Successful henna removal. Yes, you are reading this correctly.

[CrisDee]

STUPID COMPUTER! I thought my original post didn't go through, it timed out before it showed it posted. Oh well, I re-typed it, see below.

[CrisDee]

Hi all, and thanks SO much for posting all this fabulous info! I've been AWOL from LHC for a bit, life gets in the way sometimes, but came back to poke around and find out if anyone had yet found a way to remove henna without too much damage. It took me a while to find this thread, but find it I did, and I'm SO glad!

I've been a henna user for about 3 years now. Had originally put it over chemical dye; had one of "those" moments of insanity and hacked off my BSL hair into a pixie. Kept the pixie for about six months, til all the chemically dyed hair was grown out and cut off, then began the tortuous process of growing out the pixie in 9/09. It finally reached APL at the beginning of this year, at which time I made the decision that this lovely, shiny henna'd hair doesn't really "match" my almost 54-year-old face (oh if ONLY I'd found henna 20 years ago, I could have enjoyed it for so much longer!). So I decided to begin the tortuous process of growing out henna - but then I began to worry about two-toned hair not looking very professional for work. Hence my happening upon this thread - yay!

So my now APL hair has 3 years of roots-only henna applications, which invariably leeched down the length to some degree. So many layers of henna to remove. If I've understood what I've read in this thread (and I did read the entire 44 pages!), I guess my hair is most like RocketDog's - many layers of henna, but my natural color is light brown streaked with gray. At least I think it is - haven't seen my natural color since the Reagan years, I chemically dyed it red for 20 years before discovering henna. So I am guessing that my result will be similar to RocketDog's - ColorOops won't pull it all out, but perhaps enough that the demarcation line as it grows out won't be too awful at work.

I bought a box of ES ColorOops just now at Walgreen's, it was the only box they had left. I plan to try to be at least a little bit functional around the house for the remainder of the morning, then spend my afternoon on the couch with the goop and a heating pad on my head. My plan is to do the entire 3 hours, then the full 30 minutes of rinsing, with a few shampoos in the rinsing process. Will try to take before/after photos and post results - hey, if it totally FUBARs my hair, I know I can always re-grow a pixie!

[Anywhere]

Hi all, and thanks SO much for posting all this fabulous info! I've been AWOL from LHC for a bit, life gets in the way sometimes, but came back to poke around and find out if anyone had yet found a way to remove henna without too much damage. It took me a while to find this thread, but find it I did, and I'm SO glad!

I've been a henna user for about 3 years now. Had originally put it over chemical dye; had one of "those" moments of insanity and hacked off my BSL hair into a pixie. Kept the pixie for about six months, til all the chemically dyed hair was grown out and cut off, then began the tortuous process of growing out the pixie in 9/09. It finally reached APL at the beginning of this year, at which time I made the decision that this lovely, shiny henna'd hair doesn't really "match" my almost 54-year-old face (oh if ONLY I'd found henna 20 years ago, I could have enjoyed it for so much longer!). So I decided to begin the tortuous process of growing out henna - but then I began to worry about two-toned hair not looking very professional for work. Hence my happening upon this thread - yay!

So my now APL hair has 3 years of roots-only henna applications, which invariably leeched down the length to some degree. So many layers of henna to remove. If I've understood what I've read in this thread (and I did read the entire 44 pages!), I guess my hair is most like RocketDog's - many layers of henna, but my natural color is light brown streaked with gray. At least I think it is - haven't seen my natural color since the Reagan years, I chemically dyed it red for 20 years before discovering henna. So I am guessing that my result will be similar to RocketDog's - ColorOops won't pull it all out, but perhaps enough that the demarcation line as it grows out won't be too awful at work.

I bought a box of ES ColorOops just now at Walgreen's, it was the only box they had left. I plan to try to be at least a little bit functional around the house for the remainder of the morning, then spend my afternoon on the couch with the goop and a heating pad on my head. My plan is to do the entire 3 hours, then the full 30 minutes of rinsing, with a few shampoos in the rinsing process. Will try to take before/after photos and post results - hey, if it totally FUBARs my hair, I know I can always re-grow a pixie!

Try to take pictures in different lighting too, for the before/afters.

And welcome back from your hiatus!

