henna
henna, lawsonia inermis, is a plant found in the middle east, africa and india
• known for decorating the skin and depositing color onto the hair
• the dye molecule lawsone is found within the leaves and must be mixed with a mildly acidic liquid for the lawsone to be released
• henna is dried and ground into a powder for most effective use
• you can use henna for an hour or so for short term conditioning or long term color deposit
• best results with body art quality henna (b.a.q.)
you can find baq henna in indian grocery stores or online
a reputable site is mehandi.com which formulated a henna bundle for african hair
• pure b.a.q. henna turns the hair red so if you have gray they too will turn red which makes for pretty highlights; the rest of the hair will be lightly tinted red depending on your natural color (if you have a lot of gray or may not want so much red see “boosting henna” section below for more ideas)
• future henna applications will deepen the color
henna pros and cons
pros
• strengthens the hair
• conditions the hair
• fuller hair
• defines the natural curl
• adds shine
cons
• can be drying: some people experience dryness after henna processing due to it’s strengthening abilities
this can be avoided by mixing the henna with some orange juice instead of lemon, adding yogurt or by adding some nourishing oils to the mix.
• time consuming: the henna mix must rest for 6 to 12 hours so that the henna leaf cellulose is dissolved before application; then after application it has to set in your hair for several hours to oxidize
• messy: wrap henna-ed hair tight with saran wrap and dark towels and cover your bed/pillow if processing your hair overnight
• it is difficult to lighten hair from a dark henna coloring
• does not react well with store bought peroxide-based hair color that needs to be mixed with an activator, especially if it is not b.a.q henna
many fotki ladies i know use henna to color their hair
lina40 who has a great henna tutorial and sells henna in her online store: afiba naturals
boosting henna
• use indigo over the initial henna application to darken your henna results
• add espresso type brewed coffee to your henna mix (i tried this on my mother’s hair with good results )
• add spices like cinnamon, paprika to the water (see info on “herbal teas”)
• add essential oils of tea tree, eucalyptus or lavender
• avoid chlorinated water when henna-ing, this can alter results
henna box blends
some companies sell premixed henna with additives – this is not 100% pure/b.a.q. henna
colora henna creme and rainbow henna can be found in your local beauty supply/health food store
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Click here for hair coloring part 2
Click here for hair coloring part 1
4 Responses
I’ve been using henna close to 4 years now and I love it. I’ve found methods to shorten the long process. If I’m going to henna my hair, I usually mix it the day before so that at least 12 hours of dye release is activated and at peak by the time I get ready to apply the henna on my hair. That way I can get a great deposit within 3 hours, wash it out with conditioner and f/u with my Indigo for a couple of hours after then deep condition. I get a rich vibrant dark color on my hair. It is imperative to f/u with a deep conditioner because most ayurvedic powders can be very drying to your hair. But, once you rinse out your deep conditioner, prepare yourself for the strength, shine, and curl to your hair. I have less shedding and breakage when I routinely henna my hair and now experiencing greater length retention.
Another short cut to henna application is to mix the Henna with your deep conditioner…this is usually referred to as a henna gloss. You can do this short henna glosses in between your longer henna sessions to touch up your new growth if you are not up for a full henna treatment. You can also mix the henna and the indigo together for a less red color and more of a browner/black color…the ration of indigo to henna is adjustable as to how dark you prefer your hair color.
i couldn’t have said it better myself lina! 🙂
everything is not for everybody
the original question was from someone inquiring about how to cover the “gray”
so i presented many options that were broken down for ease of comprehension
i myself will be switching to henna(from aveda permanent color)to cover my gray whenever they come in…
if you are impatient, henna is NOT for you. If you already do conditioning treatments and would like to add color to the mix, henna can help. Some people experience delayed reactions to the harsher chemicals in box and salon colors, so one way to get the best of both worlds is to get the salon color of your choice and add neutral henna(cassia) to your deep conditioners in order to keep your color looking fresh. If you want your hair to be black and are not patient, henna+ indigo is not the way to go either.
Henna can be as easy or as complicated as you make it, just like eating right, exercising, and dang– taking care of your hair!
Just like all those other lifestyles, it takes planning and some forethought, and you have to assess what you want. Its not something to do on a whim, which is why the research is here. But with anything, it is easier to streamline a regimen after you’ve done it a few times. Healthy hair is first and foremost.. what are you willing to do to get that..? Henna is not for everybody, so dont jump on it because it seems popular. Jump on it because you are willing to try something new and not whine about it — you can tweak anything about the process after the 1st try.
I am willing to deal with henna because I am NOT willing to deal with breakage and henna is the only thing that is dependable on that front. Time and patience is not an issue for me, because I know what I am getting in the end. If you dont try it, you wont know what the end result is — everyone’s hair is not the same – if you have color on your hair right now, henna will SHOW UP as color on your hair. If you dont have color, well, depending on how porous your hair is will determine whether your henna is on par with box color or appears as highlights.
So, to each his own — it is worth it for me, but you have to find that out for yourself.
Blessings,
Lina40
public.fotki.com/okorolina40
I don’t know about anyone else but henna seems like too much work for not much color change. I really want to dye my hair but I’ll be damned if I’m going to spend multiple hours messing with henna and I can only see the difference in the light.