Quantum Riveting Reds Color Refreshing Conditioner for redheads: review

Products for Redheads: Quantum Riveting Reds Color Refreshing Conditioner review

Quantum Riveting Reds Color Refreshing Conditioner for red hair: review

When it comes to products designed specifically for redheads, I tend to find that the US is a little better served than the UK is. All too often, I find myself getting excited about some fabulous-sounding product I’ve discovered… only to find that it can’t be shipped to me. (I like to imagine the brand in question sticking their middle fingers up at me when this happens…)

Normally I just try to forget about these products. I know I could find some of them on eBay or whatever, but most of them are shampoos and conditioners, and while I don’t always object to paying international shipping rates (and then waiting weeks to get my item) for something that’s a one-time purchase, say, I don’t much fancy having to trawl eBay and bid on auctions every week for products I use on a daily basis and frequently need to replace (or buying in bulk and feeling like I’d made a major investment). I typically get through a small bottle of conditioner a week, and the shipping (not to mention the time spent trawling…) would add up pretty quickly, so rather than getting attached to something that’s always going to be a hassle to buy, I generally just focus on the ones that ARE available here instead. I also whine a lot. But you knew that.

All of which is my typically long-winded way of building up to the fact that, hey you guys, I totally bought a fancy-pants conditioner from abroad! Because OF COURSE I DID.

This is Quantum ‘Riveting Reds’ Color Refreshing Conditioner, and, as you will have deduced from the US spelling, it’s an American product. I’ve known about this for a while now, but had never seen it on any UK websites, until last month, when it suddenly popped up on Amazon UK.

I was still a little reluctant: it was £11 including delivery, and I’m pretty cheap with stuff like this (In my defence, my beloved Superdrug Colour Effects is only £1.99 per bottle, so I don’t have much need to pay more than that…), but I don’t know, the Spring air must have gone to my head or something, because the next thing I knew, I was adding it to my basket and pressing “confirm”. I instantly regretted this move when I got a shipping confirmation a couple of days later letting me know I could expect my delivery on May 3rd, but luckily that turned out to be a filthy rotten lie, and it turned up about two days after that, in roughly the same timescale as most of the other websites I shop from. So that was a relief.

As you can see from the photo, this claims to “refresh and brighten all shades of red hair. The main thing to note about it is that it’s NOT a dye: it’s a colour-depositing conditioner, designed to make hair that’s already red (whether naturally or chemically so) a little more vibrant, and to prevent colour-fade if your hair is dyed. If you don’t already have red hair, then this won’t miraculously turn you ginger, although if your hair is very light you might notice a reddish tinge to it. I also very much doubt that it would cover grey: the main “reddening” ingredient is henna, but there are no warnings against using it on chemically treated hair (In fact, one of the main selling points is that it will help prevent the notoriously difficult to maintain red chemical dyes from fading), so I’m assuming the amounts used are pretty small. With that said, it IS colour depositing, and that means it will deposit colour on everything it touches, so my advice is to treat it as if it WAS a permanent colour, and not allow it to touch anything you don’t want to turn red. It will dye your hands. It will dye your towels. It will dye the grout in your bathroom tiles. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

colour depositing conditioner for red hair

As this is a conditioner, you’ll no doubt be totally unsurprised to learn that you use it in exactly the same way you’d use any other conditioner. The directions tell you simply to “massage through hair evenly and rinse”. I use it in the shower, and normally leave it for 2-3 minutes to sink in, but you can obviously leave it for longer than that if you’re looking for a more intense colour.

The product comes out of the bottle roughly the colour of ketchup, which is why I tell you to keep it away from white towels etc. It’s a fairly thick consistency, which isn’t as easy to distribute as regular conditioners, but on the plus-side, because it’s thick, you don’t get much in the way of splash-back either, unless you tend to whip your head around a lot in the shower. I do that.

One word of warning: like Superdrug Colour Effects, this sucks as a conditioner, so if you’re hoping it will detangle and smooth your hair as well as refreshing the colour, well, I wouldn’t bank on it. After the first couple of applications, I decided to use it purely as a colour treatment: I use another conditioner afterwards, or I can’t get a comb through my hair without a struggle.

As a colour-treatment, however, it’s much better. I noticed a difference after my first application: my hair was brighter, redder and just a slightly more intense version of its natural colour. What I would say about this, though – and actually ALL products in this genre that I’ve tried – is that the difference is subtle enough that you shouldn’t be surprised if you’re the only one who notices. I’ve never had anyone ask if if changed my hair colour after using something like this for instance, because I just don’t think that one shade of red looks much different to another to the casual observer. People would obviously notice if I went from red to blonde or black, say, but a more intense version of my usual colour? Nah: it might look different to ME, but to anyone else, it’s no biggie.

