Color-matching is also nightmare for me. I had finally found my perfect match when it was discontinued (Thanks L'Oreal), so like many women in my situation, I try every brand out there looking for my match again...big mistake. The last one was a doozy. 

It is normally a chore to keep it soft and healthy-looking, but after this dye, I thought I would have to chop and move on. It was literally the worst, most damaging (and most expensive) dye I had ever used. You can see in the pic above what it did to my ends. Even worse than frizzy: it felt like straw.

I had been hearing a lot about Madison Reed and was dying to try them out. The reviews in the press were raving, and they promise salon-quality color that is actually healthy for your hair. From their website:

"NEXT GENERATION HAIR COLOR 

Handcrafted in Italy, our special multi-tone formula comes in 27 natural and dynamic shades for sophisticated salon-quality color with unparalleled depth and shine. 

Whether you're refreshing your roots or trying on a new color, our professional-grade formula provides complete coverage, especially for those tough grays. 

HEALTHIER FOR YOU & YOUR HAIR 

Our long-lasting hair color is packed with rich nutrients like keratin, argan oil and ginseng root extract. Your hair will feel stronger, shinier and better than before you colored. 

Our formula is free of ammonia and resorcinol, taking the harsh out of hair color. And it smells nice too!"

If you already have your perfect color match, but want to step up to a healthier alternative, you can try their Color Translator, which will give you the Madison Reed match for your favorite brand. 

I went online and tried out their Color Advisor, which will walk you through a series of questions about your hair and skin tone to recommend your perfect color. I had a few questions about coloring over bad dye, so I contacted their Color Crew and got some excellent advice, and also a great tip to help strip out the bad color! You can also send them a photo and they'll recommend the perfect color for you! 

I went with Venezia Brown, a natural dark brown with hints of gold.

Ordering was a cinch, and the box arrived quickly. Some of you may know I'm a former Graphic Designer/Product Developer, so amazing packaging makes me squee. This was like packaging p*rn.

Observe ladies:

Bow-chica-wow-wow

This kit contains everything I need to color and there were also thoughtful little touches that no one has thought of before in the millionty packages of home hair color that I've used.

#1 Barrier Cream: You apply this all around your hairline and neck to keep the color off. Brilliant. I used to use Vaseline, which didn't always work. Also, this smelled amazing; herb-y and floral.

#2 Cleansing Wipe: It also came with a cleansing wipe and I wondered if this was really necessary. It totally was. Something about the combo of the cream and wipe got every trace of dye off. It was like a magic trick!

#3 Two Pair of Gloves: If you've dyed your hair before, you know that every dye ever recommends you apply, wait, put on your gloves, add a little water and lather before rinsing...but only includes one pair of cheap gloves. I've tried washing them after dying and trying to re-use them, but gave up; it's a messy process. They include two pairs, and not the cheap ones that split at the seams if your fingers spread too much. These are nice colorist gloves. No more brown-webbed-fingers.

#4 Shampoo AND Conditioner: It smells fantastic and includes all of the amazing, nourishing ingredients that make their dye so special. My hair was like silk after I used it.

#5 A Cap: Who here has clippies you only use to dye your hair and hide the rest of the time? This kit is genius. I love that they thought of everything!

But that's not all...their developer bottle has a screw-off cap! No more searching for scissors or trying to make sure you don't splatter your bathroom while you're mixing it! I am in love.

Genius!

So I prepped and dyed as usual, the dye smelled nice, wasn't too strong smelling, and didn't burn my eyes with fumes, which is always a plus ;). The instructions on the box include colorist's tips as well. It was also recommended I wait 45 minutes since I have stubborn greys.

I rinsed with no problem, and I didn't have a lot of breakage. I used their shampoo and conditioner, which smelled lovely, and waited for it to dry. I did some before and afters of my roots for you guys.

The greys are really hard to see in that, but I'd say that I'm around 15-20% grey and they were completely covered. Most dyes say they will, but they dye my dark hair darker and turn the shiny silvers into shiny gold. It sounds nicer than it looks. This blended really well into my previous color, which I was worried most about; Who wants to look like they dye their hair?

My ends were also in better shape than before I dyed them! The previous dye left them a mess, but after dying, shampooing, and conditioning, they were back to being silky: