OMG why didn't you guys tell me?? Oh wait, you did. *sheepish grin*

[mugglemomof3]

HENNA IS AMAZING!!!

HENNA IS WONDEROUS!!!!

:D:D:D

(yes, I'm shouting! From my rooftop if the wind would die down!!!) :p:cheese:;)

OK. People kept posting threads and photos telling how great henna was on their hair. I looked, but thought to myself "too much trouble". Then a few of my compadres on here even PM'd me recipies and tips and hints and "you can do its" when I hinted that I was toying with the idea of using henna, and I still talked myself out of it. Why oh why did I wait so long . . . . . ???

I. Love. It!

A couple of weekends ago I took the plunge and had so much fun. Playing in the mud like I used to do when I was a little girl. It felt so wonderful on my head, and I actually like the smell of this stuff. I used a tiny bit of clove EO in my first mix but don't think I will again. I really do enjoy the smell of the henndigo and how it "resumes" every time I CO my hair!

I used what I think is a 57% henna to 43% indigo mix. Jamilla Red henna and (I don't know) Indigo from Hennaforhair.com, and 1 TBS of Amla. Left it on for 5 hours while I slept. Rinsed out fine, but I did have to do two heavy-duty conditioner treatments in the shower.

I put in a tiny amount of coconut oil and blew-dry on the lowest setting so I could go back to sleep. I actually didn't put the henndigo on my head until midnight, so I needed some more sleep. Next time I'll do it earlier in the day.

One thing I've noticed is that all of my "store-bought / chemical" leave-ins don't work anymore. But coconut oil or Grapeseed oil or Shea Butter: WOWSERS! My hair has NEVER felt this healty or soft. Ever.

And then just this last Sunday afternoon, I did a henna gloss. I ended up with a grainy mess, but it turned my hair a tiny bit more red and rinsed out just fine. I found some Mumtaz henna at a local Asian Grocery Story and used that. I think it might have been old. Anyway. . .

Here are a few photos. I was intending to henndigo as close to my natural "roots" as possible, but now that I've done it, I think I like the slightly redder hair color, and now that I know how easy and fun it is, I don't mind doing the upkeep. Last year when I was either paying a stylist to keep me updated in chemical color or was struggling through doing the roots myself, I hated every minute of the coloring process. Now, with henna, I could probably do a coloring every other weekend and not mind a bit!

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z29/mugglemomof3/henna/firsthenndigoinsunnoflashautocorrec.jpg
After oxidation of Henndigo


http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z29/mugglemomof3/henna/hennaglossoutsidesunnoflash-1.jpg
After henna gloss


Both of those photos were taken the same time of day in sun with no flash.

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z29/mugglemomof3/henna/firsthenndigoclosecomparisons-1.jpg

I'm a happy girl. Thanks LHC!!!!
(and especially Kimberlily and Alley Cat and Koala Kim and Nightshade for your inspiring recipies and stories and photos!!!)

[neon-dream]

Wow! Your hair looks beautiful, congratulations :D!
:flowers:

[Tichad3]

Your hair is beautiful!!!! I love Henna and am slightly addicted to it. I'm sitting here now with a head full of it and am on my fourth hour. I'm trying to go 5 hours this time.:D

[janeytilllie]

Wow! Your hair looks beautiful. The colour is amazing! Congratulations :cheer:

[DarkChocolate]

Your hair looks beautiful:)
I love your waves too:)

[Runzel]

Very pretty! Those photos are helpful and lovely to look at. :)

[DarkChocolate]

HENNA IS AMAZING!!!



I used what I think is a 57% henna to 43% indigo mix. Jamilla Red henna and (I don't know) Indigo from Hennaforhair.com, and 1 TBS of Amla. Left it on for 5 hours while I slept. Rinsed out fine, but I did have to do two heavy-duty conditioner treatments in the shower.



How come you had to do two treatments of conditioner?

Does henna temporarily dry your hair out or at least feel like it?

Just wondering:)

[melrose1985]

LOOKS GREAT!!! i love henna to now. I thought it seemed to hard to do but i found it very easy!

