Question About Henna And Color Release

KiniKakes

Well-Known Member
Hi ladies! :D

So after using Henna for a few months, for CONDITIONING and STRENGTHENING purposes only, I decided to try Henna for the coloring effects. Its the '07 and i felt like a change! :) It was either cutting bangs again, or going for a bit of color. I opted for color!!!

So anyway, i tried my first Henna Color Mix this wknd. This is what it consisted of:

Jamilla Henna
Lemon Juice (a GOOD amount)
Coconut Oil
Honey
Amla Oil
EVOO
Castor Oil
Suave Milk & Honey Conditioner



I nuked it for about 5 minutes........ then let the mixture sit for about an hour. I applied it throughout my hair, and kept it in for about 1.5 hours (no heat). When i washed it out and rollerset........... I had NO COLOR RELEASE. Same 1b color as before....

So my question for all the Henna Gurus out there is.... Where did i go wrong? :confused:

I have a feeling it could be a couple of things:

1) Didnt let the mixture sit long enough. I know some folks leave it as long as overnight?
2) Use something stronger than lemon juice?
3) Let it stay in my hair longer?
4) Use heat while its in my hair next time?

I dunno........ Feel free to offer any suggestions and/or possible ways to get more color release next time. What do ya'all add to ure Henna mix to bring out the color, aside from lemon juice?

Thanks in advance, girls!!!! :grin:
 
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MissFallon

Well-Known Member
I think u should let the color release longer and let it sit in your hair for a longer period of time. I usually let the color release for 3-4 hours and keep it in my hair for atleast 2 hours w/o heat.
 

KiniKakes

Well-Known Member
MissFallon said:
I think u should let the color release longer and let it sit in your hair for a longer period of time. I usually let the color release for 3-4 hours and keep it in my hair for atleast 2 hours w/o heat.

Got it!!! Thanx!
 

crlsweetie912

Well-Known Member
OT:
(no homo)
Kini you are such a beautiful woman! You look prettier and prettier in all your pictures.
I agree about letting the color sit for longer. In a thread I looked at yesterday, someone asked about microwaving for quicker release and I thought Sareca or someone else said that was a :nono:
 

KiniKakes

Well-Known Member
crlsweetie912 said:
OT:
(no homo)
Kini you are such a beautiful woman! You look prettier and prettier in all your pictures.
I agree about letting the color sit for longer. In a thread I looked at yesterday, someone asked about microwaving for quicker release and I thought Sareca or someone else said that was a :nono:

Ok kewl!!! That is good info to know!!! Thanx!

Awww, you are so sweet! Thank you so much! I took that picture this past wknd at the Barbie Loves MAC promo party at the MAC store in Long Island. It was so much fun!!! Anyway, that was my "Barbie Makeover," hence the bright pink lipstick and other fun colors!!! :grin:
 

LaNecia

Well-Known Member
Kini...

I just wanted to chime in for a second...

Didn't find what I was looking for re: oils and things added to the henna mix but I did find this
The Henna Page said:
Mixing Your Henna Pastes applied immediately after the "terps" were added did not stain as well as those left for an hour. The best stains came from paste that had "terps" mixed in from 4 to 48 before applying when left at 80F.
I noticed last week that when I made a mix and left it sitting for an hour, nothing happened with the color release so it does need to sit longer to allow for max terping.

HTH
 
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KiniKakes

Well-Known Member
VWVixxen said:
Kini...

I just wanted to chime in for a second...I read some where (it's been a while) that adding other oils (aside from terps) to henna prior to color release actually slows down the process. I'm going to go through my notes and see what I find, be back with more in a min...

Aaaaah I see!!!! So if i wanna add my beloved Coconut, EVOO, and Amla oils, its best to wait until AFTER the mix has sat for several hours (or overnight). Got it!!! So next time, i'll just mix together the powder and the conditioner, then let it sit overnight.... then add my favorite oils in the morning, once im ready to apply! Thanks girl!
 

JLove74

New Member
KiniKakes said:
Aaaaah I see!!!! So if i wanna add my beloved Coconut, EVOO, and Amla oils, its best to wait until AFTER the mix has sat for several hours (or overnight). Got it!!! So next time, i'll just mix together the powder and the conditioner, then let it sit overnight.... then add my favorite oils in the morning, once im ready to apply! Thanks girl!

I think you should just add powder and water, let the color release and then add oils, condish and watever else you like.
 

sareca

Well-Known Member
crlsweetie912 said:
OT:
(no homo)
Kini you are such a beautiful woman! You look prettier and prettier in all your pictures.
I agree about letting the color sit for longer. In a thread I looked at yesterday, someone asked about microwaving for quicker release and I thought Sareca or someone else said that was a :nono:

Although I'm not crazy about the idea of nuking henna, I can't think of a good reason not too.

