Ayurveda 101 PART1

this was definitely a plethora of information!! im takin notes [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

ButterQueen wrote:Three of the most commonly used ayurvedic powders are henna, indigo, and cassia powder.

Henna and cassia are from the same family of plant, and the one of the main differences is the way the powders behave in terms of coloring. They both have the same strengthening and conditioning properties but cassia obovata will not color dark hair.
What it will do is act as a conditioning treatment for those who want the benefits of a henna without any color.
Also it can be mixed with henna on gray or light colored hair (light browns or blondes) to give a strawberry blonde effect or used alone to give dull grays a nice blond sheen.
Again cassia will not color dark hair but henna will.
Henna powders can be mixed with different plant like hibiscus flowers to achieve burgundy colors (one of my fave mixes ;-) or with cocoa powder to achieve different shades of brown or with indigo powder to achieve medium to dark browns or in a two step process henna and indigo together create jet black(note Amla powder is commonly added to henna but only tones down the coppery reds to make them more subtle)
Indigo Powder also comes from a plant and is commonly mixed with henna or used after henna to create darker hair tones and is a favorite for coloring gray.
Indigo powder has a very high acid level which makes it difficult fr some people to use. The high ph in the Indigo powder can cause severely itchy scalp or even headaches in severe cases.

Never use indigo powder alone unless you want your hair to turn blue [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] .

All three of these powders typically come from various regions of India however henna has been cultivated in various areas of not only India, but Africa and even the Middle Eastern countries (it literally grows everywhere, but it's origins are India)

You can use both henna and cassia powders to make glosses, but indigo (which lacks those conditioning properties) is for the most part used for natural coloring adventures. Leftover henna paste as well as cassia can be frozen, however any mixes containing indigo or indigo powder can not be frozen and once it is mixed must be used immediately.

Hope these tidbits help a little, and I am a henna head myself feel free to ask or even pm me with any questions you may have.
Happy Hennaing [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

BQ...........THANK YOU...THANK YOU...THANK YOU!! The light bulb is finally coming on!!! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] So let me get this straight. I've been using BQA henna and hibiscus to get my color when I henna...sooooo If I understand you correctly...I can use henna and cassia and I will get a little lighter color than I have now?? (the color that's in my avai now) If so, what should my mixture be? Right now I do about 3 parts henna and 1 part hibiscus...so if I did a henna/cassia treatment should I do 1/2 & 1/2? I love henna as well. Just did a treatment Monday!!! I do one every month. So my next question is how often can I henna? I read that some henna once a week, every other week up to once a month.

TIA....for your feedback. The best information I've gotten yet on henna!!! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

ButterQueen, Thank you for the information and for awaking my inner pjism even more. Where do you get your Neem oil from? Also, it seems like a lot of the powders do the same things. So, I'm wondering which one is the best to stop thinning hair and to help me sleep. Or should I just get all the powders?

Hi Carolina Natural, lol, many of the powders do pull double buty in terms of function but for thinning I definitely say Maka/bhringraj is best if it's fallouts then I say Amla, if its sleep you need go for Brahmi :-)
The powders are wonderful in that they can be mixed and added in different combos for excellent results !!

Well there are soooo many different henna powders it's mind boggling, so what's the difference? Which one is best? Here's a little insight that may help when choosing your powder starting from the top ;-)
Jamila Jamila- is by far the most popular henna around and in my opinion one of the best. WHY? Jamila (to my knowledge) is the ONLY henna brand that offers a date stamp that lets you know which crop the henna came from (now they have even added a batch number). So when you get an unopened box of Jamila you know if it's this years crop, 2009, 2008, etc (before 2008 Jamila didn't do date stamping, but because henna pirates who purchase Jamila in bulk and relabel them with fancy and exotic names began the stamping of both the box and the foil pouch on the inside. So if you receive some fancy expensive henna and it comes in a baggie thta is stamped in red with the 'jamila' name you have Jamila henna. Abid & Co only produces Jamila(date stamp) Jamila Henna for Hair and Malika Henna(which they won't even import into the US)
what it does- Jamila imparts coppery red highlights and is good for color bugs, Jamila Henna for Hair is a high quality henna product with a lower dye content so it's good for people who want to henna on a regular but don't the color. (another option for people like this is Cassia Obovata). Jamila rinses out easily and dye releases quickly (some henna may take up to 8 hours for dye release, I have seen Jamila release in as little as two hours in warm temps, which makes it a fave for henna artists)
Yemeni Henna- there are a few different brands of henna from yemen and I have even noted some that was poorly sifted(very cheap, but had twigs and stuff in it [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] )
Yemeni henna in body art imparts more brownish reds as opposed to Jamila with the firey reds which has made it one of the favorite choices for people who use henna to color their gray. Personally I don't find there to be that big of a difference in the hair, but you will notice that henna from yemen has a tendency to be more stringy (almost slimy looking) when it is mixed. A colleague of mine said maybe they add cornstarch to the henna to make it easier to make intricate designs in body art, but this has yet to be proven. It does rinse easily and the better brands of yemeni have a tendency to be a bit more expensive(it's harder to come by than some other brands)
Rajasthani Henna- Is my first love actually. I fell in love with this henna when I began doing body art some years ago. Rajasthani gives a beautiful chestnut brown color(almost mahogany in a good stain) which is so georgous on brown skin for this reason I favor it in brown mixes. If used alone you will note that your highlights will be more in the browns range with some hints of red.
Dye release is a bit slower. In warm weather rajasthani releases in about 6-8 hours, but it soo worth the wait.
Other Notables:
Simple fact is that henna literally grows nearly everywhere in India, parts of the Mid East, and Africa.
You will find henna from Egpyt(which is more for reds), Henna from Sudan (awesome deep browns), Morocco and other places but Henna originates in India and was cultivated and grown in other regions as time passed. I discovered you will honestly find the best hennas from India and subIndian parts of the world.(namely Rajasthan and Pakistan)
Other brands you May Have Heard of:
Reshma, Napur, Naajo, Mumtaaz, BriteHenna, Mehandi(by Hesh), Shama, Dulhan, and there are some others
These brands are sold online but you will typically find these in your local Indian Grocery( all of these hennas are from India).These brands other than Naajo(wasn't thrilled at all with that stuff [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] ) but other than that they fair about the same in terms of performance. You will also find companies like light mountain herbal who do 'colored henna' well if your hair isn't blond don't go by the blonde henna and expect it to color it, lol. These henna powders and similar powders are simply herbal blends of henna and cassia (for blonde) or indigo (for black and brunette) some even will include iron ore to add color to henna along with herbs like maka, brahmi, and amla. So why go to WFM when you could mix these up yourself (and when you mix your own powders, you know exactly what goes in and you know what to do (and not to do, lol) next time.
NOTE: a 'new crop doesn't always mean you will get better color from henna. I have been told for years that the 2005 crop of Jamila was the best n a long time. If henna powder is frozen it can be stored for several years. Problem is most grocers don't freeze it, they buy it in bulk, sell it for cheap and store it on the shelves. Now it can be stored for about 2 years unopened on the shefl with no demise, but after that it starts to lose potency. This is one reason I always wait for dye release, to ensure that my henna is still fresh [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Hope this helps and sorry for the delay!!
If I made any mistakes or forgot any pertinent info, I am sooo very much human, please feel free to correct me [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Hi Envizion, from experience henna and coffee really doesn't mix, it doesn't give the desired results(from my experience) and it makes your henna smelly [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] .
I have even seen in places like henna[pages,and mehandi Catherine mentioning not to add coffee to your henna powders.
It just doesn't do what you would think it would, I think because the coffee just can't 'piggy back' the henna like the 'teas' do that come from flowers(i.e hibiscus,indigo, etc)
Actually when I get a little more time on my hands think I would like to do some major experimentation and research on developing more sources for coloring. Particularly covering gray. Some people actually add black iron oxides to henna to achieve blacks and dark browns and reds, etc

