Do you let your henna sit for dye release?

[Fluffy01]

I've read mixed reviews about dye release. Some say they let theirs sit a few hours, some none, and some 24 hrs!
What's a henna head to do?

[lapushka]

I never waited for dye release. I had about 200grams for my between APL-BSL length hair at the time, and added boiling hot water to it, and a squirt of lemon juice mostly (sometimes not). The powder would make it cooler and almost as good to slap on straight away. By the time it took to prepare the bathroom (garbage bags on floor & in sink, underneath my bowl), it was hot enough for my head.

No, I never used to wait for dye release, and I only kept it on for 30 min. as well. I always got great color payoff, and it was a pain in the booty to get rid of, even for just that half hour.

[ephemeri]

I let it sit for one hour (just enough to get it to start releasing dye) and then I put it in the freezer overnight. You can apparently leave it in the freezer indefinitely but if it freezes, it will dye release. It works really well!

[Obsidian]

I think it really depends on the henna. I was using BAQ jamilia and it would dye release within a hour or so but then I accidentally bought hair quality jamilia and it needs around 12 hours or more to properly dye release.
Since it does take so long, I mix up a whole box (100 grams) before I need it and freeze it. That way I only have to wait a hour or so for it to thaw.

[reilly0167]

I mix my henna with warm hibiscus tea let sit for about 5 hours then freeze. Freezing the henna helps with more dye release.

[nekosan]

Another who freezes henna, both for storage and dye release. I usually let it sit 6-12 hours pre-freeze; I've been using henna from mehandi.com. I've also heard that different hennas take different amounts of time to dye release.

[Chromis]

I used to let it sit out for hours and keep it on my head for hours, but then after reading that many just put it on right away, I gave that a go. Colour was same as before and henna was a lot less hassle!

[Rowanoake]

it depends on the henna, like someone else said. Most of the time, i haven't let mine sit. i've used the Lush henna, hennaLab, and an indian-brand henna powder whose label my friend could read. The only time i've ever let it 'sit' was when i'd added something else to the dye, like lemon juice. And it didn't seem to make much difference in the result.
The most noticeable difference between my henna experiences was that the Lush henna dried out my hair, despite the fact that it came in coconut oil in the formula.

[Impulsive]

I usually let it sit for about an hour and then freeze it. I make big batches that I separate into smaller batches for freezing so that I can defrost as needed. I've always gotten great stain, even with bags that have been in the freezer 6+ months. I've done this with jamilla, red raj, yemeni, and rajasthani.

[pandabarrier]

I've only done henna gloss, by either adding coconut milk or conditioner, or mixing with cassia. I mix Nupur henna with warm tea and use it right away, no wait on dye release. I'm so slow in my henna application that I still get some stain.

[Anje]

Maybe for an hour, maybe less, depending on my mood. I tend to use Rajasthani and hot water though, both of which give quick dye release. Slap it on, freeze the extra.

[TatsuOni]

For 12 hours or more. I prepare it before going to bet and put it in my hair after breakfast the day after.

[school of fish]

After years of doing henna the hard way, I've finally discovered the freezing method and my life is so much better now ;)

I used to make up my henna in the morning, apply it in the evening and sleep with it in. Not only because was it always a bad night's sleep, but I would stress if I hadn't made up my henna early enough in the day to allow for what I believed was adequate dye release. I seemed to think that I had to hit a sweet spot between time and temperature, and that if I missed it in either direction then my dye uptake would be weak.

Now that I'm older and wiser, I make up my henna whenever I bloody well feel like and chuck it immediately in the freezer. Dye release happens on its own in there. I leave the frozen henna on the counter to thaw the night before I want to use it and refreeze the leftovers. I only henna my roots now, and only for about 1-1/2hrs at a time - so each batch has leftovers that go through about 6 freeze/thaw cycles and no problems.

On top of that, on many occasions I've even thawed a batch and not gotten around to applying it, so some batches have been subjected to superfluous thaws/freezes, sometimes multiple times over - it all still dyes equally well :)

Life is so much better now that I don't fuss over my henna... :p

[rouxlala]

The henna I buy came with mixing instructions and doesn't say anything about waiting for the dye to release. :O

[rouxlala]

Oh, and I use Henna Maiden's Wine Red, which is 100% chemical free and has nothing but plant powders in it.

[Siv]

I've heard somewhere it's supposed to differ between brands. Some release after 1 hour, some 12 or 24. My henna was gods-know-what that came from the local Middle Eastern store with google-translated instructions that did not include dye release times. I think, that I managed to peg it as Persian after googling the random text on the baggy it came in and ending up with the name of a tiny Iranian village :p It releases roughly after 12 hours (I just left it overnight on a weekend, and while I'm not sure on the exact time, I tend to sleep a lot when I'm off to make up for gruelling work shifts ;) ). A full application made my test strands bright orange (light blonde base) and the henna gloss I did gave me a lovely light strawberry colour (that even fooled a real redhead!!)

