henna during the seventies

[Isilme]

I went to a dance performance yesterday evening and got a hair compliment from a women I sat with. We went out during a break to have some fresh air and she complimented me on my haircolour, thanks, it's henna. I said. She said that she regognized the colour because she grew up during the seventies when everyone hennaed their hair. It got me thinking, how did the henna look like then? Was it the orange shade, or the purplish burgundy one gets after many applications? Was it very common, was the henna pure, where did one get it, etc. Please tell me a little bit of hair history those of you who were there during that time!

Oh, and the dance was great, it was belly dance with my teacher and some of her long term students. We had an oriental buffet too. I had an amazing evening!

[Eireann]

I used to henna my hair in the early 80s. As I recall it was a greenish powder that I mixed with water and it smelled like grass clippings. The color was pretty natural looking, I think. I have dark brown hair, so the red on top of it made it look like a pretty natural auburn color. People were usually surprised to hear it wasn't my natural color. I stopped because it dried out my hair too much, and when I started going grey, the greys would be bright orange!

[Kuchen]

Look for a short story by Angela Carter called The Quilt Maker

[Dulci]

:raises hand: I hennaed my hair once in the 70s for Halloween. I used Nestle's Cleopatra brand henna, it came in a tin canister. Like Eireann said, it was a greenish powder that you mixed and applied. I bought mine in an old drugstore, the shoulders of the canister were dusty, so probably not the freshest stuff LOL. My hair turned out Bozo Orange, not a good look for me. Fortunately I was 18 and it didn't matter much.

[CopperHead]

I think that was the same one I used, Dulci. I did a red and then a brown. The brown was horrible and dried in my hair. It looked like I had dog poop in my hair. My mother had to help me brush it out.

[FrannyG]

I don't recall a single person IRL with henna back then. Not one. In the mid-80s my sister-in-law started using henna. It was a lovely shade, much like a natural auburn, and it really lit up in the sun. I know for a fact though, that it was not BAQ henna.

[ktani]

I knew this woman with the most incredible long shiny silky hair who hennaed.

Although how much henna she used I do not know.

Her hair was not the colours I see here - it was more of a chestnut reddish colour.

She made her henna with herbal tea - she gave me the recipe - it is buried somewhere in my belongings - I did keep it.

I have no clue though where to look for it offhand.

Her hair was long, and very beautiful.

ETA: Your thread must be fate - I just found her recipe - I looked for it on the off chance it was where I thought it might be.

Ok - here it is - as I wrote it down - all those years ago - while she verbally gave it to me.

A Wash hair first

B Ingredients

4 oz henna
2 tea bags
1 tsp rosemary

C Method

Make a pot of tea.
Add rosmary
Put henna in china bowl
Strain tea and rosemary into henna
Stir with wooden spoon until consistency of hot yoghurt

D Application

Work thoroughly into hair, segment by segment N.B. especially the roots
Leave on the hair 1 1/2 to 3 hours
Rinse extremely thoroughly then shampoo and rinse

[Riot Crrl]

I knew this woman with the most incredible long shiny silky hair who hennaed.

Although how much henna she used I do not know.

Her hair was not the colours I see here - it was more of a chestnut reddish colour.

She made her henna with herbal tea - she gave me the recipe - it is buried somewhere in my belongings - I did keep it.

I have no clue though where to look for it offhand.

Her hair was long, and very beautiful.

Possibly her starting color was dark. Also, there seem to be photography issues with henna. I swear my hair does not look that strange under indoor lighting conditions, but I can only photograph it in the sun or else indoors with flash. With flash especially it looks like a bike reflector.

Edit: ah now the recipe is here. That looks not too different from recipes many of us are using today. I don't know if I have heard of many people using the rosemary in their mix, though.

[ktani]

Riot Crrl

That is why I kept it - I thought that the recipe was so unusual.

I do not henna - I never did - but I collect unusual things - not that unusual, lol.

[Isilme]

it's lovely to read all the stories about hennaing! I guess most brand weren't very pure then. I asked my mother but she said that not a single girl in her tiny town coloured their hair, and she was the odd one who did her eyebrows and lashes, lol.
I don't think she has seen many hennaheads IRL.