Do ya'll henna?

Do you henna?

  • Yes, I henna and love it

    Votes: 293 28.1%
  • Yes, I have but I won't do it again

    Votes: 33 3.2%
  • No, I haven't but I've always wanted to

    Votes: 518 49.6%
  • Nope, never considered it

    Votes: 200 19.2%

  • Total voters
    1,044
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Wow! Your hair looks great! I love reading the updates and seeing the pictures! *Still have not decided on doing this yet...oh what the hell--I think I'm going to start next month so when I press my hair in October {after one year of going without heat} my hair will be strong and I can see the shine.* :clap:



douglala said:
Pics....Pics.....Pics.....finally

This is after my first indigo/henna/amla treatment. Hair was then rollerset and lightly flat-ironed.
View attachment 2433


This is after my third henna/indigo/amla treatment. It is hard to tell but my hair is a tad lighter because I used a greater percentage of henna for this one. Also a rollerset and flatiron.
View attachment 2434

This is after my 4th henna only treatment. Notice the reddish/brown in the front. My hair is air-dried and lightly flatironed.
View attachment 2435



Today is Henna Friday for me too. Doing my first Indigo only treatment tonight.....I'm so excited!! But I think I am going to mix in some of that Cassia (sp?) neutral henna. I have some there that I never used...
 
douglala said:
Cool. At least I know I can get my color back. Is this with the Jamilla Henna?

It was Jamila, but I think any henna over indigo'd hair will redden/lighten it.
 
douglala said:
Pics....Pics.....Pics.....finally

This is after my first indigo/henna/amla treatment. Hair was then rollerset and lightly flat-ironed.
View attachment 2433


This is after my third henna/indigo/amla treatment. It is hard to tell but my hair is a tad lighter because I used a greater percentage of henna for this one. Also a rollerset and flatiron.
View attachment 2434

This is after my 4th henna only treatment. Notice the reddish/brown in the front. My hair is air-dried and lightly flatironed.
View attachment 2435



Today is Henna Friday for me too. Doing my first Indigo only treatment tonight.....I'm so excited!! But I think I am going to mix in some of that Cassia (sp?) neutral henna. I have some there that I never used...

That's it, I'm in...Your hair is gorgeous and so shiny!!! I am going to take baby steps :baby2: and start out with the henna and indigo. I will make sure to test first. I will order tonight :user: . I hope it works as well for me as it did for you ladies...
 
How do you guys measure out the powders?

I'm about to put my order in and was thinking about getting just 4 oz of both Alma powder and Hibiscus petal powder, but I'm not sure thats enough. I guess it is for now, but I'm wondering how you henna experts measure out your ratios
 
Wildchild453 said:
How do you guys measure out the powders?

I'm about to put my order in and was thinking about getting just 4 oz of both Alma powder and Hibiscus petal powder, but I'm not sure thats enough. I guess it is for now, but I'm wondering how you henna experts measure out your ratios

Here's the basic measurements as posted on hennaforhair.com

100g will dye short hair.
200g will dye collar length straight hair.
300g will dye shoulder length straight hair.
500g will dye waist length hair.
I use 500 g and my hair goes to my fingertips.

100 grams = 3.53 oz
 
Ronda123 said:
That's it, I'm in...Your hair is gorgeous and so shiny!!! I am going to take baby steps :baby2: and start out with the henna and indigo. I will make sure to test first. I will order tonight :user: . I hope it works as well for me as it did for you ladies...

Good luck girl!!!

Keep us posted on how it goes. And remember it gets betters as you do more treatments. I'm doing my 5th one now....
 
douglala said:
Thanks!

Sitting here with my indigo/neutral henna treatment in my hair as I type. One more hour to go...................


Thanks for the measurements.

I have a few questions...How long do you leave the henna treatment in? Are you doing your henna treatments weekly? TIA
 
Wow this thread is long! :D

I tried Lush's hennas for a while, but I found it left my hair too dry and almost on the point of breaking. (Maybe my hair has a lot of protein naturally?) Also, it was such a hassle to get all the "mud" out of my long hair. I felt like a clay-woman trying to balance a pile of mud on my head for hours LOL. Maybe I should have tried sleeping with it, but I think my neck would be too stiff after that. I used to loosen up the henna first by dipping my head in a bucket and swishing it around and then jump into the shower. It usually took 2-3 days before all the henna was out of my hair! And constant washing for about 30 minutes in the shower each day. It just left me exhausted.

Anyway, I really liked the color I got. I tried the Caca Rouge, Caca Marron and the Caca Brown. The reddest one made my hair too red, I liked the brown one the best.

ETA: I just wanted to add that my mother hennaed her hair for years with great results! But she is 3b and white, her hair is a lot oilier than mine so it really benefited from the drying that henna does. It made her hair look thicker and not so oily.
 
I am not sure who owns the LHCF site, but they might want to consider asking the hennaforhair site to become an advertised sponser with all the free referrals we are giving their site, not to mention repeat customers. Just a thought, since I am seriously considering ordering from their site.
 
Ronda123 said:
Thanks for the measurements.

I have a few questions...How long do you leave the henna treatment in? Are you doing your henna treatments weekly? TIA

Most people leave it on anywhere between 1 and 4 hours. I personally do two hours with a minimum of 1 hour with heat.

I do my treatments weekly.
 
FloridaSunshine said:
I am not sure who owns the LHCF site, but they might want to consider asking the hennaforhair site to become an advertised sponser with all the free referrals we are giving their site, not to mention repeat customers. Just a thought, since I am seriously considering ordering from their site.

For real, I've easily spent $250 on henna from Catherine. I have a new supplier now, but a bunch of people still use her henna.
 
So I did the henna/indigo mix yesterday. My hair felt dryer. Why would that be. I did not get under the dryer at all. Could that be the culprit? Also, my hair wasn't clean as suggested on the site. Please tell me I'm not the only one who hennas on dirty hair. :)

I'll give it another try in a few days. My hair is darker but I think next time I'll use less indigo.


Oh, this is what I used in my mix: liquid pectin(gel like consistency and it does have citric acid in it), a whole lot of ACV and henna plus the indigo mixture.

I could tell tell my hair was squeaky clean after I rinsed out the deep conditioner and I didn't use any shampoo. Could the ACV and citric acid from the pectin have been too much?
 
alexstin said:
So I did the henna/indigo mix yesterday. My hair felt dryer. Why would that be. I did not get under the dryer at all. Could that be the culprit? Also, my hair wasn't clean as suggested on the site. Please tell me I'm not the only one who hennas on dirty hair. :)

I'll give it another try in a few days. My hair is darker but I think next time I'll use less indigo.


Oh, this is what I used in my mix: liquid pectin(gel like consistency and it does have citric acid in it), a whole lot of ACV and henna plus the indigo mixture.

I could tell tell my hair was squeaky clean after I rinsed out the deep conditioner and I didn't use any shampoo. Could the ACV and citric acid from the pectin have been too much?

I'm confused becasue you said on the one hand your hair wasn't clean but then that it was squeaky clean after rinsing out the deep condish?

Definitely the ACV and citric could have been too much "acid" in your mix, particualy if you used a whole lot of ACV. You don't really need a lot of acid, just enough to get the color release. Did you use boiling liquid to mix or just lukewarm. I read somewhere that it is best to mix henna with warm or lukewarm liquid because boiling liquid tends to "cook" the henna too fast -- you want a warm slow color release. I don't know, but I'm sure the "henna divas" are gonna weight in on this one. Perhaps you can share your procedure and measurements so we have a precise idea of what was done?

