L’Oreal Casting Creme Gloss hair dye 460 Cherry Red

My red hair is one my most asked-about features when it comes to beauty. It costs me less than £50 to keep fiery for the year, and is so simple to maintain! I use L’Oreal Casting Creme Gloss hair dye in 460 Cherry Red, a semi-permanent, no ammonia dye which promises to last up to 28-washes. Keep reading for my tips, and for how long it really lasts…

For those that might be new to home dying, this kit couldn’t be easier and has been designed with total beginners in mind so don’t feel afraid to give it a go! You get the colour and creme developer which you mix together by shaking up then simply pop on the provided gloves and away you go, applying to wet hair. Because my hair is already dyed I spend a decent amount of time on my roots before adding the rest of the colour through the lengths. My hair is pretty long and one pack just about does it. I tend to pick these up from Boots or Superdrug and it’s always worth stocking up when they’re doing a 2-for-£11, or 3-for-2. 

Once you’re pretty satisfied you’ve got more dye on your hair than the carpet, walls, all your clothes and probably the dog too, pin up your do and do your best not to get anything else red while you wait (about 20 mins). Rinse out and use the deliciously scented conditioner, before drying and styling as normal. What I love about this dye is how shiny and chrome-like it makes your hair look, particular for the first couple of weeks. 

I often get asked about how well it wears. Does it really last 28 washes? I’d say pretty much, just about – but you will see the colour fading the more time that goes on, which is to be expected, especially with a semi-permanent. You can see from the snaps above that even though the colour fades, you don’t get awful roots or growing out lines, it simply goes to a pallet shade, which on me is quite a rusty copper colour. My natural hair is mousey brown, and you can see below that if you really leave it longer than you should there are some root marks – but nothing severe by any means.