Truly outrageous: Pinkissimo semi-permanent hair dye by Renbow...

Crazy Color semi permanent hair dye in Pinkissimo is a ready-mixed vegetable dye, that 
Renbow says lasts between 4 to 8 washes, and for the low price [RRP £4 per 100ml pre-mixed bottle] I thought that you can't really complain with that.

Lets take a look back at my recent flirtation with this Jem-style pink hair dye shade, withphotos of how well the colour holds up...
My hair is really thick so 15 minutes developing time (the guide on the bottle) is totally wrong for me; I left the dye on my wet [but not shampooed] hair for an hour to let it 
really sink in [it's vegetable dye so you won't damage your hair], and I then rinsed my 
hair until the water ran clear, but didn't use shampoo, conditioner, or any other products on my hair for two washes after the first rinse.

My hair is a few inches past my shoulders and is thick/coarse, and I use 1 1/2 bottles per full-head application.

(In my photos there are a few spots that are lavender toned:  this is because some old blue dye was stubbornly 

left clinging to my hair, despite the two lots of the strongest-Boots-had hair lightener I used to try and get rid of it. The colour mismatch was not caused by the Pinkissimo hair dye.) 

Feeling Blue: Crazy Color semi-permanent hair dye in Capri Blue (44) and Bubblegum Blue (63) by Renbow...

I tried to be clever here by adding some lighter Bubblegum Blue sections in with the darker/brighter Capri Blue I used over most of my hair, mainly so I could test and review two shades at once, but also because I didn't trust using the pastel shade alone after my experience using my other pastel shade Candy Floss.

Using freshly shampooed and towel dried hair I first applied the Capri Blue Shade to my hair and massaged it in, leaving a few random sections of blonde hair uncovered. I then went back over my hair and carefully covered the loose blonde sections in the Bubblegum Blue Shade. I decided to leave the mixture in my hair for longer then I did the last two times that I used Crazy Color dyes to let it all soak in properly, so I waited two hours before rinsing the dye from my hair [only using water]...


See the results after the jump.

We ain't goin' to tha candy shop: Crazy Color in Candy Floss (65) by Renbow...

As soon as I looked in the mirror after applying Candy Floss, I knew that it would be a miss for me; I carefully applied the colour to my whole head but, as you can see, the pale pink only stuck to some of it in random spots, leaving me all patchy.

Thinking pink: Renbow Crazy Color semi-permanent hair dye in Cyclamen....

I've wanted to use a pink dye on my hair for as along as I can remember [probably due to the fact that I love Jem and had all of the VHS tapes and dolls] but I'm painfully shy and suffer from anxiety issues, so have never been brave enough to do something that would make me stand out from the background - trying a few of the red and darker purple shades by Schwarzkopf was really wild for me, and that took me a few years of working up to.

Anyway now I'm 30 I've finally reached the point where I can honestly say that I don't care if people look and judge me for how I look or whatever I'm wearing, so after being left a bit underwhelmed by the results of the L'Oreal Intense Ombres kit [my fault for accidentally buying the strongest one], I decided to work with the new bleach in my hair rather then cover it back up by finally trying a shade of intense pink hair dye over it...


My first [and only as it turned out] port of call in my search for a pink hair dye was Amazon, where I found hundreds to choose between, so I narrowed it down to Crazy Color simply because it is inexpensive and if i didn't work I wouldn't be wasting loads of money. Renbow says that the Crazy Color range lasts between 4 to 8 washes, and for the low price I thought that you can't really complain with that.

After umming and ahhing over the large colour selection in the brand for a while I finally choose the shade Cyclamen as it has the best of three worlds; it a hint of red and purple at first, with a strong undertone of pink. The scattered customer reviews stated that the pink undertone is meant to grow stronger as the dye fades.

What the instructions on the bottle say:

Crazy Color does not require the addition of peroxide. For optimal results apply to pre-lightened hair.

After shampooing, towel dry your hair.
Apply Crazy Color direct, spreading evenly over the hair (wear gloves).
Leave for 15/30 minutes, then rinse thoroughly until water runs clear.

[via Crazy Color]


What I Did:

I applied the dye into my freshly washed and still damp hair with gloved hands, starting at the roots.


I remembered that when I previously used a semi-permanent dye it advised placing a plastic cap over my head to lock in heat, to help the pigments develop. So I improvised and paced a carrier bag over my hair.


I have thick hair so decided to leave the dye on my hair for an hour to let it really sink in [it's vegetable dye so you won't damage your hair].


I then rinsed my hair until water ran clear, but didn't use shampoo, conditioner, or any other products on my hair.

I also remember a magazine article where a hairstylist who works in TV said to leave your hair for 48 hours after being dyed, before washing it again. So that's something I always do now.


I couldn't find a customer review for Crazy Color which detailed exactly how well that the dye lasts, I decided to do my own and use photo evidence so other people who are interested in the brand can see the results and make up their own minds.

I'll take two closeup shots (with flash) and one natural lighting portrait after each hairwash, to see just how well this product holds up [I never use any form of enhancement software on any of my photos].

Before application