Bascially chica, I think you've got too much stuff in your henna. I'd try:

Jamila
hot water
splash of lemon juice (tablespoon or so)

Leave that on top of the frig about 17 hours then apply it (or refrigerate it).

With henna you need two things to happen in order to get good coloring: dye release and dye deposit into the hair. I think the big problem is the oil. Some oils are terps (usually essential oils) others are not. Those that aren't might have no affect on color release (or deposit) or they could impede it (depending on the properties of the oil). So unless you have some tea tree oil (a good terp) then I'd leave it out altogether. The acidity of the lemon juice is all you need, but it can be a little drying. Nothing a good moisturizing DC can't handle tho. You might also want to leave out the conditioner. It might have cones or oils or any number of things that can impede dye release or color deposit.

Source: http://www.hennapage.com/henna/how/terp.html

That's my 2 cents.

ETA: If you do have some tea tree oil only use a little and don't use the lemon juice. We hennaphiliacs add oil to our henna mainly to keep it from drying out the hair.
 
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KiniKakes

Well-Known Member
sareca said:
Although I'm not crazy about the idea of nuking henna, I can't think of a good reason not too.

Bascially chica, I think you've got too much stuff in your henna. I'd try:

Jamila
hot water
splash of lemon juice (tablespoon or so)

Leave that on top of the frig about 17 hours then apply it (or refrigerate it).

With henna you need two things to happen in order to get good coloring: dye release and dye deposit into the hair. I think the big problem is the oil. Some oils are terps (usually essential oils) others are not. Those that aren't might have no affect on color release (or deposit) or they could impede it (depending on the properties of the oil). So unless you have some tea tree oil (a good terp) then I'd leave it out altogether. The acidity of the lemon juice is all you need, but it can be a little drying. Nothing a good moisturizing DC can't handle tho. You might also want to leave out the conditioner. It might have cones or oils or any number of things that can impede dye release or color deposit.

Source: http://www.hennapage.com/henna/how/terp.html

That's my 2 cents.

ETA: If you do have some tea tree oil only use a little and don't use the lemon juice. We hennaphiliacs add oil to our henna mainly to keep it from drying out the hair.

Thanks Sareca!!!!! That was REALLY helpful!!! So it sounds like Ive been overdoing it with all the stuff i put in the mix, PLUS i need to let it sit longer!!! Okay, got it!!!!

Ladies you guys have been VERY helpful!!! Thanks so much for all the replies!
 

cocoberry10

New Member
KiniKakes said:
Hi ladies! :D

So after using Henna for a few months, for CONDITIONING and STRENGTHENING purposes only, I decided to try Henna for the coloring effects. Its the '07 and i felt like a change! :) It was either cutting bangs again, or going for a bit of color. I opted for color!!!

So anyway, i tried my first Henna Color Mix this wknd. This is what it consisted of:

Jamilla Henna
Lemon Juice (a GOOD amount)
Coconut Oil
Honey
Amla Oil
EVOO
Castor Oil
Suave Milk & Honey Conditioner



I nuked it for about 5 minutes........ then let the mixture sit for about an hour. I applied it throughout my hair, and kept it in for about 1.5 hours (no heat). When i washed it out and rollerset........... I had NO COLOR RELEASE. Same 1b color as before....

So my question for all the Henna Gurus out there is.... Where did i go wrong? :confused:

I have a feeling it could be a couple of things:

1) Didnt let the mixture sit long enough. I know some folks leave it as long as overnight?
2) Use something stronger than lemon juice?
3) Let it stay in my hair longer?
4) Use heat while its in my hair next time?

I dunno........ Feel free to offer any suggestions and/or possible ways to get more color release next time. What do ya'all add to ure Henna mix to bring out the color, aside from lemon juice?

Thanks in advance, girls!!!! :grin:

Thanks for the picture. I'm doing my first henna treatment tonight, and seeing how it's supposed to look really helps.

I heard coffee helps release the color!
 

buttaflye03

Well-Known Member
Hey Kini:wave:

No advice. Just wanted to say that I love your new siggy pic! Your hair looks fab as usual. Was that Roosevelt Field Mall? I love that place.:)
 

cocoberry10

New Member
When you all henna, do you wash your hair first, or apply your henna to dry hair, then shampoo, condition, etc. Thanks!
 

KiniKakes

Well-Known Member
buttaflye03 said:
Hey Kini:wave:

No advice. Just wanted to say that I love your new siggy pic! Your hair looks fab as usual. Was that Roosevelt Field Mall? I love that place.:)

:lol: Dude you're such a mallnista! I love that!!! Yep, thats Roosevelt Field alright!
 
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