Madison Reed Hair Color A professional Opinion

Madison Reed Hair Color A Professional Opinion - Home Hair Color.

I'm sure you have heard the exuberant amount of "Madison Reed" hair color ad's from social media to radio.  As a professional stylist and salon owner, I had to try it as well as testing how to purchase on their website.  Their site is user friendly and they ask as many relevant questions pertaining to your hair as much possible which will help determine the best shade etc. This is far more helpful than buying a box dye at the drug store and thinking the shade on the box will be your end result, but hair dye is not one size fits all.  I realize many people may not be able to afford salon hair color, but are you really saving a whole lot with Madison Reed?  Their color kits can be a bit costly compared to purchasing a hair color at a beauty chain such as Sally's.  They do offer some professional advice via the site, , but without seeing your hair in person & knowing the exact chemicals you use, your hair density, percentage of actual grey, it can be quite difficult to say what will work best for your individual color needs.  

Now, if you have virgin hair (no color, chemical treatments) then using Madison Reed may be okay. What is not okay is if you have chemicals in your hair (which most of us do) and you are livid by the end result.  That being said, in some of Madison Reeds videos they suggest running color from roots to ends - this is not a good idea on previously colored hair.  Hair color does not affect previously colored hair, particularly darker shades.   The end result may be  uneven with light roots (on your virgin hair) & darker ends.  If you are staying within your own color level - you may be fine with adding their hair dye, but you may be surprised that the tones are very warm.

As I experimented with Madison Reed,  I noticed that the grey coverage formulas were very harsh, so I dug deeper.  Supposedly it contains no Ammonia, but it does contain ethanolamine which is essentially (1) part ammonia masked by another name. Ammonia is a part of hair dye because it swells the cuticle and allows for the color to penetrate thus changing your color.  There a are hair dyes that are semi-permanent, but they will not cover gray - there job is to coat your hair with color and the color fades as you shampoo.   So I can not understand how Madison Reed can differentiate themselves from other hair dyes. Here is the rub, touch ups and consecutive processes with the same formula may not render the same result.  In salon, we adjust color formulas based on color fading, greying and chemical processes.

As a stylist - I can tell you that hair color is much more scientific than what one may think , that is why it takes years to become colorist.  Their is also an artistic factor that is taken out of the at home dye. They have  balayage tools which in most cases you are advised to bleach your own hair! It took some time to learn how to balayage.  Madison Reed also provides you with toner.   Toner is applied after hair is lightened and there are many factors to determine which toner will create your desired outcome.  The underlying pigment of your hair may be more red, yellow or gold than expected and a cookie cutter toner simply may not work.  Also, if your hair is already dyed a dark color, bleach is not your best option.  I would skip the Madison Reed lightening and balyage completely!

So as I said, I worked with the hair dye, it is better than drug store box dye because it does not contain metals, but it is no better than a color that you could purchase at Sally's or beauty supply store.  If you are lucky enough, an associate from a beauty supply store  may have some color background and will help you determine which color to purchase and the appropriate developer.

Conclusion:  Their is nothing better than having your hair dyed at a professional salon, but if money is an issue go to a beauty store.  The hair color is less costly and pretty much the same quality.  And please be careful if you attempt to lighten your hair on your own, many clients come to our salon for corrective color after doing so.