[Anywhere]

Well. I'm impatient. I don't want to wait a week to see the possible re-oxidation before posting pics.

Here's my ends, one is after this last oopsing, and the bottom is the cut off ends that had experienced 2 of the oops treatments:



This last time I shampooed the day before and hardly conditioned. Then I used heat for like 5 minutes with a blow dryer, left on 2 hours, and probably shampooed 25 times. I used up half a bottle of shampoo.
The water started to cool off 15 minutes into the rinsing [darn you, solar heating! ], so I turned it off, lathered up a thick lather of 'poo, and put the shower cap back on and wandered about the house for 10 minutes. I was hoping leaving the poo on would help remove some of the oops, and, in theory, soak out the smell. (it still smelt after rinsing that out, and shampooing once more, but this morning it doesn't smell egg-y at all, just chemicall-y and a bit shampoo-y, like when I used to chem. dye my hair). Rinsed for another 15 minutes, then the water got cold again. Conditioned, rinsed out, and bam. Done.


Here's the "final" result, before oops, and after 3 treatments:


I really hope it doesn't re-oxidize. I am comfortable with this color.

[CrisDee]

WOW, Anywhere, you got great results!!

But if I remember correctly (and I may not, sorry!), you only had henna glosses, correct? When I did my henna treatments, I left my 60/40 cassia/henna mix on for at least 5 hours at a time, preferably all night! I dunno if I'm gonna see that fabulous a result - but here's hoping!

[Anywhere]

WOW, Anywhere, you got great results!!

But if I remember correctly (and I may not, sorry!), you only had henna glosses, correct? When I did my henna treatments, I left my 60/40 cassia/henna mix on for at least 5 hours at a time, preferably all night! I dunno if I'm gonna see that fabulous a result - but here's hoping!

Yep. All I did were glosses (praise the Gods. I've been trying to grow out roots since I was like 15. I just never learn. )

and IIRC, Mairéad did a full strength henna, and some glosses, and she got her natural color back. Here's to hoping you get results that you want.

[Seeshami]

I think I may have finally kicked my henna to the curb. Of course I didn't use oops I used a medium ash brown, because my hair is dark ash blond and did a little mad scientist experiment with the hair dye.

Needed for the project:
One big bowl
one box of evil hair dye a shade or two darker then what you are. I promise it makes sense later.
One big bottle of the very best conditioner that your hair absolutely loooooves.
And I used a purple toner but I dunno if it was needed.

Then mix in the big bowl. The mixture should be 75% to 80% conditioner and the remaining is the hair dye. I also threw in the conditioner that comes with the dye for extra mad science. And doubled the amount of purpler toner recommended I used ardells.


The first time I did this I use the box dye that was the color closest to my hair color and I got some change, really great conditioning but very minimal change. I also let it sit only for the 30 minutes recommended on the box of dye.

Second time around one day later bawahahaha, like I said MAD science probably a little more insanity then science, I mixed it exactly the same but with a darker dye and doubled the time a magically it worked. I still have a few red tones but I think it's the dye and they are washing out and my hair looks much less red.

Picture time yes!

My virgin hair, picture courtesy of muffin's secret stash.


Henna at it's one step from the darkest that I went. Also courtesy of Muffin's secret stash.


A few random stages between with the strawberry of never going away.


and BUM BUM BUUUUUUUN: After the dye experiment with new hair sticks and the sockless sock bun.

I am in bad light in both of these but I think it shows well enough. I could also be insane.

[Mirsha]

wow Seeshami, it does look like the red's out.

My natural hair colour looks a lot like yours, and I'm willing to experiment on the henna'd part of my hair. When I find the courage (and purple toner) I'm going to try what you did!

Which colour/brand of hair dye did you use?

[Seeshami]

Let me go get the boxes and blah blah.


Alrighty, my favorite conditioner that makes the naughty mess and happy naughty mess is Dove Damage therapy intensive repair. Target had a sale for the big bottle you also got a free tube of the daily conditioner from the Damage therapy line free So I was tickled.

L'oreal Paris 6A Light Ash brown. Ooops I lied in the old post I though I grabbed medium. Oh well. Also from good old Target.

And Ardell Red gold corrector plus from Amazon.

[Mirsha]

Thank you Seeshami!

And yay for Muffin keeping around pictures to compare. :P