[rouxlala]

I've heard somewhere it's supposed to differ between brands. Some release after 1 hour, some 12 or 24. My henna was gods-know-what that came from the local Middle Eastern store with google-translated instructions that did not include dye release times. I think, that I managed to peg it as Persian after googling the random text on the baggy it came in and ending up with the name of a tiny Iranian village :p It releases roughly after 12 hours (I just left it overnight on a weekend, and while I'm not sure on the exact time, I tend to sleep a lot when I'm off to make up for gruelling work shifts ;) ). A full application made my test strands bright orange (light blonde base) and the henna gloss I did gave me a lovely light strawberry colour (that even fooled a real redhead!!)

Yes! Some have chemicals in them, but others (like mine) have other herbs in it to help release dye more quickly. I've yet to do a henna gloss.. may try that next time. Still unclear what the difference between that and a regular henna treatment are. Haven't Googled it yet.

[RedStripe]

For 12 hours or more. I prepare it before going to bet and put it in my hair after breakfast the day after.

Same with me. Although after reading all the comments about not waiting, I may give that a try.

[TatsuOni]

You can use henna without letting it dye release and you can use it after letting it dye release :) I once spilled freshly made henna in my kitchen an let me tell you that it stained my kitchen :laugh:

https://cdn3.cdnme.se/1263465/9-3/1_57001dfae087c37f8525861b.jpg

Also, warm water speeds up the dye release.

I let mine release over night because I started doing it that way before learning than you can use it at once and continued to do so, because it saves me time on the day that I actually dye it. I can just get up and put the henna in. Doing the two step process with henna and indigo takes the entire day anyway :p

[rouxlala]

You can use henna without letting it dye release and you can use it after letting it dye release :) I once spilled freshly made henna in my kitchen an let me tell you that it stained my kitchen :laugh:

https://cdn3.cdnme.se/1263465/9-3/1_57001dfae087c37f8525861b.jpg

Also, warm water speeds up the dye release.

I let mine release over night because I started doing it that way before learning than you can use it at once and continued to do so, because it saves me time on the day that I actually dye it. I can just get up and put the henna in. Doing the two step process with henna and indigo takes the entire day anyway :p

Oh, no! hahaha

[Nymphaea]

When i dyed my hair with henna i always slept with it overnight.
Smeared the paste in my hair, wraped it and then put a showercap over it.
Next morning washed it out.
I dyed my friends hair (medium brow) a couple of times with henna one most of the times she let it sit for 2 hours, it got pretty red but she wanted a deeper shade.
So the next time we let it sit in for 4 hours and she got a much more deeper and vibrant red color.

[TatsuOni]

Oh, no! hahaha

My boyfriend managed to remove the stains you see in the picture, but the seeling is forever stained :laugh:

[Lisa Long4Life]

I've made it with warmer water and used it more quickly, but this time I made it with cool water and let it sit for about 5-6 hours. It was a henna/hibiscus/indigo mix (indigo added later) so I only left it on for about 2 hours.

[MotherofJames]

When I did it, I waited 8 hours and the kind I had was pure from the Indian store, as well as Alma and milk mixed in, with a little bit of coconut milk too. When I used American henna and only waited an hour or so, my hair was dry and I had a bad experience. When I watched the Indian YouTube tutorials on this, I followed it to a T and my hair came out beautiful . Her name is Shruti, here's her henna link https://youtu.be/z_IGWNP--zY
By that's just my experience . I think everyone's is different

[reilly0167]

When I did it, I waited 8 hours and the kind I had was pure from the Indian store, as well as Alma and milk mixed in, with a little bit of coconut milk too. When I used American henna and only waited an hour or so, my hair was dry and I had a bad experience. When I watched the Indian YouTube tutorials on this, I followed it to a T and my hair came out beautiful . Her name is Shruti, here's her henna link https://youtu.be/z_IGWNP--zY
By that's just my experience . I think everyone's is different
Shes the first I learned from and the way its applied.

[MotherofJames]

Shes the first I learned from and the way its applied.

I love her methods! <3

[KittyBird]

I don't henna anymore, but when I did, I didn't let it dye release for long. I just mixed it with hot water from the tap until it was quite thick but lump-free, let it sit while I sectioned my hair and put my gloves on, then I mixed in some cone-free conditioner to make it slightly thinner and less drying. At most, it got to dye release for about 10 minutes before applying. I only kept it on my head for one to two hours, because it was always very heavy and uncomfortable. I got a lovely vibrant red colour from this method. :)

While typing this out, I realized that I actually kind of miss the henna process and having that gorgeous red hair. I will not go back though! I'm so close to having virgin hair for the first time in 14 years :o :p