[Aisha25]

Isnt henna great! It adds sparkle and glimmer to your hair, looks so beautiful in the sun:D

[Euphony]

There's just nothing quite like what henna does for your hair! It's also gorgeous. I have a tough time not touching and petting my hair for up to a week after a new application or gloss - the hair is just so silky!

[lora410]

VERY BEAUTIFUL. I love henna as well but hate the 4 hours of waiting..lol

[kdaniels8811]

Your hair looks glorious! Yay for henna! I love hendigo, I gloss and touch up roots about every six weeks and my hair is every bit as shiny as the avatar photo. Good for you, glad you enjoyed it!

[wackyredtangles]

Your hair is so pretty! I love dark hair, and I'm always slightly envious of people who have it, and look great in it!

Isn't great when you really really like the way something about you looks? I love that feeling. =)

[GlassEyes]

It DOES look really nice. XD

[mugglemomof3]

Does henna temporarily dry your hair out or at least feel like it?

Just wondering:)

I don't know the answer to that, but I would assume it just "feels" dry, because it's actually healthy for hair. The henna binds to the keratin, making each strand stronger, from what I gather. I'll have to do some re-reading to see if it actually dries out the hair for a bit.

Within a day, my hair felt much more moisturized than it has in years, so it was all worth it.


Thanks so much for all the replies. I love it when people can celebrate together over the airwaves!! :cheese:

[GlassEyes]

I don't know the answer to that, but I would assume it just "feels" dry, because it's actually healthy for hair. The henna binds to the keratin, making each strand stronger, from what I gather. I'll have to do some re-reading to see if it actually dries out the hair for a bit.

Within a day, my hair felt much more moisturized than it has in years, so it was all worth it.


Thanks so much for all the replies. I love it when people can celebrate together over the airwaves!! :cheese:

It can be that.

However, sometimes henna takes a few days/a few washes to fully wash out, and often leaves behind a form of 'resin' that'll stick to the hair for a few days before washing out fully.

[DavidN]

Oh My Goodness!!! Yes I agree, Amy, henna does do wonders, and your hair looks fabulous in these photos. Thank you for sharing these photos, and is so shiny and healthy!

[Nightshade]

Just amazing :flowers: I'm so glad you like it! :cheer:


/ I told you so ;)

[SimplyLonghair]

Mugglemom! It is so lovely, don't you just love henna? I do! :happydance:



It can be that.

However, sometimes henna takes a few days/a few washes to fully wash out, and often leaves behind a form of 'resin' that'll stick to the hair for a few days before washing out fully.
This is what I find. If I go outside and use a hose to wash all of the henna out, I don't get any dryness, but if I just rinse and shower it out, I find that it is a little dry at first and I get some itchies, but I find when I get all of it rinsed well I don't. :twocents: I love the tingle that a hose gives my scalp. :rolleyes:

[Islandgrrl]

Oh, wow, gorgeous!!!! I can see why you love it!

[serious]

Great color and beautiful hair!
I am the henndigo addict too.:)

[curls2grow]

Your hair looks beautiful! Great job!

[hennaphile]

henna is amazing. and oh my days, your hair loooks AMAZING, wow!! congrats! you must be so happy with it!

[jessie58]

Holy Henna, that is gorgeous hair Muggles. It looks so healthy and shiny and natural and beautiful. I am envious right now.

[Nyghtingale]

Oh my! your hair looks great. Amazing color. Don't cha just love henna. :D

[aahavaa]

Looks awesome!!:cheese: now you are going to wish you'd done it sooner hehe! It looks great!

[Wavelength]

Great job, mugglemom! Welcome to the Henna Brigade! ;)

[Missie]

oh my gosh what a remarkable color!! I bet you're getting a lot of admiring second glances and comments.. I'm so happy for you.

[learnthenLive!]

Your hair is so shiny and beautiful especially after the henna gloss!

[rach]

i'm with you on that "why didn't i do it sooner?"
the henna make the waves look alive! looks great :D

[mugglemomof3]

Thanks so much everyone! :waving:

I can't wait for my next application. Maybe this weekend, maybe next. And then whe I do my roots in a month or so, I'm going to do the method someone mentioned in the "tips and tricks" thread of making a bunch of "micro braids" and then just putting the mud on the scalp area. That should be fun!


