Henna Hair Coloring
Thought I would post a bit about dying my hair with henna and indigo and include some pics. Feel free to ask any questions!
I have never had an issue with my hair. It is naturally a medium to dark brown with golden highlights, especially on the top of my head. I have some grays, but not a ton. I have colored my hair in the past, but mainly to have fun with the color and not to hide anything. I am adventurous, but it didn't always work to my advantage. I ended up with deep purple hair once, several years ago! It looked weird, although DH loved it!
I haven't colored my hair since before I was pregnant with Taylor. The smell of the boxed kits turned me off since I didn't want the fumes around my kids. So, my hair was untouched. I also started using baking soda and vinegar to wash my hair about 2 years ago, so my hair is at it's most natural now. Here is a picture of the before (excuse the majorly bad hair day I was having! I knew I was coloring so I didn't bother to do anything with it.)
Since I was interested in more natural products, I decided to look into using henna for coloring my hair. I have always loved having a bit of red in my hair. After doing some research on henna for hair dying, I decided that I would skip the boxed kits and instead I would use body art quality henna and indigo. I found www.hennaforhair.com, a great website with all kinds of information about using henna for hair dye. I ordered 100g of henna and 100g of indigo from www.mehandi.com, along with their “samples” of carrots bags and gloves.
The henna and indigo arrived in plastic packets inside foil packets. There were basic instructions included, but I also read through the Henna For Hair site prior to receiving the stuff. I also bought a big bottle of lemon juice. I had to wait to use it until I could get the time free.
The day before I was going to color my hair, I poured the henna powder into a plastic container. It was a green powder that smelled like grass. I mixed it with a lot of lemon juice, until it was about the consistancy of thick yogurt. I covered it and let it sit overnight so the dye could release from the plant.
Right before I was ready to color, I pulled out all of the things I would need. I got my carrot bags (think cake decorating bags), scissors, plastic gloves, towels, shower cap, and I put on my hair coloring shirt. I opened up the indigo, also a green planty smelling powder, and used about ½ of it, mixing it with warm water and letting it rest for a minute or so. The indigo turned very dark green. Then I mixed ¾ of the henna into the indigo mixture. It turned into a lovely olive green.
The first pic is a picture of each after being mixed. The pretty green is the indigo and the yellowish is the henna after the dye released. The second picture is the combination of the two.
I moved into the bathroom so I could use a mirror. I filled the carrot bag with most of the mix and snipped the tip. I used the carrot bag to get the mixture to my scalp, although I have short hair, so it wasn’t hard to get it down to the roots. I continued to squeeze it on. I put almost all of the mix on my head. My hair was completely green and it was on THICK! Then I put on a shower cap I got from the hotel we stayed at this past weekend. On top of that, I wrapped a towel around my head. (Picture of all of the goop applied, before the plastic and towel were added.)
Unfortunately, it was hard to keep the towel on top of my head. I couldn’t bend over, making childcare duties nearly impossible! I ended up just wrapping it loosely to help hold in the heat. I went about my normal thing after I cleaned up. I loved being able to nurse Jackson and play with him while I waited! I just smelled like grass mixed with lemon juice, rather than that toxic smell from chemical colorants.
I waited 3 hours, then decided to shower. I pulled the shower cap off in the shower. Next time, I will do it before I get in the shower. The henna mix had darkened quite a bit to a dark brown color. I let the water run through my hair, then started to use my fingers to get it out. It was not easy. The henna mix felt gritty, like there were pieces of plant matter in my hair (and there was!) so it was not coming out easily. I had read that conditioner can help, so I used some of my Burt’s Bees pre-shampoo conditioner and rubbed it through. It did help get it out a bit faster. It took a good amount of showering to get it all out, but eventually the water ran clear. I also followed with a rinse of water with about 10 drops of lavender essential oil to help soothe my scalp. It was a bit irritated by the grittiness of the henna.
After the shower, I dried my hair with a clean towel. I was actually surprised to see that the towel wasn’t being covered in colorant! However, I did notice that the tips of my fingernails were black! Oh well. I simply combed out my hair and then let it dry naturally. I noticed there there was some sensitivity on my scalp. In fact, combing my hair hurt. I think the lemon juice may be too acidic and I will try orange juice instead the next time I do this. I LOVE the final product! I have since washed my hair once. I got a bit more color out of the hair with a good wash. My scalp is starting to recover, although it does itch a bit.
Top and side views of my hair. The golden highlights are now red and the medium brown is now very dark. I love that it works with my highlights and doesn't just mask them and make my hair all one color.
A close-up of the hair! Gorgeous! It has darkened a bit more since this picture was taken, but it is still wonderful! And my hair feels really healthy, too!
