Rainbow Henna

[tooqute2nv]

Alright, so I've heard mixed things about Rainbow Henna. I've tried to look up what is in the different mixes, and I usually just get the result of "Henna powder", but that can't be true since that is all it said from the blonde to black henna mixes.

So, Rainbow henna, good, or bad? Also, does it fade quickly, or is it lasting?

[ademtce]

i'd be very weary of 'rainbow henna' as henna only has one Dye molecule and that is red/orange.
and its best to only use 100% pure henna, because others have harmful metallic salts in them

[mellie]

I used Rainbow Dark Brown henna for about a year and a half. I loved it! The Dark Brown is just henna and indigo, that's all. The ingredients are clearly marked on the jar now. The other colors just include other herbs such as cassia. I got really nice dark chocolate brown with no red, and it was very permanent. I have tried the BAQ stuff from hennaforhair.com and I've also tried Light Mountain brand but I like Rainbow best. The BAQ stuff always left me with a red tint that I didn't want. The Rainbow was always consistently dark chocolately brown. It was cheap, easily bought locally and I loved the shiny, pretty color. I only stopped using it because I decided to embrace my silvers in December!

[mellie]

P.S. I just posted some pics in this thread if you'd like to see:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showpost.php?p=612143&postcount=31

[Rapunzal2Be]

Mellie,

I'm trying to use Rainbow Dark Brown to darken up my previously bleached and then colored and now fading ends, but it's leaving my hair decidedly red and not dark enough. Can you tell me the mix and process you used when you were using it?? Thanks! :)

[manderly]

I've also used Rainbow in dark brown. It faded for me, I wasn't lucky enough to get lasting color like Mellie, but it's not a bad henna in general. Just indigo and henna.

[Catladyintown]

I love Rainbow Henna.:) The Henna was nicely sifted also it covered my grays very well. Mellie is the one that recommended it to me. Also Rainbow Henna did not fade on me at all. Hi Rapunzal2Be I know you asked Mellie but what I would do is add a little bit of sea salt to your Henna it will work a lot better.

[Rapunzal2Be]

I love Rainbow Henna.:) The Henna was nicely sifted also it covered my grays very well. Mellie is the one that recommended it to me. Also Rainbow Henna did not fade on me at all. Hi Rapunzal2Be I know you asked Mellie but what I would do is add a little bit of sea salt to your Henna it will work a lot better.

Thank you!! I will try it. I am hoping to get more of a brown and less red.

[teela1978]

I've used it in medium brown to help blend my roots in way back when I first started growing them out. Worked fine, but I seem to have pretty resistant hair so it faded on me pretty quick. I think they just use common terminology, 'light henna' for cassia, 'dark henna' for indigo, and 'red henna' for 'real' henna. So they can just say it's all henna... even though it technically isn't.

[Tangles]

It didn't last for me either and left my hair somewhat dry.

[Rapunzal2Be]

Can anyone speculate as to why they can claim that it is only semipermanent if it is indeed really henna?

I'm not worried about it fading, I'm more scared of it's permanence, LOL!!

I have not left it on for any longer than two hours for fear of going too dark, but what I've been left with is a lot more red than I'd hoped and nowhere near as dark as I'm looking for.
(Using the dark brown, too.)

[mellie]

It was definitely permanent for me. The indigo of course fades out over time, but the henna will stick around till the end of time....:D

How did you mix it? When I used Dark Brown and just mixed it immediately (not letting it sit out) with warm tap water and a splash of vinegar, the resulting color didn't have the slightest bit of redness in it (which is why I prefer it to BAQ henndigo).

Also, I only leave it on for the time they recommend, 75 minutes tops.

[Silver Strands]

I used it for nearly 2 years.
Light brown in warmer months and medium brown in winter.

It covered very well and was impossible to get rid of when I had enough.
If you can get it to match your natural color then that's not a problem.
But when trying to cover grays, you have to touch it up quite a bit.

I used apple cider vinegar and either tea with the lt. brown or coffee with the med. brown.

I made the mistake of covering all of my hair everytime I used it and so ended up over time
with it being much darker than I wanted (burgundy/eggplant).
I used it every 6-8 wks. and so ended up with build-up.

I also followed the directions and only kept it on for an hour.

[mellie]

I made the mistake of covering all of my hair everytime I used it and so ended up over time
with it being much darker than I wanted (burgundy/eggplant).
I used it every 6-8 wks. and so ended up with build-up.

Me too! I ended up with it almost Black. So then I just did roots-only touch ups every three to four weeks. That worked great!

