Unhappy Hennaing :(

Hey ladies,

So, after all the henna hype I henna'd for the first time last week in hopes of tweeking my dark brown/black hair color to a more reddish tone and was surprisingly bummed out about my results. Not only did I not get any color change, my hair is now super dry when it used to be so moist and soft. It makes me never want to do it again [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I added coconut milk, olive oil, and red zinger tea to my mix. Left on for nearly 7 hours (I just knew Chole, my hair, was going to thank me!). Rinsed, rinsed, riiiinsed. Deep conditioned. Rinsed. Leave-in. (co-washed all week w/ VO5 moisturizing conditioner and others...and nothing seems to be working). I hope this is temporary and Chloe will be okay again in 4-6 weeks. But, in the meantime..? [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Are there any other natural ways of coloring? [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

So my question is, how do I get back? Holla!

How long did you allow the dye to release after mixing. Also, I am protein sensitive so I have to be careful what I mix my henna with. No lemons or acv or coconut milk for my mixture.

When I henna, it does dry out my hair...So i have to baggy over night! To get my hair (Nyla) back to normal.

Also where did you get your henna from? Was it 100% henna and not a henna color kit?

Henna will not lighten dark hair. For naturally lightening hair I've heard honey might produce some results.

NylaCoils wrote:How long did you allow the dye to release after mixing. Also, I am protein sensitive so I have to be careful what I mix my henna with. No lemons or acv or coconut milk for my mixture.

When I henna, it does dry out my hair...So i have to baggy over night! To get my hair (Nyla) back to normal.

I mixed it on a Sunday, put a shower cap over it and refrigerated it for a couple of days. Wednesday morning I took the henna out and added red zinger tea to hopefully add some red and unthaw (I read you could do that to frozen henna) and then let it sit 'til room temperature (12 hours). I henna'd in the afternoon and lft on nearly 7 hours. Hm..I may be protein sensitive as well. I guess I'm learning!

So when you say baggy overnight are you talking DC?

xtremelyperfect wrote:Also where did you get your henna from? Was it 100% henna and not a henna color kit?

I got it from iherb.com by Rainbow. It's different from the one that many of the other CG are using, but it's also 100% natural. This is it: http://www.iherb.com/Rainbow-Research-Henna-Hair-Color-and-Conditioner-Persian-Copper-Red-Copper-4-oz-113-g/11554?at=0

I dunno, maybe it wasn't good quality? But then, henna is henna right? Aw man, I dunno [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]. I feel like either one probably would have dried my hair out. Now I'm just trying to save it. I can hear it when I rub it!

mojitochica wrote:Henna will not lighten dark hair. For naturally lightening hair I've heard honey might produce some results.

Aww...boooo! (lol) Well, thanks for the info. Any suggestions on how to incorporate the honey?

I have read quite a few negative reviews on rainbow Henna. The tea and coconut milk was probably too much acid. What kind of products are u using to DC? The first time I hennaed i DC'd Overnight with JCWDT and it restored my moisture level quite easily.

Whether or not you see color depends on your natural...well current color. If your hair is dark brown to black it is like taking an orange crayon and coloring on a piece of black construction paper. You can see the red in the sun but indoors your hair will look like a much shinier/richer black. If your hair is a lighter shade of brown you will see color and the color becomes more intense each time you henna(if done properly

Sorry for the multiple posts but i just looked at the "henna" you purchased and that is definitely NOT pure henna it is what is considered a compound henna. Henna is a plant and when ordered in its pure form comes as sifted green powder. Check out the henna for hair forum and this thread that CN started back in... 07
http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/showthread.php?t=28006

http://www.hennaforhair.com/forum/index.php?module=phpwsbb&PHPWSBB_MAN_OP=viewforum&PHPWS_MAN_ITEMS=4

Oh, really? Dang, ur probably right. Another CG recommended cocount milk vs. water to avoid the dry aftermath. I should definitely research what I'm putting in my hair and what does what. But still, what works for them still may not work for me and Chloe (hehe).

I've been DCing w/ Olive Oil Organic Root Stimulator Conditioner and my hair loves it, but I've never left it overnight, so maybe I should try that. What's JCWDT?

