I just thought I'd post my henna experience. I really had no idea I would like this stuff right off the bat. Although messy, it wasn’t any worse than when I apply rinses…and truthfully it was easier to wipe away stains than rinses.
Here’s the mix that I used:
100 grams of Dulhan Henna
About 3 table spoons of Hesh Amla Powder
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Coconut Oil
Less than 1 tspn of ACV
Kama Sutra Black Chai Tea
Hot Water
First, I combined the Henna & Amla in a bowl, with enough hot water to form a thick paste about the consistency of frosting. Then, I cheated and put my henna in the oven at about 180 degrees (thanks SohoHair), mixing every 10 minutes or so for about 2 hours. After the first hour, I started to see some brown coming in, so I added the EVOO, coconut oil, and ACV. At the end of the two hours, I added the Chai Tea because I was freakin out about all the green I was seeing. Note: it will look dark green to brown but don’t worry about that—I checked out some other fotki’s and instructions and found that the hints of green (even after color release) are relatively normal.
The next thing I did was the strand test. This is where I really saw what everyone was talking about. I’ve been harvesting hair since November trying to gear up for this, so I had plenty to test
. So I completely submerged my hair in some henna, covered it, rubbed it together, and let it sit for a little over an hour. Then I rinsed the hair off, and immediately I saw a brighter shade. I pulled on the hair and it was extremely strong. I was pulling really hard before I actually snapped the strands. When I went to pull on the hair that didn’t have henna, it was much easier to break! From there, I was sold.
Still a little paranoid, I added sunsilk conditioner to my mixture. Then, I applied the henna in sections, starting with my nape. I just kept parting across (going up) and applied a glob of henna down the length of my hair. Then I used a color brush to make sure my roots were completely saturated. Within about 20 minutes, I was finished applying and went under the dryer for 45 minutes.
Rinsing was so much better than I thought. I rinsed under the shower for about 5 minutes, then I applied conditioner to may hair to help. I did this 2x, then went onto my regular shampoo/deep conditioner routine. Now, I’m a little over 5 months post relaxer and I had no tangling issues (I was afraid that I would have some). Later, I had my hair rollerset and the roots blown out. I have some pics in my fotki, but I used a garbage disposable camera and they didn’t come out so well. I’ll try to use my sister’s digital cam next time.
I’m usually the last one to jump on bandwagons but this one was definitely worth it! I lurvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvve henna
. In case anyone is slacking on taking the henna plunge…don’t hesitate. I'm going to do another treatment tomorrow.
Thanks to:
Sareca – for helping start the trend, having a fabulous fotki and henna FAQ, and for shooting me the tips on detangling carefully during a long stretch
My Dulhan Henna Girls – SohoHair, Mestiza, and Tenderheaded! Thanks for all the tips about color release and for basically giving me some courage to try it. Ya'll were quick too!
Victorious & Jlove84 – for having such detailed fotkis, so I knew exactly what to do and expect!
I want to add that I haven't colored my hair before my recent henna. My info regarding your question comes from reading through all of the henna threads, including this long one and the one more than twice as long on LHC (whew, almost 3,800 posts!) plus the www.hennaforhair.com site. Many ladies have successfully used BAQ henna after coloring with a commercial product and used a commercial product on top of BAQ henna.
. I am applying my Henna & Indigo treatments (separately right after each other) every two weeks.
!
