L'Oreal Paris Root Rescue

Bottom line

L'Oreal Paris Root Rescue provides root coverage between colorings. It comes in 16 shades that are designed to match both natural and color-treated hair. It's important to perform a strand test before using, however, to ensure it matches existing hair color. Overall, reviewers prefer Clairol Nice 'n Easy Root Touch-Up (Est. $7) .

Performance

To ensure color is correct, a strand test is necessary. Editors at Good Housekeeping say root touch-up products like L'Oreal Paris Root Rescue are "a boon for gray coverage between colorings." Root Rescue earned top scores in Good Housekeeping's annual Anti-Aging Awards for "providing seamless coverage and for the accuracy of the color's match with the swatch on the box." But users at MakeupAlley.com have had a different experience with the formula. It earns a dismal overall rating of just 1.9 out of 5 stars from about 55 reviewers.

Many consumers say the colors don't match existing hair color well and have weird undertones. For instance, some complain that the Dark Auburn shade has purple undertones that don't match the red undertones in the rest of their hair. Others say the dye turned their roots orange. That's why it's so important to do a strand test to ensure that the color reacts properly with your hair.

Ease of use

Messy but easy to apply. Root Rescue comes with a squeeze bottle applicator and attached precision comb. Users say it's easy to apply although the formula is a bit drippy and messy. The formula takes 10 to 15 minutes to process, but several users say that stubborn gray hair requires much more time -- upwards of 30 minutes. Yet another reason to do a strand test beforehand.

Smell

Very unpleasant scent. L'Oréal says that Root Rescue is a "low-ammonia" formula, but reviewers say it still smells as bad as other hair dyes. One user at MakeupAlley.com says, "The product smells horrible once you begin to rinse it out. I mean, like rotting garbage."