PDA

View Full Version : I chickened out with henna



raingirl
June 18th, 2012, 08:49 AM
I chickened out... I was going to do a henna gloss but I haven't got the courage to do it yet.

I so want to do it, but I'm too scared. I think it's all psychological though. Everyone always comments on how beautiful and amazing my natural light blonde hair is and I'm afraid of the comments I will get!!

I'm also afraid it won't look good. I have no dying experience and no girlfriends (I'm a geeky girl with 99% guy friends) so I don't know who to ask for advice/help!

littlenvy
June 18th, 2012, 09:01 AM
It you are not 100% sure henna (and henna look) is what you want, I wouldn't do it. Even if you are only doing a gloss. Some blond hair has a tendency to grab onto colour almost instantly.

However, I would try with cassia/henna gloss mix first, if you REALLY want to try it. See how that feels/looks and then you can decide. :)

PS. I like my henna hair but EVERYONE around me hates it. They all keep on telling me to go back to my blond.

red-again
June 18th, 2012, 09:03 AM
have you done a strand test? Henna, even as a gloss on your light hair will go quite orangey, and you prob have already read about hennas permanence. If you do a strand tet at least you will be prepared for what lies in store. The fact that you are having these doubts is concerning to me precisely because of henna's permanence - you need to be 100% sure.

Your hair is a beautiful colour, but I really like henna pn light blondes too. With your skin tone I reckon you'd look lovely with red hair but being so light naturally, it would take a lot of upkeep. Maybe cassia is the way to go for now or if you don't like the strand test of henna gloss.

Good luck whatever you decide to do

MonaMayfair
June 18th, 2012, 09:13 AM
I definitely wouldn't do it! You should be absolutely sure you want red hair before using henna (even a gloss) and it's next to impossible to get rid of if you don't like it. A gloss would probably be very noticeable on very light blonde hair.

If you want to experiment with red hair, there are temporary colors, even color conditioners such as Aveda, that will give you an idea of how it will look. Stay away from anything with peroxide though, even if they're called semi permanent, they can end up being permanent especially on light hair.
You have to be really careful with light blonde hair, a lot of things that claim they will wash out, won't! My hair was medium-ish to light-ish blonde last time I saw the color properly. Before I started to use henna, I'd used a semi permanent dark brown (this was the first time I'd used anything other than a temporary color) and it would NOT wash out!

I really regret using henna now, because it's so permanent. Also with blonde hair, I had to do the roots every two weeks because lighter roots look hideous with red hair.
I wish I'd just used cassia for the thickening and strengthening benefits instead.

Unofficial_Rose
June 18th, 2012, 09:19 AM
It's a lovely colour as it is, and henna is such a b*gger to get out if you tire of it. As the lengthy threads on the subject will testify...

rach
June 18th, 2012, 09:29 AM
PS. I like my henna hair but EVERYONE around me hates it. They all keep on telling me to go back to my blond.
:bigeyes: always supposes me how much pressure around us there is. If you like it that is all that counts. My mum used to say she wishes i had my natural colour back. Think she's given up now. I like it - end of story.

raingirl - glad you chickened out. Any gut feeling you should always follow. Might be something to approach later but you really need to feel 100% sure as removal can be a challenge and can just set you backwards.

I think your blonde looks lovely for what it's worth :)

spidermom
June 18th, 2012, 09:35 AM
I think your natural color is gorgeous. You could always henna gloss one strand to see whether or not it suits you, or save the hair from your brush and henna gloss that.

RitaCeleste
June 18th, 2012, 09:35 AM
Why not try a semi-permanent like Manic Panic first that has a chance of washing out? I will warn you sometimes even semi-permanent can stain blond hair, but it won't be the devil to get out like henna. Most of it will wash out and if you have use color ooops or something to take a little stain off and not be strawberry it'd probably work better than than trying to remove henna.

raingirl
June 18th, 2012, 09:39 AM
Thanks everyone.

I SOOOO want to be a red-head but it's the permanence that scares me I think. What if I want to go back to blonde? I mean, I figure I probably will at some point and I know it will be a pain.

But at the same time I am consumed with wanting to do this and I've wanted to do it for 10+ years. At some point I think I just need to take the plunge and deal with fixing it later if I ever want to do that.

swearnsue
June 18th, 2012, 09:53 AM
Here is a weird idea: henna gloss just some ends of your hair. If you hate it you can cut it off. I mean gloss just 1/2 inch at the most. Then you can take the hennaed end and hold it up to your face and see if the color looks good on you. Post a pic and get feedback from us if you want. If you have been want to try it for 10 years then you really should take a small step forward for your own sake.

Babyfine
June 18th, 2012, 10:03 AM
I've chickenened out with henna several times. I have a packet in my cupboard that I've never used. I'm afraid of losing my wave, but mostly I've been thinking about growing out my silver strands. It would be much harder to do that with henna or hennindigo than it would with the demi permanent color I use now-which fades a lot.

Scarlet_Heart
June 18th, 2012, 11:26 AM
Take what I say with a grain of salt because my hair is much darker than yours. Mine is a medium brown. BUT...

A henna gloss won't deposit a ton of color and is more likely to fade than a full-blown henna treatment. If you aren't crazy about it, it wouldn't be that difficult to get rid of it. A Color Oops session would get it out, but it would probably fade on its own.

The first time I did a full henna treatment (not a gloss), it consisted of 200g of henna with only lemon and water added and left on my head for 7 hours. Within about two weeks the color had faded out. It took several full blown treatments to get the color to stick.