BTW I always henna "dirty hair" and my hair and scalp comes out clean such that I haven't used 'poo in weeks. But then I don't use a lot of products on my hair -- no 'cones and the only an oil and water mix that I apply every couple of days so there is very little buildup on my hair from wash to wash (or henna to henna these days!). So the henna is like my poo and I always follow it with a deep moisturizing condish . . .

If it's not getting clean, then you may want to 'poo first and then henna.
 
Neroli,

It was dirty when I hennaed but after rinsing the henna out and deep conditioning my hair felt very clean as if I shampooed.

THE ACV ws at room temperature. I just mixed that and the entire package of pectin with the henna until it was a yogurt consistency. I then let it sit in my laundry room for about 17 hour. The indigo I mixed with warm water and let that sit for a few minutes. Then I made my 50%-50% mixture and applied it. I let it stay on about 3 hours but didn't use any heat. That's it.
 
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alexstin said:
Neroli,

It was dirty when I hennaed but after rinsing the henna out and deep conditioning my hair felt very clean as if I shampooed.

Yep, that's how my does . . .
 
alexstin said:
I guess I should use some spring or distilled water next time I henna.

I have tried the following mixes and both give me the same results:

Mix #1
--henna
--1/2 ACV & 1/2 distilled water
Mix together until a soft thick paste is form. Let sit 10 to 12 hours before using.

Mix #2
--henna
--dannon plain natural yogurt - the one with the all the fats (let sit at room temp for an hour or so if possible)
Mix together until soft thick paste is formed. Let sit 10 to 12 hours before using.

The yogurt mix was a little bit "softer" and easier to handle and it stretches the henna a lot so I think that's how I'll do it going foward.

I save all the extras (oils, moisturiziers, honey, etc.) for my condish that follows each henna treatment.
 
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alexstin said:
So I did the henna/indigo mix yesterday. My hair felt dryer. Why would that be. I did not get under the dryer at all. Could that be the culprit? Also, my hair wasn't clean as suggested on the site. Please tell me I'm not the only one who hennas on dirty hair. :)

I'll give it another try in a few days. My hair is darker but I think next time I'll use less indigo.


Oh, this is what I used in my mix: liquid pectin(gel like consistency and it does have citric acid in it), a whole lot of ACV and henna plus the indigo mixture.

I could tell tell my hair was squeaky clean after I rinsed out the deep conditioner and I didn't use any shampoo. Could the ACV and citric acid from the pectin have been too much?

I always henna on dirty hair. Citric acid is known to be drying, but I didn't think their was enough in the pectin to cause that. Try adding a little oil to your next mix. I've used amla, coconut and olive oils. They all help w/ dryness.
 
alexstin said:
So I did the henna/indigo mix yesterday. My hair felt dryer. Why would that be. I did not get under the dryer at all. Could that be the culprit? Also, my hair wasn't clean as suggested on the site. Please tell me I'm not the only one who hennas on dirty hair. :)


Don't worry, girl, I hennaed today for the first time and I did mine of "dirty" hair too. :yep:

I am now officially in love with henna! I whipped up a pre poo made up of 4 oz of henna, a ORS Replensihing Pak, Africa's Best oil, mayo and Dannon Plain yogurt. I found the henna was really super messy, but well worth the mess! I couldn't believe how strong and smooth my hair felt right away. And like Vixxen said it dried a lot faster too, which was nice. To help get all the henna out I used lots of cheapie conditioner, that did the trick. I didn't flat iron or anything today, and my hair feels a little dry now too. I just threw some Suave Milk & Honey along with my NTM Silk Touch and serum on and I am resetting my hair in a twistout so maybe that will help. I am so excited to now be a part of the henna revolution! :grin:
 
I have a question. If is possible to get the henna mix smooth enough that it wont drip but not extra thick, is it possible to use an applicator bottle?
 
Wildchild453 said:
I have a question. If is possible to get the henna mix smooth enough that it wont drip but not extra thick, is it possible to use an applicator bottle?

Oh, yes!! My henna is always that texture....

