Tired of having to henna

[Skittles2u]

I have been using henna on my hair since shortly after joining the forums here (5 years ago). My hair is pretty close to waist; and since I'm older i have the gray root thing going on.

I'm tired of having to henna so often; I dread having to mix is up, waiting for it to release, and then having to do my hair.

I don't think I want to go natural yet (everyone at work tells me I shouldn't that it would make me look older... but i just dread the 2-3 hrs henna (and indigo) sit in my hair, and then the mess and effort to get it out of my hair in the shower. ... and sometimes the gray seems to be such a light color for several days... and it seems like within 3 weeks i'm needing to cover the roots again.

What can I do? i know with having long hair, its better to use more natural products because were not cutting our hair every 4-6 weeks like gals with short hair styles, but i want a quicker root covering process.

I'm thinking of going back to commercial stuff, but i have no idea what to use or if I'll ruin my long hair.

any suggestions? thanks. i'm dreading going back to work tomorrow because of my roots, and since i haven't mixed up henna, there's not enough time... I don't own any hats, but boy am I thinking of wearing one. .. help? ideas? I know many suggest the 2 week rule to think about change, but this dilemma happens every month for at least the last 6 months.

[prosperina]

I turned my mother on to this stuff I found at Sally's and Ulta. It isn't a long term fix, but it may provide you some reprieve from constant hennaing. It's a mascara type stuff that you paint into your roots and it lasts until you wash your hair out. My mom just paints the grey/white around her hairline and on top around her part. It doesn't look fake or cakey either. If you are already streching out washes, it could be worth it. Although she does have shortish hair...

You could use something like this while you decided what to do with your hair. And as far as chemical dyes go, they sometimes don't cover grey that well (unless you get it done professionally) and I notice that my mother has white growing out quite quickly after her hair appointment, which usually ends up being a half-a-day sort of thing. It would be shorter I think if she went more often.

[esmay]

I hate having to schedule the time for henna too...I found that if I mixed up a batch of henna and then divided into portions and froze those separately, I didn't have to wait around for dye release, and I could just mix up the indigo and add it.
Made the process a *little* simpler :)

[Alvrodul]

I usually mix up a big batch of henna, divide it up and fill up a number of "squirt the stuff into your hair" containers - carrot bags or big plastic syringes and throw said containers into the freezer. I take out as much as I need when I want to henna, thaw it up and take a relaxing afternoon and night off, often doing some tasks around the house in between bouts of relaxing.:D
I don't get out of having the mud on my hair for as long as it takes, but having the henna ready to use in the freezer is extremely practical!:)

[Aredhel77]

There are 'natural' hair colourants around that can be used in a similar way to conventional hairdyes (i.e. the method of application is similar) and don't need to be left on as long as henna - some brands that come to mind are Surya, Logona, Herbatint and Daniel Field. The 'permanancy' of the dyes vary, but it might be worth reseaching them. I am using Surya at the moment to top up my roots, I leave it on for half an hour to an hour. HTH

[Veer666]

Why wait so long? I make my henna with warm (not hot) herbal tea, which gives immediate dye release and you can use it right away.

Ofcourse you would still have to put it on for about 2 to 4 hours to get a nice intense colour result.

[UltraBella]

I don't henna, but I totally understand how you feel !!
I was so very tired of having to touch up my roots. My hair is an ashy blonde and I like to color it a coppery red. The upkeep used to be awful and often. Recently though I started using Herbashine by Garnier, it is a demi-color and the fade out for me is quite slow, so I really like it. The processing time once you have it on your roots is only 10 minutes !!! Awwww, heaven :)

[sibylla]

I hear you!

I have long streaks with white hair and I hate when roots are showing.

Solution for tomorrow:Poor some henna powder into a bottle with conditioner.Shake it and do a CO.The amount of powder/condish is not so important.A red shine all over your hair will hide those roots for now.

I can recommend chemical solutions.I used Schwartzkopfs brilliance color that holds up to 30 washes with a hennalike shine to it.It has a slightly cooler shine than henna (wich I love)and it´s quick and easy to use.I´m sticking with this color for a while.I sometimes use Henna schampoo so the roots don´t show.I also have Manic panic or Directions bottles of poppy red dye that I just paintbrush on the roots.

I hope this helps:)

[jel]

I felt almost exactly the same as you for over a year, and in my blog I agonised about whether to let my virgin hair grow, and how to go about roots... Henna was too much trouble and the colour was never vibrant enough for my taste, but my roots were even more boring (to me, I hasten to add, as they contrasted with my red length).

I experimented with wash-out vegetable dyes like Manic Panic (the brands I actually tried are called Adore and Directions) but they washed out really quickly. Now I use Elumen, which is a bit more long lasting, but unfortunately still very messy and tends to stain my scalp pink for several days after application. However, that same application is 40 minutes from start to finish, including washing the hair!

I have chosen the unnatural red shade of Elumen (RR@all) because I like the brightness. However, there are other shades (copper, brown, ash etc.) which can also be combined to create your perfect colour (and presumably don't leave a pink residue!). Check out the Elumen thread (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=5594&highlight=elumen) on the Products board!

[ellen732]

I have been happy with Henna Hut's premixed henna colors and it only stays on an hour.

[Kristin]

I alternate between Lush henna and Rainbow dark brown. When I use the Rainbow, I mix it up and apply about 10 mins later. I only apply it to my roots full-strength (and even then only to the top where I get most grays) and then use any remaining mixture as a gloss for my length. I leave it on for 90-120 mins with a heat cap. It really isn't that time-consuming if I have a movie that wanted to watch or stuff to do online.

[McFearless]

You could use pre-mixed hennas... or make a large batch all at once.

[Pierre]

I never get tired of it; to me, it's fun. I haven't timed it, but it takes me an hour or two to mix and apply, then I go to sleep (or pop in to LHC to write this message), and rinse it out in the morning. I do have to pick an evening when I'm not too tired to henna, but that's usually not hard. I don't wait for dye release, and I use a root shooter.