[Rapunzal2Be]

Thanks ladies!!

I am looking to darken up my length to match my natural color and once I get that done I guess I will switch to using cassia regularly for the strength and just use the dark brown as needed to redarken my ends if they lighten up again (previously bleached/colored/bleached/colored, etc. so it tends to just fade out).

[hubertron]

I have a question for those who are familiar with Rainbow Henna...

Also, I apologize in advance for being long-winded..

My natural hair color is sort of a light ash brown, and (before henna) was chemically treated with various colors. I started using Lush Caca Marron doing full applications, but eventually switched to henna glosses with Reshma henna from the Indian grocery stores, so my hair ended up a light-medium reddish brown.

I decided on a whim last weekend to use some indigo, so I purchased "Medium Brown" from Light Mountain Henna. I mixed up the henna/indigo with just hot water, and let it sit for 15 minutes before I applied it. I left it on for approximately 20 minutes, and my hair came out really dark brown. It was sort of shocking first, but now I love it! Here are the pictures:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y229/jenniferhubert/hendigo1.jpg

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y229/jenniferhubert/hendigo2.jpg

The store that I can get the Light Mountain henna is out of the medium brown, so I went to a different store who had the medium brown, but also had Rainbow henna, which people seem to be more fond of here.

I purchased Rainbow henna in Persian red (which is just henna) and medium brown, in order to have more control over the pure henna to let it dye-release.

After researching the medium brown henna a bit more, I've noticed that the results in shade seem to be much lighter than Light Mountain's, which leads me to my question:

Should I purchase the 'dark brown' shade instead if I want to keep up this darkness? Also, I really like the warm undertones using for the parts of my hair that had henna underneath, so do you guys think that letting the pure henna dye release and mixing it in to 20% of the final paste will result in the same level of darkness?

I'm looking out for my roots, because as you can see in the photos (assuming that the links show up), the roots of my hair take the hendigo entirely differently than the rest of my hair.

[Madame J]

Rainbow medium and dark brown colors still have a great deal of henna in them, so mixing in dye-released henna would probably just make them redder. I would suggest you try the medium brown (if it's too light, it won't really change the color of your hair much anyway), and if that's too light, try the dark (or go back to the Light Mountain -- if it worked for you, great!).

[hubertron]

Thank you so much for your help!

Maybe that's what I'll do, then. I was also considering maybe doing henna glosses in between the full hendigo.. my roots after the hendigo were initially blue until it oxidized, but it doesn't seem like the henna in the 'medium brown' color did anything to the roots--so basically, they have a different tone than the rest of my hair.

I'm still testing things out to see what works best for me because I don't ever want to switch back to anything else :). I was also going to mention.. for those that hendigo, did you notice that your hair was significantly more shiny after the hendigo as opposed to just henna?

[jivete]

I used to use the dark brown in rainbow and got the color below. I really liked it, but the indigo fades out on me pretty fast and I'm left with too much red pretty quickly. I usually just followed their directions, hot water or coffee and some oil. I'd only leave it on about an hour.

My hair is natural, ashy brown.

http://i532.photobucket.com/albums/ee322/jivete/LHC/2005_Hair.jpg

[mellie]

I used the Dark Brown and got really good, permanent dark chocolate results by following their suggestion of a splash of vinegar in the mix. I just used it straightaway (no waiting for dye release), mixed with tepid tap water, and a splash of vinegar, and just left it on for an hour as directed. Works great!

[klcqtee]

It was the first henna I started using. I really liked it, because it was inexpensive and worked well for me (plus no shipping fees!). I used the "Persian Mahogany". It faded out a tiny bit over the course of a month, but it didn't fade an ugly red-orange colour as chemical red dyes can. I was able to use chemical dyes over it later without any ill affects, in case you change your mind later on.

It did build up nicely in to a deep auburn. It was so pretty! It made my hair nice and strong, and made my coarse hair soft. It had good conditioning affects, and sure did smell like henna! The only thing that give me doubts is the face that the instructions that came with my Rainbow didn't specify any sort of dye release time. They told me to go and apply it directly on my head after mixing with warm water (and a tiny bit of lemon juice was suggested). Then only leave it on for 2 to 4 hours. I followed their instructions though, and got a good stain (always leaving it on for 4-6 hours).

I don't know if it's BAQ henna but it didn't cause me any problems. If you're sensitive to chemical dyes, do not only do a strand test, but also do a patch test on your arm (just in case). This is a good rule in general, but since we don't know what exactly is in Rainbow, it's extra important.

