Fashion tip time! ABOUT HENNA FOR HAIR AND TATTOOS
Tonight i am dying my hair with henna. I use henna lately and gave up the chemical stuff for two reasons. 1. it permanent, not semi permanent 2. its all natural (see the rest of this post) and 3. because its all natural, it doesnt accellerate my issues with my thinning hair (PCOS, I am blessed with this, and by blessed i mean cursed).
So, a couple things. Henna is the powdered leaves of a plant. it can come in other colors, but when it isnt red, its isnt really henna. real henna, without chemicals, dyes everything it touches that is made of natural materials red. chemicals are added to make colored henna, and some, especially black henna, which is often used for tattoos at carnivals and events, can cause allergic reactions or chemical reactions. you can use it for skin, hair, wood, fabric, and more... it wont dye your tub or glass or metal bowls, but dont use ceramic (it will dye any cracks in the glaze) or plastic.
Henna is cheap. i have gotten some for as little as 3.00 a box on ebay, HOWEVER, not all henna is created equal. the kind i use for my hair... was sent to me by my sisters in law and i cant read a single word on the box, since its all in arabic... jamila henna is the cheapest i have seen, it works well for light and medium hair, but not well at all for tattoos. i had weak results on my brunette hair.
Mehndi henna for tattoos... should be high quality. usually you have to mix more ingredients to make it work right. i have tried different recipes but when i do tattoos at the market, i use the brand i sell in my shop, Earth Henna, because it comes with a pre- mixed amount of great quality henna, a solution made of eucalyptus and walnut oil and other things, and all the equipment, and it sets in an hour... which is pretty fast compared to others i have tried. I believe it is well worth the higher price, especially for beginners. when making tattoos with a box of powder... i have to leave it on all night, and cover it with a lemon sugar stickiness. which is sticky. and a pain. and make my own solution and i never have the ingredients on hand... . so if you are doing tattoos... do yourself a favor and go all out for the good stuff.
so... back to hair. this is easy, and way less drippy than a normal dye job. most henna comes in the same sixe box so i will give my measurments according to the box size. i have short hair, about 4 inches or so, i use exacty 1/4 box of powder. in a metal or glass bowl, mix the powder with hot water, a little at a time, until it makes a moist paste. not runny, about like aquafresh toothpaste (hint, if you wish to learn henna tattoos without wasting your precious henna, practice with aquafresh, it is almost the same consistency) anyway. your paste. when you have a goopy green paste, like a bowl of mud, start covering your head. you want to plaster this stuff all over your hair. wear gloves if you dont want yellow hands for a day, but i never bother. cover the floor you think you cant keep it from dripping, because it will dye things. once your hair is totally covered, plaster it as close to your heads as possible. if you have long hair, clip it up. wear raggy clothes that can get dyed. shorter hair, you should be able to just plaster it down.
the great thing about the henna dye job is, it dries pretty fast, on the outside anyway. so it doesnt drip all over your house. you can walk around with henna all over your head and not worry about the rugs or furniture too much. which is great because i leave this on as long as possible. you should leave it at least an hour, but i usually leave it about 2-3 hours, because i want it as dark as possible. i also usually have to do this at least twice to get the color i want. the other good thing is,,, when you are walking around with it all over your noggin, you arent breathing in peroxide fumes... it smells more like playing in a pile of autumn leaves...
finally, to wash this mud out of your hair. you will need to shower, the sink wont do. and use an old towel, it may dye the towel... first rinse to loosen it up. then, take a big handful of conditioner. goop your hair all up and scrub. then rinse. repeat with shampoo, probably twice, until there is no more. and then condition like normal. you will smell like leaves all night, just so you know, the smell will fade over the next two days or so. also, wait until your hair dries to sleep, in case anything is left to ruin your pillowcases.
That is all. Here is a link to my mehndi henna if you are interested. sorry i cant sell hair henna in my etsy shop as it is not an art supply, as mehndi henna is...
https://www.etsy.com/listing/112245669/henna-starter-kit-with-refill-earth i also have listings for just the refills and just the starter kits.
Tonight i am dying my hair with henna. I use henna lately and gave up the chemical stuff for two reasons. 1. it permanent, not semi permanent 2. its all natural (see the rest of this post) and 3. because its all natural, it doesnt accellerate my issues with my thinning hair (PCOS, I am blessed with this, and by blessed i mean cursed).
So, a couple things. Henna is the powdered leaves of a plant. it can come in other colors, but when it isnt red, its isnt really henna. real henna, without chemicals, dyes everything it touches that is made of natural materials red. chemicals are added to make colored henna, and some, especially black henna, which is often used for tattoos at carnivals and events, can cause allergic reactions or chemical reactions. you can use it for skin, hair, wood, fabric, and more... it wont dye your tub or glass or metal bowls, but dont use ceramic (it will dye any cracks in the glaze) or plastic.
Henna is cheap. i have gotten some for as little as 3.00 a box on ebay, HOWEVER, not all henna is created equal. the kind i use for my hair... was sent to me by my sisters in law and i cant read a single word on the box, since its all in arabic... jamila henna is the cheapest i have seen, it works well for light and medium hair, but not well at all for tattoos. i had weak results on my brunette hair.
Mehndi henna for tattoos... should be high quality. usually you have to mix more ingredients to make it work right. i have tried different recipes but when i do tattoos at the market, i use the brand i sell in my shop, Earth Henna, because it comes with a pre- mixed amount of great quality henna, a solution made of eucalyptus and walnut oil and other things, and all the equipment, and it sets in an hour... which is pretty fast compared to others i have tried. I believe it is well worth the higher price, especially for beginners. when making tattoos with a box of powder... i have to leave it on all night, and cover it with a lemon sugar stickiness. which is sticky. and a pain. and make my own solution and i never have the ingredients on hand... . so if you are doing tattoos... do yourself a favor and go all out for the good stuff.
so... back to hair. this is easy, and way less drippy than a normal dye job. most henna comes in the same sixe box so i will give my measurments according to the box size. i have short hair, about 4 inches or so, i use exacty 1/4 box of powder. in a metal or glass bowl, mix the powder with hot water, a little at a time, until it makes a moist paste. not runny, about like aquafresh toothpaste (hint, if you wish to learn henna tattoos without wasting your precious henna, practice with aquafresh, it is almost the same consistency) anyway. your paste. when you have a goopy green paste, like a bowl of mud, start covering your head. you want to plaster this stuff all over your hair. wear gloves if you dont want yellow hands for a day, but i never bother. cover the floor you think you cant keep it from dripping, because it will dye things. once your hair is totally covered, plaster it as close to your heads as possible. if you have long hair, clip it up. wear raggy clothes that can get dyed. shorter hair, you should be able to just plaster it down.
the great thing about the henna dye job is, it dries pretty fast, on the outside anyway. so it doesnt drip all over your house. you can walk around with henna all over your head and not worry about the rugs or furniture too much. which is great because i leave this on as long as possible. you should leave it at least an hour, but i usually leave it about 2-3 hours, because i want it as dark as possible. i also usually have to do this at least twice to get the color i want. the other good thing is,,, when you are walking around with it all over your noggin, you arent breathing in peroxide fumes... it smells more like playing in a pile of autumn leaves...
finally, to wash this mud out of your hair. you will need to shower, the sink wont do. and use an old towel, it may dye the towel... first rinse to loosen it up. then, take a big handful of conditioner. goop your hair all up and scrub. then rinse. repeat with shampoo, probably twice, until there is no more. and then condition like normal. you will smell like leaves all night, just so you know, the smell will fade over the next two days or so. also, wait until your hair dries to sleep, in case anything is left to ruin your pillowcases.
That is all. Here is a link to my mehndi henna if you are interested. sorry i cant sell hair henna in my etsy shop as it is not an art supply, as mehndi henna is...
https://www.etsy.com/listing/112245669/henna-starter-kit-with-refill-earth i also have listings for just the refills and just the starter kits.
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