I've been using Madison Reed hair color since 2017 and I truly believe it's the best natural hair color that you can get from a box.
There's no terrible smell and the color is fantastic! They have color specialists that will help you determine the color if you're not sure after taking the online color quiz.
I have medium to dark brown hair originally and am currently using Pisa Blonde (9NA) and it's exactly what I want. As a disclaimer I didn't jump from my original color to Madison Reed. I had been salon coloring and my hair was very blonde but I was tired of going to the salon with a 3-4 hour appointment and also using bleach to get the color I wanted. Not to mention the price of going to the salon and keeping up with blonde hair isn't checkbook friendly. My hair was very dry and brittle and I knew something had to change.
I then moved on the boxed hair colors. I had numerous failed attempts with other boxed hair colors due to trying to go up too many levels from medium to dark brown to blonde. My hair kept coming out with orange or green tints and I was getting ready to go back to salon coloring when I saw an ad for Madison Reed. *insert angels singing*
My hair was a mess with all the bad colors layered on top of each other like the ghosts of Christmas hair coloring past! I started my Madison Reed journey with Bologna Blonde (8NVA). It was the first time I had colored my hair and didn't have a funky tint to it. There was no smell, it came out soft and shiny and I was done in less than 45 minutes. YAY!!!
I used Bologna Blonde for my next 5 colorings but felt it was still a little too dark. I decided to change it up and see what Pisa Blonde would do. Immediately I was in LOVE with it! Now Pisa Blonde doesn't cover stubborn grays as easily as the Bologna Blonde so I keep it on for an hour and that's no problem. When you color your hair at home you can walk around in your color cap and get things done instead of waste all that time (and money) at the salon. Double bonus!!
Ever since I started coloring at home I always did the traditional method by squirting the bottle on to my hair. I saw an ad for Madison Reed's Professional Color Tool Kit and thought to myself I really didn't need it.
Ok, I was wrong! This is a must have for at home hair color! It made my hair coloring even easier and you don't waste any hair color because you're going to pour it into the mixing bowl. I love that it gives you a brush and you can use that to apply the color to your hair. The Professional Color Tool Kit comes with the following items:
- 1 Non-metallic, reusable mixing bowl
- 1 Ergonomic application brush with pointed end for sectioning
- 4 professional no-slip sectioning hair clip
- professional wide tooth comb for even application through ends
If you're not sure how to use the hair clips or anything about the kit they also have a video showing the best way to color your hair at home. This company has it going on with instructional videos and tips!
Madison Reed hair color is free of ammonia, PPD, resorcinol, parabens, phthalates, and gluten. It contains keratin, argan oil, and ginseng root extract and leaves your hair feeling healthy, conditioned & shiny. It has lived up to my expectations and I can't see me not purchasing this product.
If you have long hair you may need an extra bottle. I didn't have a problem with 1 bottle when my hair was about 3 inches past my shoulders but some people have said they didn't have enough. I think this is where the Professional Color Tool Kit really helps because you use every last drop of hair and since you have the brush you can really target what you are doing.
If you've been seeing ads but haven't take the leap…DO IT! Plus I have a $15 credit towards your first order!!!
Yes, you can get $15 off your first purchase with my Madison Reed referral link. Yay!!! Just click here and take a look around the site to find your perfect match.
They have a lot of additional products available too! I have their shampoo and conditioner and you'll get a sample size with your hair color kit to use after you've colored your hair. The sample size is good for 2-3 washings. I have a bottle of each and use it every few washings to keep the color fresh. Also if my hair sees a little too much sun it starts to get brassy as I near another coloring and the shampoo takes the brassiness away.
I've used both the Madison Reed Tame product and recently tried their new Pro Boost Hydrate. While Tame works good, I personally didn't care for the scent and didn't repurchase the product. I will say that a little goes a long way so don't overdo it and put a lot on. You can always add more.
As for the with the Pro Boost Hydrate after 1 use I did a small reduced amount of frizz and my hair was shinier. It is suggested that you apply it once per week after you wash your hair and since I had a second container of Pro Boost Hydrate I used it the following week. This time there was a considerable amount of frizz reduction and nice and shiny/silky. Since I didn't give it a full 4 weeks to truly see the full benefit (as suggested) I can't say yay or nay on this one. I do think that after 4 weeks of use it would make a bigger difference than what I saw in 2 uses. If you're looking for a quick "my hair will go from frizzy to fabulous in 5 minutes" than this isn't for you. I know we all want the damage we've done to our hair over time to be gone after 1 use of a product but that's not realistic. We have to give it time to do it's job. The Pro Boost Hydrate is a 5 minute treatment after you shampoo your hair so it's easy to use and comes and comes individually packaged so you don't have to guess how much to use which is great.
I have a container of Pro Boost Shine and am looking forward to trying that one. Update: I tried it and love it! At first I didn't feel I noticed anything right after a shower and dried my hair. It was later in the day and maybe the lighting wasn't as great but the next morning I could easily see how shiny my hair was. It was also very silky feeling. Then my husband commented about my hair and over the next few days I received several compliments asking what I did differently. The shine and silky feeling lasted about 10 days. If you're looking for a quick pick up especially if you're going to an event, I think you would love this and I would definitely buy this product again. I have blond hair so personally I think it's a little harder to see the shine so it was great that others noticed it. I know I am my worst critique on that. I can only imagine what this product would be like on darker hair and it would probably be fabulous!
The picture above is at 11 weeks grow out right before I colored it. You can see that my roots are pretty dark and by using Pisa Blonde my hair comes out pretty light. While I normally go about 9 weeks between coloring, I was pleased at how it still looked at 11 weeks. Rio, that adorable boy in the center, is now 15 years 4 months old. He's a huge camera ham and loves dressing up to celebrate holidays.