) Cons -VERY drippy -Couldn't fully power through the former red -When washing out, and now when it is wet, my hair feels a solid lead block, which is a bizarre sensation -Strong chemical smell (First two photos: Before, L'Oreal Feria 41 Crushed Garnet, next three: After, L'Oreal Superior Preference 5C, last: Super Preference 4C after "fading" in May. Not sure why the photos are uploading sideways.) EDIT 05/07/16 I wanted to check back in with my thoughts on longevity and whether or not this turned brassy. I ended up purchasing the 4C to fully cover up the Crushed Garnet and applied it about four weeks after the 5C. Some great things out of that - 4C did NOT give my hair the lead block feeling that I had from the 5C, which was a bit odd, but for which I was grateful. I am very surprised and happy to say that my hair has not turned brassy at all, and my hair is still incredibly shiny. I have not dyed it since or touched it up; the silvery highlights are still here and my hair is thick, healthy, and glossy. While the hair dye is incredibly noxious to apply in terms of strong chemical smell, the results have beyond impressed me and I still can't quite believe that there has been NO BRASS that has come through. My hair is a gorgeous, dark, silvery ash brown and I have to say kudos, L'Oreal; this one really hit the nail on the head.

I'm 32 and have greys in my bangs. I also had this brassy tint to the rest of my hair from a previous dye job MONTHS ago that faded into it. So I saw this line had cool tones and was ecstatic. I usually go for dark browns but using the pictures on here I couldn't decide between 5c and 4c because (for me) with some lines they came out darker than shown. So I went with 5c in case (easier to go darker than lighter) I do wish I went with the 4. The 5 is just too light for me (it is medium brown so the color is what is shown) It did come out great don't get me wrong I just should of went with dark like I normally do versus the medium. One thing I don't like is when I took the color out my hair felt SO dry. Like straw in water. So when I put the conditioner on I left it on longer than the 2-3 minutes it calls for. It definitely put moisture back in my hair. My advice: wash and condition your hair, don't put any product in your hair, then wait a couple days or as long as you can without washing before you color. Let the oils build (but no product in this time frame no hair spray, nothing) then don't wash your hair for another couple days after coloring. I will be coloring again to go darker but I will be definitely sticking to this particular line for upkeep. LOVE IT

Good product; would purchase again

I like this dye. It seems to stay in my hair longer than the others do, and my hair does not appear damaged.

Great reliable name!! Great product with the ease of use and cleanup! No over powering smell, neat n clean, easy to use… mix, clean up, properly timed, no mess, great colors to choose from, use n done!!! All with the L’Oréal trusted name!