Critique my henna'ing process?

[robot.]

Hey, ladies. Spring break is approaching and I thought it would be fun to use henna to get a new color. I've been searching and reading through old threads and I have a rough idea of what I'd like to do, but if anyone sees any "troubles" with this, please chime in!

I want a really rich, deep brownish red.

I plan to use Karishma Herbal Henna mixed with coffee (this adds more brown), paprika or cinnamon (helps with reddening) or lemon juice (helps to lighten), and silk amino acids (I heard this helps with rinsing). I'm thinking of adding a cheapie condish just to help with application and rinsing.

I was thinking of maybe mixing in some coconut milk or coconut oil to add some more conditioning properties. Maybe even some honey or rosewater. Any thoughts?

I'll leave this mixture overnight to let the color release and then apply on clean, dry hair. I am thinking of shampooing a few days before just to get rid of any buildup I might have.

Let sit for however many hours. Paint toenails, watch a movie, eat ice cream... Then, rinse out with a cheapie condish and follow up with a moisturizing DC.

What do you all think? Sounds alright?

 

[Reecie]

I don't know ANYTHING about Henna, but I hope your color works out the way you want it to.

I'll be eagerly awaiting your results. I love color!!

 

[robot.]

Same here. I'm really excited. I will, of course, take pictures.

 

[jamaraa]

Hey, ladies. Spring break is approaching and I thought it would be fun to use henna to get a new color. I've been searching and reading through old threads and I have a rough idea of what I'd like to do, but if anyone sees any "troubles" with this, please chime in!

I want a really rich, deep brownish red.

I plan to use Karishma Herbal Henna mixed with coffee (this adds more brown), paprika or cinnamon (helps with reddening) or lemon juice (helps to lighten), and silk amino acids (I heard this helps with rinsing). I'm thinking of adding a cheapie condish just to help with application and rinsing.

I was thinking of maybe mixing in some coconut milk or coconut oil to add some more conditioning properties. Maybe even some honey or rosewater. Any thoughts?

I'll leave this mixture overnight to let the color release and then apply on clean, dry hair. I am thinking of shampooing a few days before just to get rid of any buildup I might have.

Let sit for however many hours. Paint toenails, watch a movie, eat ice cream... Then, rinse out with a cheapie condish and follow up with a moisturizing DC.

What do you all think? Sounds alright?

Karishma is an Indian brand that tends to stain a truer red than some others. I might add a little indigo or khatam rather than coffee for it to go more toward the brown shades.

Have you tested the henna+coffee mix on your shed hair? If it gives you the color you're looking for..stick w/ it. If it doesn't, consider a small amount of indigo or khatam.

You can probably get away w/ buying the samples at Mehendi.com for like $2 to get the color you describe if you choose to go that route! You need very little.

 

[robot.]

Karishma is an Indian brand that tends to stain a truer red than some others. I might add a little indigo or khatam rather than coffee for it to go more toward the brown shades.

Have you tested the henna+coffee mix on your shed hair? If it gives you the color you're looking for..stick w/ it. If it doesn't, consider a small amount of indigo or khatam.

You can probably get away w/ buying the samples at Mehendi.com for like $2 to get the color you describe if you choose to go that route! You need very little.

I haven't tried the coffee, but one of the threads I read... one woman said her Karishma tended to stain darker because of the amla? That could've just been her experience, but I thought I should take it into consideration.

And I read that coffee helps to darken. I haven't tried it, so I can't say with certainty. I just kind of add whatever and hope I cover all bases.

 

[jamaraa]

Given that Karishma is a premade compound henna, I have no idea how much amla there is in it. I doubt there's very much. I've used it on my mother and I control the red w/ indigo, just in case.

Indian and Paksitani hennas are tricky when it comes to color....sometimes they go VERY red (say Jamilia) and other times they go quite brown (some Rajasthanis)...so I always control my color w/ indigo.

You might do well to try the coffee thing on sheds before doing it on your whole head because coffee is acidic and you might find it too drying for your hair. Test this mixture on YOUR hair. You might not like the color uptake or how the hair feels afterwards.

 

[robot.]

Thanks for the tip! I don't even drink coffee, so I wasn't sure where it was coming from in the first place. The indigo sounds like a much safer option.

Is there a way to mix it, or any proportions? Like a spoonful of indigo for every two spoons of henna, etc.? Or should I just eyeball it?

 

[jamaraa]

Since you want reddish brown and you'r hair's already dark, I might start my experiment w/ a hendigo (ie 50% of each). When I do my tests I usually do them by teaspoons.

Save some hair and test both your coffee and your indigo mixed 50% w/ henna. (Don't worry, you'll have plenty of henna left to do your hair ) If you want to adjust it, just add more/less of your coffee or indigo to your henna.

