Red Hair Naturally

Red seems to be the new 'blond' these days. It's become very popular, I've noticed, over the last few years or so. My own husband seems to appreciate the beauty in the redheaded population and I'm just getting to a point where I'm just happy if my gray hairs don't show. However, after many years of playing with hair color in a bottle, I've suffered from itchy, dry and unhealthy scalp and to be honest, red out of bottle, looks just like that--red out of a BOTTLE.

A friend recently colored her hair red and it suits her, but not her hair. The hair looks brittle, dry and broken and the color is muted and fades within weeks. I've also had the same experience with my hair in the past as well after using reds and auburns from the store rack. My hair colored with henna, on the other hand, looks healthy, shiny, healthy and bright.

Henna is a great herb! It not only colors the hair, but it adds nutrients and shine to the hair and scalp. I've noticed less split ends since I've started using it and the color doesn't fade. The only issue becomes the roots which grow out, but if you like to color your hair, this will always be something you have to deal with. The other nice thing about doing your roots, is you can do the whole head without worry of over treating the previously colored hair, because the henna does not bleach or dry the hair the way the bottle dyes will do.

Now, there is one drawback...it's messy...but I think that can be fun too if you let it.

If you have long hair, you'll probably need about 1 cup of henna powder, less if you have short hair. Put this in a stainless steel or glass bowl as the mix will stain just about anything it touches. Add a couple of tablespoons of vinegar and then add enough boiling water to make a thin paste (think pancake batter). Allow this to sit for 20 minutes or so (or longer) to allow the vinegar to actually pull the color from the herb. Mix again and then you're ready to apply.

While you're waiting for your henna to 'cook', prepare any working surfaces by covering them with towels, rags or drop cloths. I have been known to do this over the bathroom sink but after many a mess, I've just started kneeling over the tub. It's much easier and less mess after. The henna doesn't stain my porcelain tub.

Get some plastic gloves to keep from staining your hands. If you do it gloveless, the color will stain your skin and nails, but it will wash after several days.

Next, you need to prepare your skin. Henna will stain your face as well. You need to get a thick oil for this. I've used, eden salve, hair conditioner, olive oil, castor oil, vaseline, mineral oil and just about any other oil you can think up and they all work. Carefully oil your face all along the scalp line. Oil up the ears and neck as well. This is going to prevent staining. You might get some, but it will be minimal enough, it will generally fade after 1 or 2 washings.

You'll need some extra towels and rags for drips and cleanup and you'll need saran wrap or plastic shopping bags and towels to wrap around your head. And wear old clothes, because they will get stained as well. I keep a set of clothes just for this and use them over and over.

Put on your gloves and lean over the tub or the sink and begin to part your hair with your fingers. Grab a handful of 'mud' and work it into the hair beginning at the scalp and down the hair a few inches. Do the whole head this way in small sections until you have your scalp hair thoroughly saturated. Make sure to work more 'mud' along the hair line all the way around your head. For now, don't worry about the drips.

Once you've got the scalp and hairline done, start taking what's left in the bowl in small handfuls and begin working it through the bottom of the hair starting from where you left off at the scalp until you have all the hair saturated. This is not like washing your hair. You shouldn't rub, scrub, twist or stir the hair in any way, or you'll have a tangled mess when you're done. You want to push the mud into the hair in much the same fashion as if you were trying to wring water from your hair.

Add any remaining henna into the hair, just for good measure. If you find you're finished and you have areas left uncovered, you can try to work some down from the top or you can mix up some more if need be. This isn't real convenient, but if you're quick about it, you shouldn't have any problems with timing or color differences.

Wrap the length of your hair around your head like a crown and mush it down. It should stay pretty well. After all, it's now full of mud. Now, you should have your bags (I've used WalMart bags before.) or your saran wrap handy. Wrap the plastic around the hair and scalp to contain the warmth and wetness. You do NOT want this to dry up in your hair. It will dry your scalp a bit AND you won't get the same color effect from a dry herb. Now wrap the towel around the plastic to help preserve the warmth. The effect is actually better and faster if you can keep warmed towels on your head, but I'm too lazy to mess with this, so I usually don't bother with it.

For maximum color effect and the least amount of drying to the scalp, I leave it on for three hours. The experts say you can leave it on for as little as 45 minutes and I've left it on for as many as 5 hours because the city had a leak and turned our water off. The shorter time span gave too little color change to suit me and the five hours made my head itch furiously for days after I washed it out. Use your own best judgment.

Next, time for the shower. Remove the towel and plastic and jump in. Now the easiest way to get this stuff out is to use over-the-counter cheap (Suave) hair conditioner. Pour gobs of it into your hair and work it through with your fingers or a large toothed comb and then rinse. This will mess up the inside of your shower, but don't worry, when you're done, it will clean up easily enough. You don't have to use the conditioner but it does make the task much easier. I've also rinsed it with nothing but water. Once the bulk of the herbs are out of my hair, I proceed to wash as normal. I've used shampoo and soap and find that neither will change the color treatment, but I only use soap these days because of the detergents in the shampoo. I've found that the vinegar rinse I use on my hair also doesn't cause any problems.

Do not be surprised if you lose a few loose hairs. I always do on the day I dye, but the hair loss doesn't seem to be an ongoing problem, just a cleaning of the closet, so to speak. It usually only lasts a day or two and I'm thinking it's more from the movement of the hair rather than any chemical damage. I lost alot more hair on a regular basis when I used shampoo and bottle dyes on a regular basis.

Also, don't be surprised if you feel a bit of grit left in your scalp after your hair dries. I always have this. It's usually less if I used the conditioner to wash, but it's always there and I think it's actually a good thing, because you actually get a bit more coloring action until the next time you wash. After the next couple of combings and one or two washings, the grit is usually gone.

If you're not sure or confident enough to just dive right in, you can color test your henna first. You can get a wad of your hair from your hairbrush and dye it first using the steps above. See what color it turns before you decide.

Henna will NOT dye everyone's hair the same color. It depends on the color of the hair you already have. Henna does not bleach the underlying color. It blends with your natural color. This is why it looks so much more natural than bottled dyes. Since, the average person has many colors in their hair, you will still have this when you're done. The henna will mix differently with every different color you already have to give natural looking streaks and highlights.

You can dye bleached and/or colored hair as well, but the results, again, will vary. If you're a blond, the result from Red Henna, will give a warm orange/red color. If you're darker headed, you'll get a darker red. Brunettes, will get a black red or dark auburn effect.

If you try this at home, be sure and leave a comment and let us know how you liked it. I've been using this on my hair for some years and I'll probably be a redhead 'til I dye. *wink*

Here's a pretty good video I found that will give you a visual of everything you've just read. The only difference I can see is that she makes her mix a bit dryer. I've done this before, and I really believe the wetter consistency works better especially if you want drastic color change. She also lets her mix sit over night, which I've never done before, but I might have to try it next time and see if there is a difference.

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