[StellaReade]

I just did a strand test with the Rainbow Medium Brown. My natural color is a light to medium mousy brown with just a few grays. Anyway, I did two tests, actually. One leaving it on for one hour, and one leaving it on for two. Here is my issue...I can't decide which I like better, they both look really beautiful. (I'm excited!) I still have two days to go to see what they look like oxidized. I'm thinking it might be better to leave it on one hour and if I think I like the two hour color better after that, I could just do it again, right? Easier to add than take away?

[klcqtee]

Right! Start out with one hour. If you aren't completely satisfied, put it on for another hour a few weeks later. It'll build up your colour beautifully. Be sure to post pictures for us!

[mellie]

Also note that it will darken with repeated applications too! So when you reach the color you like, just do roots only from then on!

[StellaReade]

I have a few questions/observations on the process, as I did my first henna last night (WOW what an exciting life I lead, dying my hair on New Year's Eve:) ) I'm sorry I don't have any pictures. Ok, so I used Rainbow Medium Brown, and I used straight boiling water and henna powder and left it on for about an hour. I really like the result, it is rich and warm colored, and my hair feels healthier and the splits even seem to be better. I was really worried about how messy it would be, and it really wasn't all that bad. It didn't even take all that long to wash out, I found that it washed out faster than the commercial dyes do. Here's my a question. Is there something I could mix in with it that would make it less...muddy/clumpy? I missed a few spots here and there, because it was really hard to get it on evenly. I thought I had it on, I was sure it was totally soaked, but I did miss a few places. Also, while I do like the color, and I was so worried it would turn out too red, I think I actually would have liked to see MORE red...or more auburn red. Will the indigo fade a little in time and the red show through more? If not, for the next time I do it, if I mix more henna in will it look redder?

[Kristin]

I just bought some Rainbow henna in dark brown and mahogany. I was going to use LUSH, but it just seemed too expensive and complicated. I wanted to color today, but I'm very nervous as henna is permanent and I kinda a newbie (tried it a few years ago, but it came in a box then). I have dark brown hair and would like to cover grays (only about 10%, mainly at crown), deepen the brown to a chocolatey color, and add reddish shimmer in bright light. I'm wondering how/if I should mix the colors I bought. I also realized I didn't buy enough for my length and was thinking of getting a tub of the medium brown and mixing that as well. Suggestions?

[klcqtee]

Kristin: you can use yogurt to help spread the henna so it covers all of your hair. When I hennaed with Rainbow before, I used 1 and a half of their little containers (adding water, and my hair was BSL, with a circumference of 5.5". You should have enough.

What I'd do if I were you, was take and dump both the auburn and brown powders into a large plastic tupperware, and mix together (dry!). Then separate in half. Store one half (I just put it back in the container, screw lid on tight, and place in a ziplock for freshness), and mix the other half as normal. Then apply, starting with where most of your greys are, then towards the front of your face, then the rest.

If you find that this mix is too red, it will be easy to tone down in the future, but if you find it is not red enough, it will be hard to make redder. If it's too red after this time, buy another dark brown or medium brown, mix that in with the dry half you stored, then split in half again. This should tone down the red and make it more of a warm brown. If you found it too brown, go buy another auburn, and do the same thing.

HTH!

[Kristin]

klcqtee- Wish I had this info. last night, before I hennaed. I ended up using 2 tubs of the dark brown plus a couple tbsp. of the auburn. Mixed with 2 cups of coffee and a couple tbsp. ACV. It was quite dry, so I added some boiling water. Within minutes, it was a mess of dry little "balls" of henna all over my bathroom. I added MORE boiling water for the second half of my head. I barely had enough to finish. Left it on for about 90 minutes, praying the entire time because I was pretty sure the application was uneven. Took forever to wash out and I had to use CWC to get all the granules off of my head.

Luckily, it looks fine. Very natural. I think I'd would like it a bit redder, but I'm happy that it's even and natural-looking and covered my grays. Could I do a henna gloss to add some red? Do I have to wait? I thought about doing an SMT today because it's a little dry. Could I add henna to the SMT?

[Kristin]

Also, how much yogurt do you mix in? Doesn't that add a lot of protein to your hair? Can you SMT IMMEDIATELY after hennaing? (Like right after rinsing.)