It’s also a colour change that’s almost impossible to photograph. I figured this review really needed a before and after shot for comparison, but I’ll be totally honest: I completely forgot to take the “before” one, and when I looked back at some older photos for a comparison, I honestly couldn’t see a difference, even although I DO see one in real life. My hair, as I’ve mentioned before, can look COMPLETELY different depending on when and how it’s photographed, and a subtle change in colour just isn’t something that’s going to stand out in a photo. This is unfortunate for this review, but not so unfortunate in real life, because this is exactly what I’m looking for from this type of product. I don’t want to change my hair colour drastically, just to “boost” its natural shade, and I’d say this does that nicely. Just for reference, though, the photo at the top of the page was taken after three applications (the last of which was on the day the photo was taken) with a few washes in between where I didn’t use the conditioner. I didn’t notice any fading on the days I didn’t use it, so I’d say you could probably get away with using it two or three times per week if you want to save some money.

So, will I buy it again?

Probably not, to be honest. It’s not that I don’t like the product: I really do. It’s purely a matter of availability. This costs £11 per bottle when you factor in the shipping, and the 300ml bottle doesn’t go very far on my long hair, even if used sparingly, so I’ll be sticking with Superdrug for now, although if I can find it, I would definitely consider ordering some of the matching shampoo, which would last longer. If you’re in the US, thought, and have red hair, I’d recommend giving it a shot: you can find it at Sallys and Amazon.

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COMMENTS
  • Have you ever tried the copper revlon colour creme,I found it pretty good?also is a decent conditioner I felt.
    I hate it wen stuff is only available in the us,ie the bobbi brown long wear foundation that is freely available in the alabaster shade there despite the urban legend that its been completely discontinued!……paranoid rant over!

    April 12, 2013
      • Alas I can only use oil free formulations due to the fair skinned affliction of rosacea but at least I’ve got an excuse to visit the big apple every now and then.

        April 12, 2013
  • I live in the US and I can never find anything designed for redheads, I would have thought the UK was better equipped. At least where I live all the things for hair color depositing conditioners are for blondes or brunettes. 🙁 But I live in the sunshine state so maybe that is why lol.

    April 12, 2013
  • Have you tried our Color Revive Copper Flame Shampoo and Conditioner? I’d be willing to send you a sample to try if you like? We’ve got some pretty great testimonials from those who have used it…

    April 12, 2013
  • Excellent review- I read it top to bottom despite my hair last being red in about 2008. If the product had been seriously colour boosting you could’ve used a black and white photo as the before shot and then a colour one as the after- as if the conditioner was the equivalent of the Technicolour filters in the Land of Oz :p xx

    April 12, 2013
  • “Color refreshing”? One cannot improve on perfection.

    April 12, 2013
  • Before I even read this I thought, “Well, that’s a lovely picture! Her hair looks particularly good here.” I can’t say it’s the product…but it might be. lol

    April 12, 2013
  • Also, related, but also rather random question- are you still happy with your Invisalign results? I’m on tray 7 and I’ve already seen huge differences! I took pictures with my phone so I could monitor myself. 🙂 You gave a very good pros and con list right after, I’m just wondering, how do you feel about it now?

    April 12, 2013
  • Wonderful. Your smile is beautiful and that is just what I hoped to hear. So glad you’re still happy with it. Thank you!

    April 13, 2013
  • Only you would take a photo of some conditioner in front of shoes :p

    Hope you manage to find something cheaper and more available soon!

    Corinne x
    http://www.skinnedcartree.com

    April 13, 2013
  • Red hair fade so fast…When I was a redhead I used a toni&guy shampoo and it was pretty good!!
    Maybe you could try it!

    April 13, 2013
  • I was trying to find a similar product in my country, to keep the color from fading too soon, but I had no luck. I did find some conditioners the other day, which I’m thinking of buying so I can try them, but they say they are for dark red hair, and mine are more copper red than wine red, so I don’t know. I love my color, but I don’t know how much I can keep it. It’s very high maintenance.

    April 13, 2013
  • In high school I had a friend who was a red head and used something similar to brighten her hair. I would absolutely love to be a redhead, but I am not big on dying my hair anymore so that is out of the question. I did use the product my friend had, it was Aussie brand, but that was years and years ago and haven’t had luck fining anything similar. It gave me a slightly red effect, kind of brought out my highlights, but I wonder if something like this would do anything now. My hair has gotten much darker as I have gotten older so probably nothing really noticeable.

    April 14, 2013
  • I remember the day I’ve tweeted you asking if you knew this product. Few months ago my friend went to Miami and bought me the shampoo and the conditioner, but he just found the 1L bottle, guess will need a whole year to use it all. The conditioner is not the best I’ve used do far, so sometimes I mix with another and it’s ok. But I haven’t seen any difference in my natural shade yet.

    April 14, 2013
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