Ayurvadic product is a best for a hair and you use a amla oil,amla powder,shikakai,aritha powder,this a best and this a natural things it never affect your hair and use a henna this a best for a hair.

hair products

I have been visiting CN forever and this is my first post ! I tried my first ayurveda DC with amla, maka, brahmi, conditioner, and olive oil and I really liked it. Does anyone have any other recipes? I’m mainly interested in conditioning and strengthening to help with growth, but I’m open to exploring all the benefits of the powders.

I would also like to use the same combination of powders with only water. Will I need to do a DC afterwards, like some do after henna?

Great post!

My hair felt wonderful! It has a tendency to feel dry after a few days, but I’m on day 4 and it still feels soft and moisturized.

I made the paste with hot water and then added the conditioner and EVOO. Honey sounds like a great addition, so I will be trying that soon. I am going to try a DC with only the powders and water over the weekend.

Thanks for the help and suggestions Chrs

Not sure if you are still checking in but I have a question I've done about 5 henna treatments and now my curl pattern is very loose right in the front. At first I thought that my hair had really grown but I realize that it is the results of the henna. So what I need to know is what can be done to correct this. I was thinking about doing a bentonite clay treatment. How long do I have to wait before I do this or is there something else I should use!

KinkyNappyHappy wrote:Not sure if you are still checking in but I have a question I've done about 5 henna treatments and now my curl pattern is very loose right in the front. At first I thought that my hair had really grown but I realize that it is the results of the henna. So what I need to know is what can be done to correct this. I was thinking about doing a bentonite clay treatment. How long do I have to wait before I do this or is there something else I should use!

Hi KNH, I alternate between henna and amla treatments which seems to help bring the curl back after it has loosened.

check u out freckles...giving out info n whatnot. gawn girl ur such a pro
in switchin back n forth between the henna n amla...does the amla change the color of hair or its just basically a conditioner?

Okay, Nubie I'm not an expert by any means, just sharing my 2 cents. It's supposed to promote dark hair, prevent premature graying and hairfall. It's hard to tell if my hair has gotten darker because the roots are always dark until the sun hits them. It does help decrease shedding though. It's a good conditioner. You should try it.

Hey Freckeledmom

How or rather what are you mixing the amla with? Just water? Are you using other oils?

I have some amla, but I've never used it because I didn't want it to darker the color I've achieved with henna. I use henna with Hibiscus powder. I get a very pretty burgundy color. I wonder will this tone down the color I have now?

Thanks so much for your input....

KNH

I usually mix it with conditioner, oil and honey. I put the powder in a bowl and add hot water until it is like mud. Then I add conditioner until gets creamy. Then add about a tsp of honey and olive/coconut oil. I have also added a little henna to spice up the color. I have also used just amla, oil and water. I can't say that it has changed my color since I have always used them both.

Wow there is alot of great info in here.

ChrsLvsBks wrote:

CrissyQ wrote:Wow there is alot of great info in here.

So what are you planning to use first lady?

OOOO I am still researching. However, I have done a cassia treatment and I did like the results.

freckledmom4 wrote:I usually mix it with conditioner, oil and honey. I put the powder in a bowl and add hot water until it is like mud. Then I add conditioner until gets creamy. Then add about a tsp of honey and olive/coconut oil. I have also added a little henna to spice up the color. I have also used just amla, oil and water. I can't say that it has changed my color since I have always used them both.

Do you think I can use hibiscus powder in the mixter instead of henna?