There is a salon up the street from where I live that specializes in henna. Call me the luckiest girl in the world because the thought of giving somebody 10 bucks to do all the work really appeals to me. My first henna* was done by them, I have done a few glosses after that which for me is a lot easier than a full blown henna* treatment.
What I love about henna is how it makes my hair feel, I always say I have the finest hair on the planet so I search for strengthening agents as much as I can to give my strand some backbone and so they don’t feel so wimpy all the time.
If you have never henned before this is the post for you, if you are a regular henna head then comment below and tell us about your experience. For our newbies we thought it would be great to give you a step guide, start to finish on how to henna your natural hair successfully, so keep reading.
Step one – The Purchase
The first step involves deciding what you want to use the henna for and making the purchase. Some of us just want a healthy alternative to coloring grays especially the ones that grow in the most disrespectful of places. For others we use henna as a natural hair strengthener and just benefit from the fact that our hair gets that lovely ‘henna glow’ in the sun.
Either way, make the purchase and make sure that you are buying body art quality henna, which is the purest form of henna. As always there are some unscrupulous people out there who mix henna with toxic metals and salts that aren’t good for your skin and certainly aren’t good for your hair.
The best place to find henna is at your local Indian grocery store or you can always order it online. While at the store you might just come across other Ayurvedic powders that might peek your interest as well, but before we go off on a tangent lets move on to Step Two
Step Two – Prepare the mix
When you mix your dye you need something acidic or at a pH level of about 5.5 to allow for maximum dye release. It is recommended that you use lemon juice, but some have used freshly brewed green tea or even plain water.
Whatever you use, just ensure to test your mix for the proper pH if you are not sure so that you get what you want out of your mix. The point is you want your hair to be a rich dark color rather than a bright orangey color, the richer the color the better the strengthening benefits.
For the best Henna & advice on application head to your Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics store. We are Henna experts.
What are some uber–moisturizing condish I can use? Last time I hennaed my hair it was so dry! I used Shea Moisture mask but my hair was still dry. Or is there a condish I can mix up myself? i like the benefits of henna but my hair can not handle the dryness.
I’m a newbie to Henna but I love it! I’ve hennaed about five times already and I believe that henna has helped my hair grow or retain length. I haven’t seen the reddish tint but I found out that The Amla Oil I use may cancel out the reddish tint from the henna. I want the reddish tint so I will stop using Amla as a prepoo and use coconut oil. One day my husband thought I left our toddler alone in the bathroom. How a henna blob ended up behind the toilet is a mystery to me! So ladies put down that newspaper!
I’ve used henna three times. I love the result, black, black hair. I am confused about henna gloss. Because I won’t be using
Indigo, will my hair turn red? Or should I use indigo again?
I wanna try this
I do it all the time
Often yes. Its cultural for us
Omg am retouching mine right now. N to c that others wants to try I will say go for it
Make sure you guys get the pure one n I get great result when I mix it with squeeze lemon juice
What exactly does it do? I have 4c hair
I love henna!!
I’ve been using henna & indigo to cover my gray & keep my hair its natural jet black since 2010. I order my henna & indigo from mehandi.com or hennaforhair.com They have a forum & will answer all questions & you can also call their phone number & leave a question & they’ll call you back with an answer. They have EXCELLENT body art quality henna & indigo.