I used this and the color started fading pretty badly in my hair by around 6 or 7 weeks. I had to recolor with a different brand (which stayed a lot longer). I'm not sure why this didn't stay in my hair as well - it could have been application, hair condition, etc., but I have colored my hair many times and this is the first time I've ever had a color fade so quickly. I went for a color that was lighter than usual, so perhaps that is why. As far as application, everything went on quite easy and I had no troubles using the system.