henna on very blonde hair

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ Henna For Hair ~ Discussion Forum ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by hennarunner on August 20, 2004 at 08:57:33:

In reply to: Re: for starjumper: henna on platinum blonde hair posted by hennarunner on August 19, 2004 at 21:30:28:

As you can see by the pic above, I have extremly blonde (almost white,
esp. in the summers) hair. No chemical dyes had been used in my hair
in many, many years; so, the length of it was total unprocessed.

I mixed Prabda henna powder with a 1:1 lemon/water mixture to a
thicknes that would flow through a normal, chemical-color applicator
bottle. Perhaps a bit thinner than normal yogurt. I added no essential
oils or conditioning oils as my hair is already fairly oily. I let the
paste sit overnight, restirred it and applied it (well, the hubby
applied it) to my hair. To prevent the skin on my face, ears, and neck
from dying, I applied petroleum jelly to those areas.

The first two times I did this, I started losing color along my
lenght, with platinum strands appearing within days. The third time,
however, I found the trick for me, and that's what I'll post here.

After applying the henna and working it through the hair, I wrappd my
head in saran wrap and a plastic shower cap. About two hours into the
processs, I laid a heating pad on top of my head for an hour or so,
then went to bed. Sleeping in henna can be a HUGE pain, but that and
the extra heat is what gave me the color above throughout my hair. I
rinsed, rinsed, rinsed some more. However, I did notice I didn't have
to rinse as long if I slept in it--still not sure why. Adding
conditioner at this stage also seemed to help with that.

The downside about henna'ing blonde hair, at least for me, is that
blonde roots show up so vividly. Dark haired roots don't have the same
bizarre, punk-rock appearance. And, my hair grows at a simply insane
speed. I was having to henna every 2 weeks, and use colored mousse for
almost a week of that just to hide the rapid outgrowth. Even sleeping
in the henna, it took an hour or so to apply, then another three of
sitting around, then sleeping in it, then an hour or so of rinsing,
etc. Had I realized my hair grew that quickly and the dying would take
that long, I doubt I'd ever have started the process. My strand test
only took a few hours to develope nicely, so the extra time wasn't
something I'd planned on. I'd been using henna for several months when
my mother was killed in a car accident in May. My family lives 2 hours
away, and suddenly I was driving a lot more than I usually did and
spending days and weeks away from home trying to get her estate in
order (I am her only daughter, so my stepdad and I were doing most of
it on our own), things sorted out, headstone ordered, etc. There was
just no longer time for me to henna my hair, nor was there motivation.
And, she'd loved my hair blonde. It just felt right to go back, but
be forewarned that getting henna out of your hair is a HUGE pain.
Expensive, time-consuming and damaging. It can be done, but it's taken
almost 3 months for my color to return to it's natural state.
Stripping once a month and color correction has finally paid off.

Hope this is helpful!

Follow Ups

Post Followup

Name:
E-Mail:
Subject:
: As you can see by the pic above, I have extremly blonde (almost white, : esp. in the summers) hair. No chemical dyes had been used in my hair : in many, many years; so, the length of it was total unprocessed. : : I mixed Prabda henna powder with a 1:1 lemon/water mixture to a : thicknes that would flow through a normal, chemical-color applicator : bottle. Perhaps a bit thinner than normal yogurt. I added no essential : oils or conditioning oils as my hair is already fairly oily. I let the : paste sit overnight, restirred it and applied it (well, the hubby : applied it) to my hair. To prevent the skin on my face, ears, and neck : from dying, I applied petroleum jelly to those areas. : : The first two times I did this, I started losing color along my : lenght, with platinum strands appearing within days. The third time, : however, I found the trick for me, and that's what I'll post here. : : After applying the henna and working it through the hair, I wrappd my : head in saran wrap and a plastic shower cap. About two hours into the : processs, I laid a heating pad on top of my head for an hour or so, : then went to bed. Sleeping in henna can be a HUGE pain, but that and : the extra heat is what gave me the color above throughout my hair. I : rinsed, rinsed, rinsed some more. However, I did notice I didn't have : to rinse as long if I slept in it--still not sure why. Adding : conditioner at this stage also seemed to help with that. : : The downside about henna'ing blonde hair, at least for me, is that : blonde roots show up so vividly. Dark haired roots don't have the same : bizarre, punk-rock appearance. And, my hair grows at a simply insane : speed. I was having to henna every 2 weeks, and use colored mousse for : almost a week of that just to hide the rapid outgrowth. Even sleeping : in the henna, it took an hour or so to apply, then another three of : sitting around, then sleeping in it, then an hour or so of rinsing, : etc. Had I realized my hair grew that quickly and the dying would take : that long, I doubt I'd ever have started the process. My strand test : only took a few hours to develope nicely, so the extra time wasn't : something I'd planned on. I'd been using henna for several months when : my mother was killed in a car accident in May. My family lives 2 hours : away, and suddenly I was driving a lot more than I usually did and : spending days and weeks away from home trying to get her estate in : order (I am her only daughter, so my stepdad and I were doing most of : it on our own), things sorted out, headstone ordered, etc. There was : just no longer time for me to henna my hair, nor was there motivation. : And, she'd loved my hair blonde. It just felt right to go back, but : be forewarned that getting henna out of your hair is a HUGE pain. : Expensive, time-consuming and damaging. It can be done, but it's taken : almost 3 months for my color to return to it's natural state. : Stripping once a month and color correction has finally paid off. : : Hope this is helpful!
Optional link URL:
Link title:
Optional image URL: