Hortaleza Professional Hair Coloring Cream Review: A DIY Hair Color tutorial as well!

I was desperate. I was sick and tired of my black black black hair (which I dyed because of depression? LOL) so I wanted to change it up. After a failed Revlon home color (nothing emerged), I went to HBC to try using their Hortaleza Hair Coloring Cream for a different perspective.

Here was my hair before:

What is black as night right!?!!? The dye I previously had before this coloring session had absolutely no effect on it.

And now on to the tools of the trade, you will need:
1) a plastic mixing bowl
2) Hortaleza Professional Oxidizing Lotion at 12% -- person from Hortaleza said that the lighter you want to go, get the higher number. Its available in 6%, 9% and 12%. This is peroxide I think and has AMMONIA, a word of caution to those who might have severe reactions tot his product.

3) Hortaleza Professional Coloring Cream (7.46) in Sunset Red

This hair coloring cream prevents damage to hair without the offensive odor and enriched with essential oils plus conditioners to achieve beautifully soft and long-lasting vibrant tones on hair.

3) Hortaleza Professional Hair Spa Treatment (or dollops of conditioner)

4) A fine toothed comb
5) Coloring brush
6) Lots of hair clips!!!

And of course, you have to ready your work-station, which in my case is my bathroom by layering lots of newspapers all over so that dye will not get anywhere:

To protect your clothes, grab a trash bag, cut a hole at the end and wear it over your head.

1 oxidizing lotion = 1 tube of hair coloring cream!
I poured the oxidizing lotion first into the plastic bowl. Its VERY IMPORTANT that you use plastic and NOT metal.

Next, pour out the coloring cream into the bowl:

YUMMMEEEEEH!!!^^

Then stir until everything's all mixed up:

Here's how to apply the color all over your hair:
1) I section my hair into 4 equal parts and start applying each section from the roots to the tip until each part is fully saturated with dye.
2) Upon reaching the area near the top, do not zero in on the scalp first.
3) Repeat until all sections are completely saturated. Do not skimp on the hair dye.
4) Wait for 20 minutes, then do your scalp. (I did this because my scalp already had re-growth)
5) Use a plastic cap to cover your hair so the dye doesn't go dripping down anywhere while you wait.

6) The recommended time is 30 minutes, but I did 1 hour to let the color really sink in.
7) Rinse your hair in warm water. Massage the color into you hair for a minute then rinse and rinse and rinse until the water turns clear.
8) Douse your hair with the hot oil sachet (use the whole thing) or with tons of conditioner. Rinse off.

Here's the color while waiting:

And the final result:

The hair dye couldn't just seem to work against the black.

I'm thinking of bleaching my hair at home during the Christmas break--yes that's how much I want to get red hair!!! I'm getting desperate here!

All in all though, the main difference I found between the HBC hair color from the Revlon hair color was the SMELL. HBC's had a strong smell while Revlon was very fragrant and smelled like shampoo. My hair also became coarser with HBC, but if I used Revlon, my hair is usually very soft after coloring. And finally, more color showed up when I used HBC, but didn't show up at all with Revlon.

Hortaleza Professional Hair Coloring Cream only costs P250, the Oxidizing Lotion at P90, and the Hot Oil Treatment for P20. Everything is available at any HBC store. They usually have sales!!!:D

NOTE: I went to another HBC store to get another supply of hair color but the ladies told me that the Oxidizing Lotiona at 6% is actually for coloring gray hair. You go higher the percentage if you want a lighter color.