Keeping it Ginger Part II
So... I've been dyeing my hair with henna (and the help of my mum when I was younger) since year 1. My routine hasn't changed much.
Product
- For the most part I've stuck to using Lush rouge henna blocks. I find it makes preparing the henna a lot easier because I don't have to worry about ingredient proportions etc. It's also less harsh on my hair (I assume because of the added cocoa) than when I've used my own mixes, so my hair doesn't feel rough and crispy afterwards.
Process
In the past I've let my roots grow out much more before redyeing, so when redyeing I used a full block to make sure it was covering all of my hair. Nowadays I redye about every 2 months and only use half a block, focusing on the roots of my hair.
It takes me about 30 minutes.
First I set everything up, I put on dark clothes that won't get stained, lay out an old towel on the floor and make sure everything I'll need is within reach for when I'm putting the dye on.
Things I use include: rubber gloves, mug of hot water in case I need to add it to henna and for cleaning up afterwards, hand-towel for cleaning up after, shower cap to keep the my hennaed hair in place, and a towel to go over the shower cap.
To prepare the henna, I pour boiling water onto the block of henna in a bowl/jug. I use a fork to break-up the henna block and mix it into the water. I pour a little bit of water at a time while I'm mixing - you can always add more water but not more henna - until it's a thick but fairly runny paste.
I just put it into my hair with my hands (using rubber gloves of course), making sure I work it into the roots. I don't have a very organised method of putting it in, but I tend to try and do the it in layers so that the henna is worked all the way through.
When I've put all the henna in, I flatten my hair to the top of my head (the henna keeps it all together pretty well for me. Then I cover it with a shower cap to keep it contained. I secure it all together with a towel over the top, but first I dip a hand-towel into warm water and wipe up all the excess henna that I've dripped smeared over me by accident, so that it doesn't stain my skin or make more of a mess when I move.
That's pretty much it, other than cleaning up the area.
I leave it in for at least four hours, then wash it out (which takes a while).
When I wash it out, I rinse out the worst of the henna, then I use conditioner. I condition over and over again to get out the henna. If I need to wash my hair I will use shampoo once like I normally would, but I find that it's not as good at getting the henna out, so I don't bother with it more than once.
Before henna; after washing henna out; day after henna.
Everyone swears by different ways of using henna, but this is how I prefer to do it. It's efficient and gives me pretty consistent results.