Coffee

[peachy.pudding]

I know about coffey rinses, but does anyone use coffey mixed in with conditioner for a deep treament to slightly darken the hair. I remember Nightshade did a coffey experiment which showed firbers darkening.

Can coffey be permanant in depositing colour on the hair shaft?

[ktani]

I have read that coffee rinses have darkened some people's hair - it did not cover grey or do much for a friend of mine except be drying.

kathrynrose reported in the old Honey thread that a thick coffee paste actually lightened her hair - it was not mixed with honey - and was very drying - coffee contains peroxide itself.

While coffee does contain peroxide but it can still impart some colour just as some tomato products can (tomatoes contain hydrogen peroxide too). It is not a permanent dye.

Here is something I had saved on coffee dye (http://www.ineedcoffee.com/03/dye/print.asp) - with pictures.

I have not heard about anyone mixing it with conditioner.

[ktani]

Here is an article on the natural chemicals in foods - confirming that hydrogen peroxide is found in both tomatoes and coffee.
http://www.acsh.org/publications/pub...pub_detail.asp (http://www.acsh.org/publications/pubID.103/pub_detail.asp)

[ktani]

This dyer (http://barbararochester.blogspot.com/2007/10/all-new-coffee-yarn.html)got dark brown with coffee on wool - scroll down page.

Onion skins dye wool too but do not dye hair well.

[Celebrian]

That was an interesting article Ktani. Very strong uptake on wool... I wonder how durable?

Certainly Lush use coffee grains in some of their henna bars to assist a darkening, deepening or browning process.

[ktani]

Celebrian

From the first dyers report - coffe dye fades - alum should never be used on hair or skin IMO - it is toxic - vinegar helps to make the dye more colour fast and would be an option but again - there is the dryness factor.

Onion skins - yellow/red in colour can yield a medium brown dye on wool but repeated tests did not yield the same colour on hair.

The dyer who got the deeper brown on wool does not share how she got the colour that I can see - and was not successful in getting anything close to that on cotton.

In the first article - it is mentioned that the fabric should be oil free - that could be a huge problem with hair.

Still - depending on the hair colour - there is some darkening with coffee.

Personally - I would go with molasses.

Blueneko had success with her molasses recipe here with picture
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=163

I inadvertently got someone in the above thread to think molasses was risky - I corrected that, I hope.

[Nightshade]

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f80/SaliceMalkin/HerbalTestStrands2.jpg

Yep, staining on coffee :) I just simmered it on the stovetop for about two hours and then strained it. The only concern is that the acid and such may be drying on hair.

[ktani]

That strand test was on pre-washed wool though, not human hair, wasn't it Nightshade?

Coffee like onion skins dyes wool - no problem - it is on human hair and certain fabrics and fabric with oil - like cotton that has been worn, where it gets challenging from what I have read and my friend experienced on her hair.

"Once the fabric has come into contact with body oils, it will not accept the dye evenly."
http://www.ineedcoffee.com/03/dye/print.asp

[ktani]

Onion skin dyed wool - the one on the left is without a mordant - the one on the right - with.

So - the key to some natural dyes taking on human hair may be body oils - even if hair were washed - or clarified - it may not be enough - you would not want to strip hair of all oils before dying it, IMO.

This colour on the left did not translate to human hair.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u9/ktanimara/oniondye-2.jpg

[ktani]

This is quite interesting IMO.

Catnip does not stain over conditioner - I use it on freshly washed hair - I do not use conditioner - and my shampoo contains silicone - the shampoo has never built-up on my hair though - and the catnip covers my grey/white.

It would appear that not all natural dyes are equal by any means.

[ktani]

The pH of coffee averages around 5 based on this
http://www.coffeereview.com/article.cfm?ID=9

and this
http://www.gardfoods.com/coffee/coffee.hydro.htm

There is some variation with beans and roasts.

[Nightshade]

That strand test was on pre-washed wool though, not human hair, wasn't it Nightshade?

Correct, I was using mohair that I'd washed, but not conditioned :)

[ktani]

My friend had made a very strong coffee rinse and used it on her freshly washed, unconditioned, virgin dark brown hair. The rinse was left on about 15 minutes and rinsed out. She conditioned afterward.

Her grey/white was unaffected and her colour was too.

The only result reported was dryness.

[ktani]

I have had some conditioners, when I experimented way back, remove some catnip colour when applied following a rinse - but not all of the colour.

Conditioners that did that were a lower pH around 4.5, those designed for hair that is colour-treated - conditioners with a higher pH - around 5.5 did not - those not designed for colour-treated hair - catnip is around pH 6.

My friend does not use conditioners designed for colour-treated hair.

[ktani]

I found one report on the net for a coffee gloss - See last answer. It needs to be done repeatedly, supposedly.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080218143829AA6Dlt3

Interestingly enough, scientists got intrigued with coffee rings.
http://chronicle.uchicago.edu/971023/coffee.shtml

And did research on the mechanisms involved in coffee ring formation.
http://mrsec.uchicago.edu/research/nuggets/coffee/

So - the build up of the stain may have something to do with the solids in coffee being deposited on hair over time - if the gloss works.

[Eirinn]

I've made a coffee treatment and my hair was not only beautiful but also dark brown shade was deeper and with some kind of highlights:) The recipee is here --> http://www.longhairloom.com/haircarerecipes.html#C plus I've added few drops of sweet almond oil. Enjoy, I recommend it!