ETA: I might also try this method of doing a full-head application. Last time I was standing up and did it in sections from the bottom up. I had tons of "gloppy drips".

Application is by the handfuls, leaning into the bathtub, starting in back of the head. Wipe any slops on skin, then stand in front of bathroom mirror to work it through all over and pile into a beehive on top of the head. Wipe up all traces from skin. Cover with 2 plastic bags, then wrap in a towel for at least 3 hours (from hennaforhair.com on Tracey's mixes page)

[~GypsyCurls~]

Oh wow, it looks amazing. So shiny, bouncy and the color is stunning! :)

[Suzie22]

Looks beautiful! Love the color!!

[Canarygirl]

congrats--it looks awesome. I especially love the color post henna gloss. What kind of henna did you use, by the way? Would you post your method/recipe for the gloss? Thankyou! :)

[mugglemomof3]

congrats--it looks awesome. I especially love the color post henna gloss. What kind of henna did you use, by the way? Would you post your method/recipe for the gloss? Thankyou! :)

I ordered my henna from hennaforhair.com and got the Jamila Red box. I used 250 grams of that mixed with warm water and a bit of lemon juice, and then let it sit in warm locations for over 12 hours. I mixed in about 100 grams of Indigo and 1 TBS of Amla and some more warm water to get my "mud". It was very thick, like yogurt.


~~~

For the henna gloss I got a box if Henna (Mumtaz) from a local Asian grocery store and mixed the whole 100 grams with a bit of almost boiling water (which I thought would dissolve it better but didn't) and made more mud. Then I poured the about 1/2 of that gloop into a conditioner bottle with about 1/6th of conditioner left in the bottom (Hello Hydration kind) and shook as well as I could. I didn't let the "dye release" at all. It was still very grainy, so I don't know if the henna was old or if I just didn't mix it enough. :confused:

I washed and conditioned my hair and applied a "second" coat of conditioner - this one with the henna mixed in, covered with saran wrap and stood under the dryer vent in my bedroom for 30 minutes. I had no drips, but it took me quite a while to get all the "sandy" stuff rinsed out of my hair.

Still, I was very happy with the glossy, healthy affect (or is it effect??) I got.

Next time I'm going to try a henndigo gloss, using 2/3 tsp of henna and 1/3 tsp of indigo and mixing WELL. And I'm gong to use the Jamila Red again. Oh yeah, and with the henna gloss, I didn't get the slightly dry feeling I got with the henndigo application.

[wintersun99]

Kudos! the color is fabulous. :)

[AnnaMarie]

Gorgeous! The henna gloss gave it such shine too. I am doing my very first henna this sunday I'm so excited! :cheese:

[camirra555]

Looks awesome! I think I've made up my mind and I'm gonna Hendigo...

[Rini]

Oh muggles....I REALLY should not look at these images of beautiful glossy henna hair, or else I might just be tempted to go back to it!!!!

Your hair looks stunning btw :inlove: and has grown so much.

[Niphredil]

Oh wow !!!

The color you got is amazing ! I wish my henna would have turned out like that previously. I might go for it again someday, hoping to get something different than carrot orange or just plain brown.

[Autumnberry]

I loved seeing these pictures; the red is such a rich auburn. Congratulations to you on your henna success. And I'll bet you like the permanence of henna, too. Henna does rule!

[mugglemomof3]

I really appreciate all the support and sweet comments I've gotten on this thread. LHC people rock!!!! :rockerdud


Photos after oxidation from my 2nd Henndigo. I only used 110 grams of henna and 50 grams of indigo this time (and made it way too runny, but that's another story) and only left it on for 4 hours. It's definitely redder, and I think I might like it a bit better.

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z29/mugglemomof3/henna/2ndhenndigosunflash.jpg
outside sun with flash

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z29/mugglemomof3/henna/2ndhenndigoinsideflash.jpg
Inside with flash

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z29/mugglemomof3/henna/2ndhenndigosunnoflash.jpg
Outside sun no flash

[rach]

it's addictive isn't it. and such a rich colour !
i like it more each time i do it.