Now, a year later with lots of full henna applications under my belt, I'm quitting henna and probably will have to grow the color out. :p

GlennaGirl
June 18th, 2012, 02:54 PM
How about a wash-out (six shampoos) red hair color to see what you really think of it?

DON'T try this with a semi (28 shampoos)...some of those just never come out, particularly on blonde hair.

lapushka
June 18th, 2012, 03:27 PM
How about a wash-out (six shampoos) red hair color to see what you really think of it?

Definitely do something like this first! See how the red suits you, and if it does you might feel more comfortable proceeding with the henna treatment. On your shade of blonde, the henna is not just going to show up, it's going to *fiercely* make a statement. I'd dilute the henna with lots of cassia, and/or try glosses first. In any case, do lots of strand tests before you even start applying henna for real!

spidermom
June 18th, 2012, 03:31 PM
The first application of henna tends toward orange. Do you like how orange looks on you?

I third the suggestion of doing a very temporary color first. I think Clairol makes a color that comes out in about 6 washes. There is at least one red shade.

natural_shine
June 18th, 2012, 03:34 PM
I had a colleague in my highschool years that had hair just like yours, natural blonde and flowing like silk. That really is a very rare sight you know. It turns heads.
Henna is far more common.

I wish I had the kind of colour you have, honestly, it's my dream to be natural blonde. If I were you, I'd never think of doing henna...

And another suggestion would be- don;t try any temporary coloring either, they still leave the reflexes behind. Pity to ruin that perfect blonde you have. Just an opinion,...

Mesmerise
June 18th, 2012, 09:35 PM
How about a wash-out (six shampoos) red hair color to see what you really think of it?

DON'T try this with a semi (28 shampoos)...some of those just never come out, particularly on blonde hair.

Haha oops... my friend's daughter wanted to dye her hair red, and I advised a semi rather than permanent in case she hated it! However, if a semi never comes out of blonde hair... well...

Anyways, would have been worse if she went permanent straight away (and at the moment she's asking me about henna for her daughter's hair and I'm warning her A LOT about its permanence, and the fact that it can go quite orange in blonde hair, and can be extremely difficult to remove).

I LOVE henna and probably won't stop using it for 20 years :p BUT if I had naturally blonde hair with no grays I would NOT henna. I just wouldn't!!!

I did a henna gloss in my DD's hair (which is dark blonde/light brown depending on what you think constitutes dark blonde or light brown lol) and it looks awesome. It also fades out over several months! I'm sure if it was done frequently it'd get pretty permanent though.

Macaroni
June 18th, 2012, 11:24 PM
Semi permanent hair color is good for first-time dyers or for people who aren't looking to make a drastic change. Semi permanent dye has no ammonia and no developer, so no color is deposited inside the hair shaft. Instead, it coats the hair, which is why it's often referred to as a "stain" or "wash." Semi permanent is good for changing or enhancing tones but not for changing colors. It generally washes out in 6 to 12 shampoos.

Demi permanent hair color is good for people who want more of a change but do not want to damage their hair or do anything drastic. It contains no ammonia but does have a small amount of peroxide, which opens the hair cuticle slightly so that some color will sit in it. Demi permanent does a better job of darkening hair than semi permanent does, but it doesn't lighten hair. Demi permanent hair color will fade and typically lasts 12 to 24 shampoos.

Source:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/69199-demi-permanent-vs.-semi-permanent/

I'd do a semi-permanent color and I'd choose several shades of red. I'd do strand tests on all the colors and choose which one compliments my skin tone.

jojo
June 21st, 2012, 02:30 PM
if you have the slightest doubt don't do it. Your natural colour is beautiful, if you want a change you can always try one of the wash in wash out colours but personally id leave it as it is.

Ambystoma
June 21st, 2012, 03:09 PM
I'd go with what everyone else is recommending, try a wash out colour for a while. If your hair tends to grab colour like mine, you may find they stick around for at least 8 shampoos (or clarifying treatments). A word of caution, most hair colours marketed as semi-permanent are actually demi and a lot of them take a LOT to remove. The rule of thumb is, if it requires you to mix in a separate developer, it's technically demi-permanent.

cmg
June 21st, 2012, 04:05 PM
If you thought about it for 4 years, then I would say it is something you really like to try. Why dont you show us what shade you are aming for (links) and we can give you some advice for the mix?

You might not be happy with a simple henna gloss. This is just a way to dilute henna, say saffron yellow instead of carrot orange. So a proper mix with cassia and/or other herbs might be a better option for you. Not to mention the strength of the henna itself would be lesser, if all goes wrong and you dont like the results.

/ CMG

firevegan
June 25th, 2012, 04:33 PM
Take a look at my hair. This henna is over light blonde. I feel much cuter now, and get stopped in the street for compliments. lol.

Alvrodul
June 25th, 2012, 04:43 PM
Chickens are sensible critters, especially when it comes to henna. ;)
If you have the slightest uncertainty about henna, don't do it. For many, the color will wash out in the beginning, especially if they do a henna gloss. but you can't be certain. The color certainly never lightened the slightest bit for me.
And with your light color, you are likely to end up with a nuclear orange.

Bene
July 17th, 2012, 07:54 AM
Henna is neither a dare nor is it mandatory. But it is permanent. If you're not absolutely sure you're on board with it, then DON'T DO IT.