The New and Improved Root Touch-Up by Nice ‘n Easy.

It's been over a year since I had my hair color disaster and decided to only go to a professional for my hair coloring now. I go to the salon every six weeks now and my hair is all the better for it. Sadly, I am seeing a lot of gray at my temples and cannot make it two weeks without needing a touch up. I know I am not the only woman with this problem and there is help available. Clairol Root Touch-Up by Nice ‘n Easy is my favorite at-home touch up product and it has been my savior for many years.

I was thirlled to hear that Root Touch-Up had a little makeover. Not in the coloring products itself, becasue it is perfect just the way it is. This makeover has to do with the bowl and brush that comes with the product. It is definitely a change for the better.

The new Root Touch-Up kit comes complete with the Permanent Color Creme, the Color Activating Lotion, instructions, gloves, a bowl (tray) and brush. The new rounded tray is a sturdy, rounded oblong shaped bowl; similar to what the professionals use in the salon. It is much smaller, but it the right size to mix the hair color in work with. It sits on my bathroom counter perfeclty and dooesn't want to tip over like the old model. The new expert control brush seems to be a bit wider and has a handle that is easy to hold. I love that the opposite end of the brush is pointed to make hair separation (to get into the grays) easier.

I told my professional how I need to touch-up in between my appointments and he said that he highly recommends Root Touch-Up by Nice ‘n Easy to many clients with the same problem. He even suggested the shade Medium Blonde to me, and that is what I have always used. It's great to know that I got that right! Actually this shade is designed to match a variety of medium blonde shades - both at-home and professional brands. All of the 18 shades in the line up contain a unique blend of tones guaranteed to match and blend in with other shades.

Here is the proof.

My grays are gone in ten minutes. It literally takes me about two minutes to mix the hair color and then three minutes to apply it. I rinse it out after ten minutes, making the entire process 15 minutes. It's so easy! My grays are gone and the color blends in perfectly with my hair.

Next time you need a little touch-up, look for Root Touch-Up by Nice ‘n Easy at your favorite drugstore or mass retailer. The suggested retail price is $7.99, but I always seem to find it for $5.99, which seems to be the regular price at my local Target or the sale price at my CVS store. Can you tell I stock-up?

Clairol Professional's First Ever Hair Care and Styling Line + Hair Care Tips on Using.

After being the #1 expert in hair color for over 80 years, Clairol Professional is launching its first-ever hair care & styling line. The COLOR SAFE collection just launched in beauty supply stores and the products are the perfect complement to the brand’s existing color portfolio. The collection of products provides professional results at an affordable price.

The products make up three care lines or regimens: Repair, Smooth and Curl. It also includes two styling products: Volume Mousse and Shaping Gel.

The product line up:

Clairol Professional Repair Shampoo, Rinse-Off Conditioner and Leave-In Conditioner:

• Ideal for dry, damaged and/or color-treated hair
• Helps to repair and condition damaged hair
• Leaves hair strong and smooth, with  shine

Clairol Professional Curl Shampoo and Leave-In Conditioner:

• Ideal for naturally curly, permed and/or color-treated  hair
• Gives curls amazing shine
• Leaves curls soft and flexible for beautiful, defined, bouncy style

Clairol Professional Smooth Shampoo and Leave-In Balm:

• Ideal for frizzy and/or color-treated hair
• Sleeks hair after just one application
• Leaves hair shiny and smooth

Clairol Professional Volume Mousse:

• Extra strong mousse with non-sticky formula
• Provides fullness and body for all-day volume

Clairol Professional Shaping Gel:

• Extra-strong hold gel defines and accentuates any style

Celebrity Hairstylist Torsten Witte, who works with A-listers such as Penelope Cruz, Michelle Monaghan and Colbie Caillat, is the face of the collection. He gave me a few great tips on how to use his favorite products in the line up.

He explained, “Achieve an effortless, undone style by applying Clairol Professional Color Safe Curl Leave-In Conditioner to dry hair in the morning. Just use your fingers to run the product through your hair, tousle it, and you’re good to go.” He thought it was very important to note, “Clairol Professional Shaping Gel is not a traditional hair gel. I love this product for curly hair because it tames the frizz for nice, well-defined curls that aren’t crunchy or wet looking. It also helps to keep buns well-coifed throughout the day, and it’s great for guys!”

Torsten also gave me a few overall hair tips that work this season. “Play with a variety of strong parts this fall. This simple change will create versatility without actually requiring a haircut. Strong parts will be everywhere this fall.” He also suggests “Show off your neck line by playing with asymmetric hairstyles such as a low side bun or a French braid that lays to one side. Asymmetric hairstyles will help you to feel more current with the large accessories and patterns that are so popular this season.”

The products range in price from $9.00 - $12.00 and are available nationwide right now, at beauty supply stores.

Nice 'n Easy Color Blend Foam.

Nice ‘n Easy has decided to shake things up a bit by adding a new foam hair color to it's line of Nice 'n Easy hair coloring products. It's called Nice 'n Easy Color Blend Foam. Being a fan of Nice 'n Easy and using Root Touch Up every few weeks, I thought an easy to apply foam was the natural way to go.

Like traditional home hair coloring kits, you get a tint and developer that you shake together and squeeze out of the bottle to get the foam. The foam makes for easier saturation of each strand as it expands when applied to fill in all the little places you might accidentally miss when coloring. It also is a lot less messy when using, as the foam acts as a solid that turns to liquid when applied, but enough so that the foam stays where you put it - no drips.

To see exactly how to use and apply the foam, check out this great "How To" video produced by Family Circle magazine.

Well, a foam hair color may be a natural way to go if you want to do an all over hair color. If you are a novice and/or like to totally change your hair color often, then this foam is for you. The fact that I keep the same color base and only touch up my roots and get an occasional highlighting treatment at the salon, I won't be a regular user of the foam.

If you want to try the new Color Blend Foam, then you need to save the date and head on over to  Facebook, because Clairol is giving away 100,000 free boxes. Beginning January 24th through the 27th, Clairol will be giving away the free boxes of Color Blend Foam on their Clairol Facebook page.  All you need to do is "like" the page for more details on how to claim your free box. I can't wait to hear how some of you like it.

Nice 'n Easy Color Blend Foam is available in a full range of 18 shades and is available now at mass retailers and drugstores for $9.99.