I do reddish brown for my mother. At this point I eyeball it, but her hair was rather light to begin w/, but intially I started doing her at 100 grams of both. If anything now that she has buildup of color from both henna and indigo, I try to stay away from going too dark. These days I do 100 grams of henna to 50 grams of indigo on her.

Depending on your present hair color and what you want as a result, 100 grams of henna-50 grams of indigo might be a nice place to start.

So just to make your life easy, if you want to avoid experiments , get some indigo and just do 50% of both. Given that you have a TWA, you'll need way less than 100 grams.

 

[robot.]

Thanks, jamaraa.

What do you think of adding the conditioner? I heard if you want a richer color, to keep them mixture as simple as possible.

 

[robot.]

bumpity.

 

[jamaraa]

I always use cheapie conditioner in my henna mixes for easy rinse out and to avoid dryness. It hasn't harmed the color any from what I see.

 

[robot.]

Okay. I'm going to nix the coffee and lemon juice just because I don't want to do too much on my first try and I know LJ can be drying.

Have you ever added an oil?

 

[MaryJane3000]

i put amla and coconut oil on my hair before i henna,and i use karishma. I let it sit for 45 minutes and to be honest I havent noticed any color...but i think that may b because of the oil or my hairs just weird.

 

[robot.]

why do you put the amla on beforehand? i thought that amla darkens the hair, so maybe that's why you haven't noticed much color?

and maybe you need to keep it in longer to let the color take. how long to do you let your mixture sit?

 

[tash85]

I've been henna'ing my hair every2-3 weeks for the past 6 months (straight henna, no indigo) and to be honest, the only time you can see the colour is when light shines through it.

If you want a true colour change and you have dark hair, I don't think henna will give you what youre really looking for.

 

[Lola Laughs]

Okay. I'm going to nix the coffee and lemon juice just because I don't want to do too much on my first try and I know LJ can be drying.

Have you ever added an oil?

You can use ACV instead of LC--the acidity will help the color release but not as drying.

 

[robot.]

You can use ACV instead of LC--the acidity will help the color release but not as drying.

Oh, good idea. Thanks!

 

[robot.]

I've been henna'ing my hair every2-3 weeks for the past 6 months (straight henna, no indigo) and to be honest, the only time you can see the colour is when light shines through it.

If you want a true colour change and you have dark hair, I don't think henna will give you what youre really looking for.

What do you mix with yours? And I'll be happy if I get any changes; I don't need anything drastic.

 

[MaryJane3000]

I do that pre=oiling to try and counter the dryness Ill get from the henna,and Ive used amla oil for a while now and I havent noticed a real color change. And i make a big batch and use it up over time, so this last time I had the henna sit out for about 24 hours b4 I refrigerated it.

 

[robot.]

I do that pre=oiling to try and counter the dryness Ill get from the henna,and Ive used amla oil for a while now and I havent noticed a real color change. And i make a big batch and use it up over time, so this last time I had the henna sit out for about 24 hours b4 I refrigerated it.

Are you trying to get a color change from the henna? The two could be working against each other. The amla darkens while the henna gives you a red/brown/whatever, but maybe they cancel each other out when you layer it like that?

 

[Theresamonet]

Please don't forget to post pics of your results, I really want to see how your color comes out. When are you planning to do this?

 

[Aggie]

Are you trying to get a color change from the henna? The two could be working against each other. The amla darkens while the henna gives you a red/brown/whatever, but maybe they cancel each other out when you layer it like that?

Remember now Robotxcore, henna doesn't addd color to already black hair, You may notice a slight reddish copper tone to the hair in bright sunlight however, so maybe that is what is happening to JMJ.

Now as far as the lemon juice, I think I would eliminate it and just stick with the amla and coffee. Lemon juice is extremely drying to ethnic hair and like another poster recommended, the ACV may be a better option. I don't use either of these. I simply use amla and that is enough acid for my henna mixes.

For the results you are looking for this time around, I may even take out the conditioner and keep the mix as simple as possible. I would simply concentrate my efforts on proper deep conditioning and moisturizing post the henna application and removal.

Like jamaraa suggested, using a 50/50 mix of indigo and henna would be a great idea. Apply the hendigo mix to slightly damp hair for better adhesion and uptake of the dye as well. Good luck.

 

[Lucia]

Hey, ladies. Spring break is approaching and I thought it would be fun to use henna to get a new color. I've been searching and reading through old threads and I have a rough idea of what I'd like to do, but if anyone sees any "troubles" with this, please chime in!

I want a really rich, deep brownish red.