[StellaReade]

klcqtee- Wish I had this info. last night, before I hennaed. I ended up using 2 tubs of the dark brown plus a couple tbsp. of the auburn. Mixed with 2 cups of coffee and a couple tbsp. ACV. It was quite dry, so I added some boiling water. Within minutes, it was a mess of dry little "balls" of henna all over my bathroom. I added MORE boiling water for the second half of my head. I barely had enough to finish. Left it on for about 90 minutes, praying the entire time because I was pretty sure the application was uneven. Took forever to wash out and I had to use CWC to get all the granules off of my head.

Luckily, it looks fine. Very natural. I think I'd would like it a bit redder, but I'm happy that it's even and natural-looking and covered my grays. Could I do a henna gloss to add some red? Do I have to wait? I thought about doing an SMT today because it's a little dry. Could I add henna to the SMT?

I think we have almost the exact same question, I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts in this...:)

[girloctopus]

klcqtee- Wish I had this info. last night, before I hennaed. I ended up using 2 tubs of the dark brown plus a couple tbsp. of the auburn. Mixed with 2 cups of coffee and a couple tbsp. ACV. It was quite dry, so I added some boiling water. Within minutes, it was a mess of dry little "balls" of henna all over my bathroom. I added MORE boiling water for the second half of my head. I barely had enough to finish. Left it on for about 90 minutes, praying the entire time because I was pretty sure the application was uneven. Took forever to wash out and I had to use CWC to get all the granules off of my head.

Luckily, it looks fine. Very natural. I think I'd would like it a bit redder, but I'm happy that it's even and natural-looking and covered my grays. Could I do a henna gloss to add some red? Do I have to wait? I thought about doing an SMT today because it's a little dry. Could I add henna to the SMT?

A henna gloss will probably add the touch of red you are looking for. You don't have to wait, but keep in mind that your color may change over the next few days as it oxidizes, so you may wish to finish waiting in order to ascertain what your final color is before tweaking it.

You could add henna to the SMT, but the honey in the SMT may limit the dye uptake. There was testing done that showed that the viscosity of honey interfered with the lawsone molecule migrating into the hair shaft. It may be better to omit the honey as a result, especially since there is so little henna in a gloss. But I would definitely recommend strand testing!

[klcqtee]

klcqtee- Wish I had this info. last night, before I hennaed. I ended up using 2 tubs of the dark brown plus a couple tbsp. of the auburn. Mixed with 2 cups of coffee and a couple tbsp. ACV. It was quite dry, so I added some boiling water. Within minutes, it was a mess of dry little "balls" of henna all over my bathroom. I added MORE boiling water for the second half of my head. I barely had enough to finish. Left it on for about 90 minutes, praying the entire time because I was pretty sure the application was uneven. Took forever to wash out and I had to use CWC to get all the granules off of my head.

Luckily, it looks fine. Very natural. I think I'd would like it a bit redder, but I'm happy that it's even and natural-looking and covered my grays. Could I do a henna gloss to add some red? Do I have to wait? I thought about doing an SMT today because it's a little dry. Could I add henna to the SMT?

I'd just add enough yogurt so that the consistency is similar to that of yogurt, or brownie mix. I hear you can use a SMT right after henna, but I don't do SMT. I'd try a modified SMT by mixing some auburn or red, mixing it in with enough conditioner to coat your hair. If your conditioner is white or light yellow, I'd aim for making it a muddy colour. Because rainbow doesn't require a dye release time, I'd just mix it straight in, then leave it on your hair over night, and rinse out in the morning. Should be a bit more red, and nicely moisturized.

As for adding yogurt to our henna, I don't know if it would cause a protein overload. Maybe a more experienced hennahead could help?

[PhillyGirl1978@]

Ok, I am about to use Rainbow henna in dark brown. I am trying to cover the red BAQ that is still in there and my natural color is brown so I am only gonna henna up to my new growth. I know the indigo will fade over time but how long will that take? I figure I'll keep doing this as my new growth comes in, coloring down my length until I can cut it all off without losing my length.

[mellie]

Sorry I never saw your question till now, PhillyGirl! The indigo took quite a long time to fade out for me, like months and months. Be aware that the color will buildup over time, so it's easy to get too dark accidentally!

[nesser33]

I tried Rainbow Henna, and compared to the Red Raj henna from Henna Sooq, the Rainbow henna was terrible. Rainbow henna is gritty and hard to apply to hair, and it seems to fade quickly (at least on my hair). I definitely preferred the henna from Henna Sooq. I think that Rainbow Henna is okay, but definitely not very high quality. The good thing about it is that it definitely doesn't have any metallic salts in it, because I used it over chemical-dyed hair and it didn't turn green or melt the hair off of my head.