[TheHippieChick]

I mix instant coffe with conditioner. It works really great as a matter of fact. BUT you have to like the smell...which I do! I like to add vanilla EO with it. It lasts for quite a while and is easy to reapply.

[Xandergrammy]

I did a coffee rinse twice a week for several months and all I got (that I or my DH could see) was hair that was more dried out.

[ktani]

Well, the glosses seem to be the way to go.

It could be that the conditioner being acidic, aids in the stain or the coffe solids adhere better mixed with conditioner - and you can avoid the dryness problem - fascinating!

Also fascinating that instant coffee works so well. I have read about rinses - that it needs to be fresh brewed coffee - that was contradicted somewhere else - my friend used instant.

[Nynaeve]

I have always wondered abotu coffee, because so many people
said that it lightened or dried their hair, but a lot of the "enhancing"
mixtures you find for dark hair are made with coffee... :shrug:

[wintersun99]

Last night I tried adding instant coffee to a yogurt/olive oil mix, for protein pack and color. My hair did seem to be toned down to a slightly browner red, at the roots. I did not notice the dryness that I got with just a coffee rinse. I did end up smelling like coffee, I used decaf so no caffeine absorption through the head. :)

[ktani]

I have given my friend the coffee gloss recipe - I told her 2 tablespoons of coffee - instant being ok to 2 tablespoons of a rich conditioner left on the hair the same time as regular conditioner - she is a minimalist in terms of trying hair recipes - she does not want to try hour long recipes.

I will report back as to her results after she tries it.

[Gaelic Girl]

I've used both coffee and black tea rinses. To be truthful, I don't think the small amount they darkened my hair was worth the dryness due to acidity.

I've used molasses (1Tbsp) in my CO once a week for six months now and although the greys are not covered..sigh....my colour is incredibly dark, rich, luxurious, and so very soft. As it's a humectant, use it with either oil or conditioner. Check out Blueneko's posts for help.

Enjoy!

[Alatariel]

I've used molasses (1Tbsp) in my CO once a week for six months now and although the greys are not covered..sigh....my colour is incredibly dark, rich, luxurious, and so very soft. As it's a humectant, use it with either oil or conditioner. Check out Blueneko's posts for help.

Enjoy!

Does it make a difference whether you use sulphur or unsulphured molasses?

Is it okay to use molasses more than once a week?

Sorry for the hijack!

[ktani]

Alatariel

Blueneko's thread - it has her recipe and there is a post on molasses use.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=163 (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=163)

[Alatariel]

Thanks, Ktani!!

[Gaelic Girl]

Does it make a difference whether you use sulphur or unsulphured molasses?

Is it okay to use molasses more than once a week?

Sorry for the hijack!

Hi Alatariel!

I use "Grandma's Original Molasses, 100% Natural". There's nothing else listed by "fancy molasses", so I can't say if it's sulphured or not. I wouldn't have thought so.:shrug:

Good luck with it. I hope it works well for you, and please let us know. :)

GG

[jesamyn]

I actually like coffee as an occasional alternative to a vinegar rinse. I follow with conditioner, just like I do for vinegar. I don't think it's permanent, but I think it imparts a nice, rich glow to my hair.

[Elenna]

I am trying to cover my silvers. I experimented with coffee on my left side and sage tea on my right side. Sage (I think) needs repeated applications since there was no noticable coverage. The coffee actually stained a bit more, but I think it would need repeated applications.

Maybe, I could mix coffee with catnip to get more staying on my silvers.

Molasses apparently doesn't cover silvers either.

[tabitie]

Thanks for the photos on onion skin wool/hair, ktani.

I had found an article on the internet that said you could dye easter eggs with onion skin and vinegar:

http://homeofthefuture.blogspot.com/2007/04/onion-skin-dyed-easter-eggs.html

[tabitie]

Wintersun, thank you for test driving this. I'll try it next time. I'll try anything!

[ktani]

You are most welcome except that in the dye thread I had last year, it did not work on hair, http://archive.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=59094

[RocketDog]

Has anyone ever tried using cold-brewed coffee as a hair treatment? Cold-brewed takes longer to prepare, but it is much less acidic that perked or stovetop-brewed coffee.

[steph in tx]

I didn't even know you could cold-brew coffee. I don't drink it, so I don't know much about its preparation. I did use a coffee rinse yesterday and I can say that I noticed some dryness. I didn't try the gloss yet. Honestly, I wasn't pleased with my hair having coffee breath. LOL Now that I bought regular coffee for this purpose, I read here that I can use instant. That would have been better, I think. How would I use the regular coffee as a gloss? Would I just brew some extremely strong coffee (like a small amount of water to a lot of coffee) and add it to the conditioner? I'm not sure I even want to do this again, but I do like experimenting, so I probably will.

[BaDaBing]

Hey ya'll :D
I am cheap...:D
I brew my coffee in a French Press and my hubby and I each have one cup...its a 3 cup press, so the next morning, I use the day old coffee as my rinse. It's yummy if I add soome vanilla oil to it. My husband says it smells great and it has covered my greys and the stupid highlights I let the woman put in :D yay! My mom swears by it and has used coffee to darken her hair for years.
Instant Coffee....iiiiick. IMO of course! Instant coffee is nothing but chemicals. Its freeze dried coffee with chemical additives as a preservative...not in my hair. It also smells like rancid armpits...lol...again in my own opinion of course! :D
One thing I have noticed is that I try to keep the coffee of my scalp, it will color it and the acidity also can dry out your hair AND scalp. But its fun...and cheap! :D