Honey thread

**ktani** · May 22nd, 2008, 10:01 AM

Gabriel

You are most welcome.

Thank you for the update.

I am happy for you that you are so pleased with the results.

And I am very happy for you that you had no reaction to the cinnamon.

I thought that you would still get some lightening - but as I said - your recipe was 50% short of the water needed for optimal lightening results.

I am also pleased to read that the amount of oil you used did not prove to be a problem in terms of washing it out of your hair, since you mentioned no problems.

**GlennaGirl** · May 22nd, 2008, 01:32 PM

Originally Posted by ktani

I understand your enthusiasm and that of others for wanting to try these things in a hurry.

Oh yup, exactly...you go that part exactly right...

You did indeed say right away to test for irritation but did I do it? Noooooooooooo.

I do think my reaction was unusual! I feel like many others have used this with no problems and good results.

It's not very sunny out so far today, but I'll be taking my usual 2:30 PM outdoor picture anyway and you can let me know if you see a change.

**ktani** · May 22nd, 2008, 02:34 PM

GlennaGirl

I may have rushed into this - DolphinPrincess has used cardamom a few times - she had reacted so badly to cinnamon and then more cinnamon irritation reports came in I thought - cardamom is less risky.

It is hard to say whether your reaction is an allergic one or a sensitivity - either way - you are not supposed to suffer for honey lightening IMO.

So - I will alter my recommendation to say this.

When it comes to spice peroxide boosters

1. use with caution & patch test first

2. a chamomile tea base may help counter irritation

3. cardamom is my pick but you have to see if you can tolerate it - use cinnamon if you can tolerate it better

**Islandgrrl** · May 22nd, 2008, 02:44 PM

ktani,

Thanks so much for the detailed reply to my post. I'm learning a lot here.

I did a honey application this morning, but have to admit that I didn't follow your instructions to the letter (I still got nice results, though).

I mixed equal parts conditioner and honey, added about 1/4 part water and slathered it on very wet hair. Popped everything up into a bun and (very, very bad girl) went and sat in the sauna for 30 minutes (can I just point out that while this may not do anything productive for the honey treatment, it does undeniably excellent things for my attitude in the morning).

Lots of rinsing with cool-ish water and OHMYGOSH, I have someone else's hair!!! It's moisturized, it's soft, it's bouncy, it's super shiny and the color is a little lighter. I didn't shampoo at all, either.

Next time, I promise, I'll do it exactly as prescribed and let you know about results.

My goal is to be able to continue with henna applications to my roots to cover the grey and do honey as needed to keep the burgundy out. Sound reasonable?

Question about cardamom. I've always purchased cardamom pods and ground them as needed for baking. I've also always assumed that the cardamoms I buy are indeed cardamoms. Is there a better chance of getting real cardamom when you purchase pods rather than ground?

**ktani** · May 22nd, 2008, 02:51 PM

Originally Posted by ktani

I now keep an index of posts.

bizarrogirl's first recipe - 1/4 cup honey, 1/4 cup V05 Kiwi Lime Conditioner, 6 tblsp cinnamon.
Results on 2 henndigoes with multiple henna layers underneath - 8 hours
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bizarro...7594199905645/

2nd recipe - 1/4 cup honey, 4 tblsp cinnamon, 1/2 c up water, 1/2 cup V05 Kiwi Lime Conditioner for 1 hour.
This time it lightened the henna layers - no burgundy colour.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bizarro...7594199905645/

More water, less cinnamon, less conditioner, same amount of honey = better results in less time by my calculations.

Islandgrrl

Thank you for your report and recipe.

I am glad that you are so pleased and that your hair is in such good condition.

The 2nd recipe and result here help lead me to the no conditioner conclusion - no burgundy.

How much more lightening could be accomplished without it altogether? Conditioners are not all water - therefore when one is used for part of the dilution - in this case at 50% - a percentage needed to complete the 4 parts water to 1 part honey is still missing.

And that diluted - a light conditioner IMO, is no longer that conditioning - so it no longer servs a purpose in any case in the treatment.

Re cardamom - while I sit here waiting to save my post - server is busy - I had read DolphinPrincess's post below.

Her cardamom worked, caused no irritation and if I remember correctly was only around $10 as opposed to GlennaGirl's $14 cardamom.

See if you can get McCormick brand ground cardamom.

For the whole pods - avoid the bleached ones - I cannot move right now and retrieve it - or I lose this post - but that information is one of the posts I encored in the last few pages - on the types of cardamom.

By the grace of the server - here it is.

"It best to buy cardamom seeds still encased in their natural flavor-protecting pods .... discard after you remove the seeds. You can also buy cardamom without the pods, called cardamom seeds = decorticated cardamom .... the unprotected seeds lose flavor quickly. Ground cardamom seeds ... less flavorful .... Recipes that call for cardamom ... intend for you to use green cardamom ... named for the green pods .... Some producers bleach the green hulls to a pale tan .... this makes them less aromatic. .... Equivalents: One pod yields 1/6 teaspoon cardamom."
http://www.foodsubs.com/SpiceUniv.html#cardamom

**DolphinPrincess** · May 22nd, 2008, 02:51 PM

Ktani - My cardamom is McCormick brand.

Sorry its taken me so long to get on here to answer your question!

**ktani** · May 22nd, 2008, 03:16 PM

DolphinPrincess

Thank you so much for your reply.

No worries on the timing - the server has been a challenge.

**ktani** · May 22nd, 2008, 03:30 PM

Honeys reported to work well in honey lightening recipes. - Updated

As you can see there are more brand names than types of honey - that does not matter - the brand IMO, is more important - different brands of clover honey for example have been reported to work differently.

Brazil
Bio21 orange blossom honey

North America
honey in bear shaped plastic bottle from Walmart
Billy Bee clover honey

Norway
Ekte honning honey

UK
Gale's 100% honey (a blend of EC and non-EC honeys)

Sainsburys 'Basics' brand honey

U.S.
Aunt Sue's Raw All Natural honey

Laney Brand alfalfa honey

Nature's Energy honey (Natures grocery store)

Ralph's brand pure clover honey

Stater Brothers honey

Sue Bee clover honey

Target's Market Pantry Honey (In a little bear bottle)

Trader Joe's 100% desert mesquite honey, clover blossom honey

Wegmans' brand Clover honey

Western Family Clover honey