I used this a while back to color my hair and was curious if anyone else has done this?
We have the stinking things all over our yard, and i originally started using them to dye paper and read something about it could be used for a semi permeant dye. It did in fact last about 1-2 weeks
but noticed after a while to me, there was a wax like build up so i stop using it. Has anyone used this method regularly? i love the the curl it brought out in my hair and the color was amazing.

The toxicity of walnut aside (which should be something you look into), yes you can do it. :)

You can get some over at henna for hair (http://www.mehandi.com/shop/walnut/), and I've run a few strand test on mohiar (plain white goat's hair). I got the best color results when it was simmered with amla for awhile and then left to soak on the mohair.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f80/SaliceMalkin/WalnutTests.jpg

In the tests above the walnut was just walnut and warm water made into a paste, the walnut amla mix was the same (and I can't find the damn ratio anywhere yet).

The two simmered samples were mixed with water and simmered, with distilled water added to keep it from burning. After an hour or so I let it evaporate down to a more concentrated thick sludge and then applied it to the mohair.

I am interested! We have walnut trees everywhere here. What part of the walnut do you use?

wear gloves ,old clothes ,this will stain almost anything the dye touches

i go for the black rotten gooshy looking ones and the semi green ones, bust them up with a hammer and put in a pot of water ( don't know the amount i used about 6 and made a good sized batch) brought to a boil for about 5 mins and then let simmer on a low heat for about a hour, stirring regularly. i then used a fine mesh strainer and let all the sediment settle at the bottom, i used a ladle to get the dye and put in a pitcher then i slowly poured it over my hair letting it soak in real good,i believe i did it about 2 or 3 times. then i left it on a let it in with a baggie on my head for about 1hr, then rinse. i believe i used conditioners afterwards as my hair felt 'different'.

now when i last did this my hair was extremely damaged (melted together in some areas) an i was trying to cover up a botched dye job( i ended up cutting off all my hair anyway) so maybe that contributed to the 'different feeling' and the 'waxy texture 'i received after long term use
they are out of season here so i can't try this again on my virgin growth

here is a picture of what they look like green you need the blackend ones
http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/3258/juglansnigrarmiyb1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Sounds kinda messy! Does it stain your face/ears? If so, how do you prevent that?

Thank you!

While I cannot contribute with regard to hair dye processes, I
can attest to the staining power of black walnuts.

I made the mistake years ago of trying to process black walnuts
with my bare hands. As a result, my hands were stained terribly.
Try explaining what appear to be filthy hands with grimy nails
to your son's grade school teacher during a PTA meeting.

:eek:

Moral of the story. No matter what you are staining, wear gloves.
Good gloves.

Karen Marie :)

i supose you could use vasoline around the hair line, me personally i had some dribbles but if you wipe them off your skin real quick i don't think it was that bad, its like any dye i suppose you let it sit awhile an it will stain .

Black Walnut shell powder works well mixed with henna. I just hennaed my hair yesterday with black walnut shell powder, indigo, henna and strong hot coffee/tea.
3 tbsp of black walnut shell powder
1 cup henna
1 cup strong coffee/tea
1 tbsp lemon juice
Mix that together in iron pan and let it sit over night.
Ten minutes before ready to henna:
1 cup indigo
1 cup water
Mix well, then add to henna mixture.
Left on for 3 hours and I have VERY dark almost black hair.
Looks great - no pictures yet :(

I've also heard that black walnuts work well to dye hair, but I've also heard that a lot of people are allergic to them. You should probably do a patch test first before putting it on your whole head.

I've also heard that black walnuts work well to dye hair, but I've also heard that a lot of people are allergic to them. You should probably do a patch test first before putting it on your whole head.

Yep, it's important to do that with any type of natural dye that you use :)