Yet again more Henna questions.

[melrose1985]

If this should be in the mane forum please move it. Sorry!


i have blackish end, dark brown in the middle, maybe a dark medium brown roots (roots are about 2" virgin hair). I am so in love with being a "red head" I have been toying this idea around probably since October. Now the reason i never really try is because box red dyes don’t stay and i'm trying to stay away from chemical dyes.

The red head color i wish to be is the natural, copper red head, not fire red. would it be possible to maybe use color oops to lighten up my hair and then use a henna mixture on that to get the red? I have used color oops before and it works pretty well with not to much damage (compared to bleaching). And say if you do think that could work, could i then us a lighten agent on my roots (when they grow in) and henna over that to keep the color?

I have a lot of time at work to think, so if i have over thought this one and would end up make a huge ordeal out of it please let me know!

I really always think about being a red head!

[twilight]

hm, well...

1) getting the old color to remove evenly will not be easy--with those color removers you almost always get multi-leveled results in patches. if you are ok with that, then let's go to #2.

2) as it sounds like you realize, "copper" can only be achieved on mid-dark-brown hair with henna if you lighten first. here again you will have trouble lightening to the same exact shade each time on which to henna... and getting the same exact henna shade isn't particularly easy, either.

i hate to say this but you might have an easier time if you use the color remover to get a roughly even color, then a box red of the color you want, and simply refresh it/make it really permanent via a post-color henna application. then when you need to, you can do your roots with the same dye and henna over it . i think it's the most likely way to get uniform color in the long term... ??

what were you thinking would be the process for lightening the new growth pre-henna each time?

this is of course just my crazy idea, but it's probably how i would do it. :p

[melrose1985]

hm, well...

1) getting the old color to remove evenly will not be easy--with those color removers you almost always get multi-leveled results in patches. if you are ok with that, then let's go to #2.

2) as it sounds like you realize, "copper" can only be achieved on mid-dark-brown hair with henna if you lighten first. here again you will have trouble lightening to the same exact shade each time on which to henna... and getting the same exact henna shade isn't particularly easy, either.

i hate to say this but you might have an easier time if you use the color remover to get a roughly even color, then a box red of the color you want, and simply refresh it/make it really permanent via a post-color henna application. then when you need to, you can do your roots with the same dye and henna over it . i think it's the most likely way to get uniform color in the long term... ??

what were you thinking would be the process for lightening the new growth pre-henna each time?

this is of course just my crazy idea, but it's probably how i would do it. :p
I would actually use the color oops on the roots because in the past it did light the roots of my hair too as well as get the dye out. I know i could use bleach but some reason i just dont want to.

I am letting still roll around in my head. My roots looking at them again after i posted actually look mostly medium brown.

Well say if instead i lighten my hair and then dyed it to match my roots (natural color) and then let be for a bit and used henna all over, would that maybe be better?

[amaiaisabella]

Color Oops definitely works! I left it on my hair and got caught up and forgot to wash it out, so I ended up with platinum streaks! Yikes. I ended up using a temporary color over that, and before it completely washed out (I waited 3 weeks) and did my first henna. I don't use pure henna (the LUSH bars), so my red started out a lighter, brighter red, and has darkened gradually with further applications as you can see in my sig pic. If you want the lighter red, you could just do one application, then root touchups. :)

[melrose1985]

Color Oops definitely works! I left it on my hair and got caught up and forgot to wash it out, so I ended up with platinum streaks! Yikes. I ended up using a temporary color over that, and before it completely washed out (I waited 3 weeks) and did my first henna. I don't use pure henna (the LUSH bars), so my red started out a lighter, brighter red, and has darkened gradually with further applications as you can see in my sig pic. If you want the lighter red, you could just do one application, then root touchups. :)

I'm thinking i should at the very least try to get my hair closer to my natural color. In the end after my year of not cutting i have to cut to get rid of damage i have.

I want to stick to roots after. I like your color too.

[melrose1985]

Okay so i'm bumping this!

I know there are more henna heads here!

So this is the color i wish i could be.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=2690&pictureid=34884

i guess it's not really copper and i wouldnt mind being just a little darker then this.

Looking at my hair again today they end in the light look about the same shade as my roots but have more of a golden tone to it.

If i do decide to lighten up my hair and dye it to my natural color, do i need to use an "ash" color so i dont get any golden tones to my hair?

I think one my hair was an even color i would just do henna over it and keep up with the roots.

Also the picture i have in this post. how would i get that shade of color? mixing or can i buy something already mixed for me?

[Nightshade]

Well, that's sort of close to what I have now:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/image.php?u=5944&dateline=1235883606&type=profile


What's your natural color? Mine is a medium to light brunette.

Give the ColorFix/ColorOops a go, it worked for me in part to get the old burgendy and black dye I had out. The hair underneath, though was blonde and never has looked quite the same, though at least the difference isn't THAT bad. It just (obviously) isn't as nice as my henna-only hair.

Here's a pic of a lock of my old chemical-dye only hair after I hit it with ColorFix:
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1695&pictureid=32729


As for the photo you posted, a few things that come to mind:

I get something rather close to that color with a mix of 35%henna, 65% cassia, mixed with hot chamomile tea and left to dye release for 4 hours in a warm place. Then I apply it for 2.5-3 hours. I do roots only treatments so I don't build up as much color with each application. My hair *looks* lighter than my natural brown, but it's just a trick of light and color. Henna and cassia obviously can't lighten your color.
If you don't want golden tones... don't do henna. It's an orangish red that trends toward golden when light.
The problem with an ash filler is that it will wash out from under the henna eventually. I noticed the places in my hair that had been previously chemically dyed and then colored with henna continuted to change as the dye underneath faded. Henna won't seal the applied color in.
Henna, thankfully, is great at getting mismatched tones to blend, but it may take several applications to do so, which may get you a darker color than you want.
So, here's what I'd try, if I were you, with lots and lots and LOTS of strand testing at each step:

Research a few potential henna mixes. Get the supplies you'll need.
Get some ColorFix and do multiple strand tests on shed hair to see what color those will produce, and also to gauge how much, if any, redarkening you're going to get (as dark dyes can resurfcace a few days after using ColorFix/ColorOops).
Once you know what your ColorFix/Oops results are, then you can begin to strand test your henna results on those pieces to guage what color you'd get.Do ALL of that before ever applying anything to your head. Only once you're sure of your strand tests and the results should you apply this stuff to the hair attached to your scalp. otherwise you may end up with patchy, scary hair that may push you into doing something drastic to fix. :scared:

Once you get that straightened out, you're going to have a bit of a color change as you henna your natural color as it grows out. Be prepared to either deal with that, or to do another henna treatment on the length to help even things out.

Athough I managed to get all my hair mostly one color (finally), it's still not perfect, but I'm willing to just grow out the "close enough" hair.

:)

I hope that helped a bit!

[melrose1985]

WOW! thank you nightshade! I dont mind the golden tone, but if i was going to dye my hair back to my natural shade i have to stay away from dyes that are golden. I think i'm around a medium brown.

thank you for all the info. I'm still weigh everything out. I feel like i might be leaning more towards waiting for a little bit till my hair gets longer.

[Nightshade]

You're so welcome! Good luck with whatever you decide :flowers: