This henna kit will change your hair color without damaging your hair, instead conditioning and making hair healthier. Be naturally beautiful with henna. Color will last 4 – 8 weeks depending on what you use on your hair and how often you wash it. Treating hair to a vinegar rinse instead of soap or shampoo all the time will make the color last longer. Henna is a natural hair dye that is safe and without chemicals. A good-quality henna dye will leave hair vibrant, soft, shiny and healthy. Do not use any henna mixed with ammonia or alcohol, which most commercially available boxes contain. Henna is reflected through the hair while enhancing your hair's natural color. It is also a conditioner.  The cuticle is tight and flatter. The hair is protected from atmospheric conditions such as sun and air pollution. Regular use of henna texturizes hair, giving it more body - this becomes more evident with each application. Henna can be used every 4-6 weeks. Color blends naturally and fades gradually, with never a noticeable regrowth area. The herbal properties penetrate only the broken part of the hair shafts. The lemon juice helps the henna penetrate the gray hair. If you use old coffee as the liquid it will darken the results. The actual color you get will depend on your starting color as with any hair color and the length of time you leave it in your hair. Approximate blend amount needed:   Short length hair: 2-4 oz; Medium length hair: 3-6 oz.;  Long length hair:  4-8 oz. Tips and Warnings Before dyeing your hair, you should do a strand test (see page 3). It may take a couple of days before the hair settles into it’s hue. The color may be a bit bright at first. Henna will stain fabrics, clothes, floors, skin. What you need: Henna blend Lemons or lemon juice (helps hair absorb herbs) Distilled water and maybe old brewed coffee or espresso Extra virgin olive oil or other cold-pressed oil, yogurt (my fav), eggs Large glass bowl Gloves Wooden or stainless steel spoon Ultimate Lotion, or whipped butter Old large dark towel Thick headband Large plastic bag –-The larger the bag, the easier it is to cover the sides of head by your face. Old shirt, or one you want to splotch dye ***Directions for Neutral colors: Read all information before starting. Medium hair length; start with ½ cup henna blend. Put in large glass bowl.
  1. Heat 1/2 cup water until very hot, but not boiling if boiled…wait about 10-15 minutes. Coffee, espresso, herbal teas can all be used to darken the hair.
  2. Pour it slowly on the henna blend. Keep stirring.
  3. If less than 15% grey; add juice from 2 lemons or ¼ cup lemon juice or ¼ cup vinegar for reddish highlights. Add oil/yogurt/eggs and stir in well if using (see Special Recipes and Hints). The object is a yogurt-like consistency.
  4. Cover bowl tightly with plastic and towel. Let sit 2-12 hours. (I know decide how long you want to wait).
  5. Put heavy old towel around neck.  –This will get stained with henna.
  6. Put Ultimate Lotion or Whipped butter all around areas you do not want tinted. Put on gloves. Have ready the large plastic bag you will cover your head with. If henna blend seems too thick thin with more water. Too thin and it will run down your neck.
  7. Apply the henna blend. You can put it in a small bag and squeeze out or just apply with gloved fingers. Start with roots. You want to concentrate the majority of the mixture on the roots. Work it through hair leaving no dry spots.
  8. Gather hair together and wrap head in your plastic bag to keep the henna dye warm. Wipe off any henna that may be left on your skin. Put on the headband or fasten whatever way you devised.
  9. Wrap with the towel. Let the henna remain on your head for some time (1 – 5 hours). Course hair will take longer than fine hair. You can use heat from a dryer, heat lamp or thermal heat cap to shorten time.
  10. Rinse the henna dye out of your hair with water until it runs clear. Clean off any walls around you or you will have dyed splotches. You can apply Vinegar or, Conditioner (may make hair feel heavy/greasy) and rinse out.
  11. Do not wash with any soaps or shampoos for several days. Color will change after washing. Using the vinegar rinse instead of soaps will prolong the color. Treating it with Intensive Hair Treatment will prolong the beauty of the color. Depending on what you use on your hair, color will last 4 – 8 weeks.
  Learn from your mistakes to improve results. This can be a wonderful science experiment for children.   Strand test:
  1. Collect hair from brush, or clip a small sampling from your head. 2. mix up a small amount (1 tsp) of henna paste. 3. When mixed, place hair into the bowl. 4. Stir around until hair is covered with henna paste. 5. Leave the hair for 1-4 hours. The longer you leave it in the richer the color. 6. Rinse out the hair. This is not the final color. It takes 2-3 days for the colors to settle down to the final color.
  Directions for > 15% gray hair: Remember that God says Gray hair is beautiful. Medium hair length start with ½ cup henna blend. Put in large glass bowl.
  1. Juice from 4-6 lemons or ½ cup lemon juice.
  2. Pour it slowly on the henna. Keep stirring.  If necessary, add more liquid—yogurt, egg, oil, water, lemon juice. The object is a yogurt-like consistency.
  3. Cover bowl tightly with towel. Let sit 2-12 hours. (I know just work with it).
  4. Put Ultimate Lotion or Whipped butter all around areas you do not want tinted. Put on gloves. Have ready the bag you will cover your head with. If henna blend seems too thick thin with more water. Too thin and it will run down your neck. You can thicken with small amount of flour or arrowroot.
  5. Apply the henna blend. You can put it in a small bag and squeeze out or just apply with fingers. Start with temples and roots. You want to concentrate the majority of the mixture on gray areas. Then work through hair leaving no dry spots.
  6. Gather hair together and wrap head in your plastic bag to keep the henna dye warm. Wipe off any henna that may be left on your skin. Put on the headband or fasten whatever way you devised.
  7. Wrap with the towel. With much gray hair, let the henna remain on your head for some time (several hours or overnight).  Course hair takes longer than fine hair. You can use heat from a dryer, heat lamp, or thermal heat cap to shorten time.
  8. Rinse the henna dye out of your hair with water until it runs clear. Clean off any walls around you or you will have dyed splotches. You can apply Vinegar or, Conditioner and rinse out.
  9. Do not wash with any soaps or shampoos for several days. Color will change after washing. Using the vinegar rinse instead of soaps will prolong the color. Treating it with Intensive Hair Treatment will prolong the beauty of the color. Depending on what you use on your hair, color will last 4 – 8 weeks.
Learn from your mistakes to improve results. This can be a wonderful science experiment for children. Special Recipes and Hints Perming…wait 2 weeks before applying henna. This will help the hair be free of the chemical residues. Perming after henna…Henna coats the hair shaft and can prevent the chemicals from penetrating. Prior to a perm, remove henna (see next question). Remove Henna:  Apply warm mineral oil to the hair. Leave on 20 – 25 minutes. Rinse with warm water. The volcano (Baking soda and vinegar) will also help remove henna from hair. Using henna over a chemical tint…If hair is good condition you can use over a chemical tint. Do not continue to use both henna and chemicals tint unless you are only using the neutral henna. Henna should never be used on overbleached or white hair. The color will be harsh. Henna does not lighten hair.  Do not try to chemically lighten henna hair. Henna can be used every 4 to 5 weeks. Henna coats each hair shaft with color. Smooths and seals the hair’s cuticle for greater shine. Texturizes hair and gives it body. Blends naturally. Fades gradually. Last 4-6 weeks. Coffee:  helps tone down red tones, deepen brown-red tones, or cover grey, substitute coffee for water. Use brewed black coffee (not instant or decaffeinated). Teas:  any black tea will help add gold highlights to light brown shades. Can enrich red tones. Brightens and adds highlights to neutral shades. Apple Cider Vinegar:  helps hold color on grey hair. Lemon juice:  lightens blonde shades. Dry hair…add 1 egg, 2 -4 Tbls. olive oil or plain yogurt to henna mixture. These natural ingredients not only condition, but help with the application and rinsing process.