TICTACTAN wrote:Sorry for the multiple posts but i just looked at the "henna" you purchased and that is definitely NOT pure henna it is what is considered a compound henna. Henna is a plant and when ordered in its pure form comes as sifted green powder. Check out the henna for hair forum and this thread that CN started back in... 07
http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/showthread.php?t=28006

[url=http://www.hennaforhair.com/forum/index.php?module=phpwsbb&PHPWSBB_MAN_OP=viewforum&PHPWS_MAN_ITEMS=4

http://www.hennaforhair.com/forum/index.php?module=phpwsbb&PHPWSBB_MAN_OP=viewforum&PHPWS_MAN_ITEMS=4[/quote[/url]]

My powder was indeed green and the mixture looked the same as many others I've seen, but you're probably right. I'm new to all of this henna business. Aw, poor Chloe..what did I do to her?! lol..

Jessicurl weekly deep treatment=JCWDT.

Just a few things apart from what others have already suggested.

1) 7 hours may have been too long to leave the mix in your hair. Some people do it with good results but for others it is overkill. I only do it for 2-3 hours once the colour has released in the mix.

2) You only need to let the mixture sit for 12 hours before applying at the most. I'm wondering if in the 2.5 days that you let sit that it somehow lost its optimal conditioning ability?

3) Unsure about rainbow henna and agree with the other posters that the reviews of it seem to be quite mixed across the internet.

4) Unless you are very protein sensitive, I doubt that coconut milk alone would be the drying agent as it is only moderately acidic with a pH of 6.

5) I noticed you had olive oil in your mix. Some people recommend against using oils in the mix because it can block or interfere with colour deposit onto the hair shaft. You made the observation that you didn't see much colour change. This may be a possible reason.

I think there are a lot of question marks in your mix and technique that make it difficult to isolate exactly what went wrong. If you do want to try it again, I would suggest a tried and trusted brand such as Jamila and not letting it sit more than 12 hours before applying so that you don't lose the optimal conditioning benefits.

Maybe henna just is too drying for your hair. It is drying in
general and immediately after the treatment is the most dry stage and
may need a few days of co-washing to bring the moisture level back. However, before you arrive at that conclusion, there are still a few things you can change and tinker with in your mix and stuff. I would give it another go if you can and if you are up to it!

Hey guys! Thanks for all your suggestions! After dcing overnight, Chloe was a happy camper

I'm finally seeing more color in the sun, but I'd like more, so...
I'm not giving up on Henna and next time around..well, screw rainbow shoot

How long if at all should I allow my henna to sit before application?

Hey Naturally Nu*, you may have to use trial and error to find the best amount of time to leave your henna in. Try a couple of hours next time and check your results.

As for your mix, I have found R2D2's recommendation of 12 hours to be about right to let the mix sit before applying. I know after 1 day, the mix starts to deteriorate so try to get it in your hair at 12 hours as she recommends or at least before 24 hours if possible. Freeze it if you can't apply it within a day of mixing it.

I also have very dry hair after applying henna and am very protein sensitive so I deep condition with a major moisturizing treatment after - I use Kiehls Olive Oil Deep conditioning pak, but I have heard great things about Deva One and Miss Jessie's too. Whatever - go for moisture, not protein.

But even with deep conditioning, it takes about a week before my hair feels moisturized again. I use KCKT and KCCC to twist but have to layer Qhemet Biologics Amla and olive oil (darn you Qhemet for closing to stock up!! please hurry!) and plain old jojoba oil for that week on top of my twists. I am down to alternating between co-washing and shampooing once a week but still moisturize after the shower with the Jojoba oil or coconut oil. Basically, i go for water based moisture with an oil or butter to seal. good luck!

The red in the pic is henna'd gray. Boy do i looooove henna!
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Great to hear you are not giving up on henna and it was good that Chloe was happy again after another overnight DC. Swordwood is correct, sometimes it can take a few days for it to feel back to normal moisture levels.

Maybe next time try letting the mix sit for no more than 12 hours and then have in your hair for 3-4 hours. 4 hours is probably the maximum time you need it you and you won't likely get extra colour after that if the dye had already released before you applied the mixture.

The thing is with the overnighters is that in many cases they mix the henna and apply straight away without letting the dye release first and the dye releases in their hair. This is purely for convenience and the overnight length of time allows them to get colour. From memory, Curlynikki would sometimes put it into her hair at 5pm and then leave in overnight.

Ohhh ok. Aww, you ladies are getting me all excited for my next henna now! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

You've all been such a huge help. Especially u, R2D2..THANKS!!