Review // Garnier Olia Hair Dye

As someone who has been dying my hair myself since I was about 16 years old, I am very conscious of the affect it may have.  I am aware it’s not good to be using DIY kits for this long but lets face it, its so cheap and when your like me and want to try every hair colour under the sun in your lifetime, it’s the easiest option.

Trust me, I have probably tried every colour, and every brand you can think of and to be honest, in all my experimenting I have never been overly impressed with Garnier colourants, the one Davina McCall promotes has always made my hair a shade darker than I wanted it to, for this reason I was sceptical of trying their new creation ‘Olia’ but like the sucker I am, I was sucked in by the marketing wizardry that calls it a “breakthrough in home hair colouring”, so I just had to try it, and I am glad I did.

Most people think all DIY hair dye must be the same, it does the same thing at the end of the day, but that’s not true, many of them have very different affects on the health and nutrition of your hair, I have used some in the past that dried my hair out so much it looked like straw after one use.

What is different about Olia is that it is the first home colourant that ‘contains 60% oils with natural flower oils and no amonia’, now if your not a scientist, that doesn’t make a lot of sense, but basically with this product, oil is now used instead of other chemicals to boost the colouring process rather than just condition the hair.  To have oils in the colouring means it is a lot more gentle and protecting of your hair.

So, I was sold, off I went with my little towel around my neck and sexy gloves on ready to apply.  This product has a uniquely shaped application bottle which I absolutely loved, its like a little rain drop and its really soft and fits perfectly into your hand, this also makes applying the dye very easy.

The actual liquid itself wasn’t too thick (I hate when it looks and feels really thick, it makes it hard to spread through the hair evenly) and although it was thin ad smooth it still did not run or drip.  It had a very glossy appearance to it which just gives you the sense that your hair is being covered in silk and who doesn’t want that.  Once I applied it to my roots, I then just used my fingers to run it through my hair and it glides through much easier than most other products.

I kept mine on for about 20 minutes, truth be told this was because I wanted to shower during a break in ‘I’m a Celebrity Get me out of Here’ before they announced who was leaving (I’m sad).  The dye washed out so easily, again in a gliding manner, the conditioner that they provided with it was fantastic, and I didn’t need to use it all so I have kept it in the shower for another time.

The finished result was pleasing to say the least.  My hair felt soft and shiny and I didn’t feel like I may have done it any harm, the colour was the exact match that the box said it would be and blended perfectly with my roots in a non-harsh looking way.

All in all, I am so happy I have discovered this product, I think it s gentle while still getting the job done, in a better way than most other hair dye’s have in the past.  I am no scientist, but if this is what using an oil-based hair colourant does to my hair then I am going to continue to do so.  It gives a more natural feel and look to your colour and I am just in love.

Olia is just £6.99 and I used the light brown shade 6.0.  To read more on it click here.

PS. I didn't put up before and after pics because you really can't tell any difference in a photo as it was just a touch up but you can see the colour it gives in the pics on my in my 'Contents: My Face' post below.