I have never had an issue with my hair. It is naturally a medium to dark brown with golden highlights, especially on the top of my head. I have some grays, but not a ton. I have colored my hair in the past, but mainly to have fun with the color and not to hide anything. I am adventurous, but it didn't always work to my advantage. I ended up with deep purple hair once, several years ago! It looked weird, although DH loved it!
I haven't colored my hair since before I was pregnant with Taylor. The smell of the boxed kits turned me off since I didn't want the fumes around my kids. So, my hair was untouched. I also started using baking soda and vinegar to wash my hair about 2 years ago, so my hair is at it's most natural now. Here is a picture of the before (excuse the majorly bad hair day I was having! I knew I was coloring so I didn't bother to do anything with it.)
Since I was interested in more natural products, I decided to look into using henna for coloring my hair. I have always loved having a bit of red in my hair. After doing some research on henna for hair dying, I decided that I would skip the boxed kits and instead I would use body art quality henna and indigo. I found www.hennaforhair.com, a great website with all kinds of information about using henna for hair dye. I ordered 100g of henna and 100g of indigo from www.mehandi.com, along with their “samples” of carrots bags and gloves.
The henna and indigo arrived in plastic packets inside foil packets. There were basic instructions included, but I also read through the Henna For Hair site prior to receiving the stuff. I also bought a big bottle of lemon juice. I had to wait to use it until I could get the time free.
The day before I was going to color my hair, I poured the henna powder into a plastic container. It was a green powder that smelled like grass. I mixed it with a lot of lemon juice, until it was about the consistancy of thick yogurt. I covered it and let it sit overnight so the dye could release from the plant.
Right before I was ready to color, I pulled out all of the things I would need. I got my carrot bags (think cake decorating bags), scissors, plastic gloves, towels, shower cap, and I put on my hair coloring shirt. I opened up the indigo, also a green planty smelling powder, and used about ½ of it, mixing it with warm water and letting it rest for a minute or so. The indigo turned very dark green. Then I mixed ¾ of the henna into the indigo mixture. It turned into a lovely olive green.
The first pic is a picture of each after being mixed. The pretty green is the indigo and the yellowish is the henna after the dye released. The second picture is the combination of the two.
I moved into the bathroom so I could use a mirror. I filled the carrot bag with most of the mix and snipped the tip. I used the carrot bag to get the mixture to my scalp, although I have short hair, so it wasn’t hard to get it down to the roots. I continued to squeeze it on. I put almost all of the mix on my head. My hair was completely green and it was on THICK! Then I put on a shower cap I got from the hotel we stayed at this past weekend. On top of that, I wrapped a towel around my head. (Picture of all of the goop applied, before the plastic and towel were added.)
Unfortunately, it was hard to keep the towel on top of my head. I couldn’t bend over, making childcare duties nearly impossible! I ended up just wrapping it loosely to help hold in the heat. I went about my normal thing after I cleaned up. I loved being able to nurse Jackson and play with him while I waited! I just smelled like grass mixed with lemon juice, rather than that toxic smell from chemical colorants.
I waited 3 hours, then decided to shower. I pulled the shower cap off in the shower. Next time, I will do it before I get in the shower. The henna mix had darkened quite a bit to a dark brown color. I let the water run through my hair, then started to use my fingers to get it out. It was not easy. The henna mix felt gritty, like there were pieces of plant matter in my hair (and there was!) so it was not coming out easily. I had read that conditioner can help, so I used some of my Burt’s Bees pre-shampoo conditioner and rubbed it through. It did help get it out a bit faster. It took a good amount of showering to get it all out, but eventually the water ran clear. I also followed with a rinse of water with about 10 drops of lavender essential oil to help soothe my scalp. It was a bit irritated by the grittiness of the henna.
After the shower, I dried my hair with a clean towel. I was actually surprised to see that the towel wasn’t being covered in colorant! However, I did notice that the tips of my fingernails were black! Oh well. I simply combed out my hair and then let it dry naturally. I noticed there there was some sensitivity on my scalp. In fact, combing my hair hurt. I think the lemon juice may be too acidic and I will try orange juice instead the next time I do this. I LOVE the final product! I have since washed my hair once. I got a bit more color out of the hair with a good wash. My scalp is starting to recover, although it does itch a bit.
Top and side views of my hair. The golden highlights are now red and the medium brown is now very dark. I love that it works with my highlights and doesn't just mask them and make my hair all one color.
A close-up of the hair! Gorgeous! It has darkened a bit more since this picture was taken, but it is still wonderful! And my hair feels really healthy, too!