I plan to use Karishma Herbal Henna mixed with coffee (this adds more brown), paprika or cinnamon (helps with reddening) or lemon juice (helps to lighten), and silk amino acids (I heard this helps with rinsing). I'm thinking of adding a cheapie condish just to help with application and rinsing.

I was thinking of maybe mixing in some coconut milk or coconut oil to add some more conditioning properties. Maybe even some honey or rosewater. Any thoughts?

I'll leave this mixture overnight to let the color release and then apply on clean, dry hair. I am thinking of shampooing a few days before just to get rid of any buildup I might have.

Let sit for however many hours. Paint toenails, watch a movie, eat ice cream... Then, rinse out with a cheapie condish and follow up with a moisturizing DC.

What do you all think? Sounds alright?

I agree if you want a dark reddish brown use more original red henna than indigo, keep it henna/indigo 3:1 ratio, then to really bring up the red, boil your water with red tea from the market any drinkable red tea will do. Skip the lemon, and the rose water, lemon is very drying and tends to give yellow/golden tones and rose water is useless for this. The reason I don't suggest you mix henna with conditioner is b/c you won't get the full color or strengthening effects of the henna on your hair.
After the henna/indigo make sure to follow up with a thick creamy moisturizing (NOT protein) DC and leave that on for 30 min at least under a plastic cap or damp warmed towel to steam your DC into your hair. hth

 

[JayAnn0513]

My mom mixes her Jamilla henna with red wine and gets lovely reddish brown results. She henna's every 10-14 days. She leaves it on for hours but she is trying to cover greys

 

[robot.]

Please don't forget to post pics of your results, I really want to see how your color comes out. When are you planning to do this?

Spring break is in two weeks, so I plan to do it then, the day before my birthday.

I'm in braids now (that are about to come out), so I just wanna have a little break in between to make sure my hair is properly moisturized/has protein/etc.

 

[robot.]

I agree if you want a dark reddish brown use more original red henna than indigo, keep it henna/indigo 3:1 ratio, then to really bring up the red, boil your water with red tea from the market any drinkable red tea will do. Skip the lemon, and the rose water, lemon is very drying and tends to give yellow/golden tones and rose water is useless for this. The reason I don't suggest you mix henna with conditioner is b/c you won't get the full color or strengthening effects of the henna on your hair.
After the henna/indigo make sure to follow up with a thick creamy moisturizing (NOT protein) DC and leave that on for 30 min at least under a plastic cap or damp warmed towel to steam your DC into your hair. hth

I was only thinking of adding rosewater for added moisture benefits. Not for color or anything. If I skip the conditioner, do you think I should add something moisturizing to the mix? I just want to avoid dryness (so I will definitely be skipping the lemon juice), but I guess a good DC after will fix that

My mom mixes her Jamilla henna with red wine and gets lovely reddish brown results. She henna's every 10-14 days. She leaves it on for hours but she is trying to cover greys

This sounds like a good idea!

 

[robot.]

Remember now Robotxcore, henna doesn't addd color to already black hair, You may notice a slight reddish copper tone to the hair in bright sunlight however, so maybe that is what is happening to JMJ.

Now as far as the lemon juice, I think I would eliminate it and just stick with the amla and coffee. Lemon juice is extremely drying to ethnic hair and like another poster recommended, the ACV may be a better option. I don't use either of these. I simply use amla and that is enough acid for my henna mixes.

For the results you are looking for this time around, I may even take out the conditioner and keep the mix as simple as possible. I would simply concentrate my efforts on proper deep conditioning and moisturizing post the henna application and removal.

Like jamaraa suggested, using a 50/50 mix of indigo and henna would be a great idea. Apply the hendigo mix to slightly damp hair for better adhesion and uptake of the dye as well. Good luck.

I was hoping you'd chime in! Thanks so much. I do think it will be best to just keep my mix as simple as possible and work on conditioning afterwards. It's so tempting to just throw everything into the mix, though.

 

[Lucia]

I was only thinking of adding rosewater for added moisture benefits. Not for color or anything. If I skip the conditioner, do you think I should add something moisturizing to the mix? I just want to avoid dryness (so I will definitely be skipping the lemon juice), but I guess a good DC after will fix that



This sounds like a good idea!

No I don't think you should mix it with too many ingredients keep the henna simple so you get max colour and benefits. DC after the henna, if you're really worried about dryness, DC before the henna too. Always use moisturizing DC with henna cause henna acts like/is a protein. hth

 

[robot.]

alright, got my henna in the mail.

i'll keep it simple, and just use red tea and a few drops of SAA. for the mix.

 

[IDareT'sHair]

alright, got my henna in the mail.

i'll keep it simple, and just use red tea and a few drops of SAA. for the mix.

Keep Us Posted on how this all turns out Robot.