I mix henna, and enough acidic water (I usually add a lil red wine to boost the red tones) to make it into a very VERY thick paste, then let it sit and let the dye release happen. Then, I mix in enough cheap conditioner to get it to the just right consistency, pour it into my applicator, and I'm off.

The conditioner helps me rinse the henna out easier, and prevents my hair from being as dry as it could get because of the acidity of the wine.

I've heard of others who actually 'blend' the henna with one of those hand-held milkshake makers - that's REALLLLY creamy. I usually just mix it really well with a fork. *LOL*
 
nappywomyn said:
Oh, yes!! My henna is always that texture....

I mix henna, and enough acidic water (I usually add a lil red wine to boost the red tones) to make it into a very VERY thick paste, then let it sit and let the dye release happen. Then, I mix in enough cheap conditioner to get it to the just right consistency, pour it into my applicator, and I'm off.

The conditioner helps me rinse the henna out easier, and prevents my hair from being as dry as it could get because of the acidity of the wine.

I've heard of others who actually 'blend' the henna with one of those hand-held milkshake makers - that's REALLLLY creamy. I usually just mix it really well with a fork. *LOL*


Ooo, thanks! I'm not really looking for the color more the strengthening and conditioning part. If I don't add and acid for the color release and just use water should I add something like oil/conditioner anyway?
 
Results with the Red Rose Henna:

My suggestion is IF you see this stuff, don't bother. My hair is conditioned as usual but I question what's all in it, there were so many bits and pieces in my hair when I tried to rinse it out, I had to use a conditioner to get it out. I haven't had to do that in a while.

I won't purchase this brand again, it was very grainy and instead of being green like henna is, it was brown when mixed. I've added Amla, Shikakai, Bhringraj and others to my mixes and they've always been green so I'm not sure what to think of this stuff. :confused:

I let it sit for 24 hours to terp and there was virtually no indication of color release.

I'll try the Jamila and probably go back to my regular henna w/my other powders mixed in. It's not been broken thus far so I guess I shouldn't try to fix it. :nono:
 
Did a hairball test with my henna today! :D

Mixed it up, and left in in that mess for about two and a half hours. (the smell is interesting, but still better than MTG!)

Ladies, I am SOLD. I was thinking it might do something terrible on my relaxed hair, like make it green or melt or something...you know how paranoid we are about our hair right? :look:

The test hairball was strong, and the color...a rich reddish brown, it's shiny and gorgeous! That henna is going on my hair this week! :grin:

Thanks so much for all the great henna recipies and advice. This forum is priceless.
 
Seems like I'm always coming in here with questions but I know you ladies can help me.

I plan on going on a personal braid challenge with my own hair and was wondering if you could henna your hair while braided? The reason I ask is b/c I hate parting my hair and was gonna plan on washing it and conditioning it while braided then going one by one and doing the take down and re-braid. The only snag is the henna, so what do you ladies think? Will it work?
 
Wildchild453 said:
Seems like I'm always coming in here with questions but I know you ladies can help me.

I plan on going on a personal braid challenge with my own hair and was wondering if you could henna your hair while braided? The reason I ask is b/c I hate parting my hair and was gonna plan on washing it and conditioning it while braided then going one by one and doing the take down and re-braid. The only snag is the henna, so what do you ladies think? Will it work?

Although I don't think it would be harmful, I do think it would be stinky. Henna smells funky and takes a while to rinse out. I'd be worried your hair would stink from the leaves and stems leftover by the henna. Instead of henna you could do an amla tea rinse. I just braided my hair yesterday and I've already done one rinse. There's no stuff to rinse, it's odorless, and conditions as well as henna.
 
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I totally agree with you Sareca. The henna can be hard to rinse out on lose hair, in braids I think it would be impossible. You'd have a better chance doing a henna glossing but I think the tea would be the BEST bet while you're braided. :yep:

@ WomanlyCharm: Sounds good girlie!!! You're gonna like it!!! :lol:
 
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