We often get told that dyeing our hair creates damage and makes it brittle. This is especially unwelcome to those of us who have thin, fine hair that cannot handle any harsh treatments. Natural plant dyes, however, are easy to use and even provide a protective layer on top of the hair, coating rather than opening (and therefore damaging) the hair shaft. The most known plant dye is henna, which creates rich, red shades. Pure henna will not color your hair any other shade than red, so be very careful when choosing your product. Products that claim to give brown or blonde tresses always include some additional ingredients – not all of which are necessarily hair-friendly. The safe plant dyes that provide other colors, are indigo, which creates dark shades, and the so-called blonde henna or cassia (which actually doesn’t have a clear pigment, although it possesses all the strengthening qualities of henna). Henna, indigo, and cassia can all be mixed together to create the desired shade.
photo (c) Laura Kurki
You can find henna from various Asian stores but also from, for example, Lush. Asian markets carry the dye in larger quantities for a fraction of the price, but if you are looking for a particular shade and don’t want to mix the color yourself, Lush is the way to go. In this guide, I am using Lush’s Caca Marron henna, which is a bright red with a brown tint.
Henna can be bought as a powder, in which case you only need to add hot water to create your dye, but Lush henna comes in blocks that you have to break down and melt before using. First melt the henna in a kettle by pouring boiling water on it and mix until it’s greenish goo (is that not a scientific term for it?). If you’re using a pure henna powder, you can add paprika spice or lemon juice for intensity, or coffee for a more brownish tint. Then pour the hot water on the ingredients and make the paste.
photo (c) Laura Kurki
Now that you have your henna paste, you can start applying it on your head – just make sure it’s not too hot! And remember to wear gloves unless you want orange hands for a week. This is probably one of the hardest parts of the dyeing process because henna doesn’t apply easily. You might even want to ask a friend to put it on you, so that there won’t be any missed patches of hair.
After you have covered your hair with henna, you should wrap it in cling film for a more intense color. Warmth helps the color to develop and it’s good to cover your hair in something so the paste won’t drop everywhere when it dries.
And now you wait. Henna takes anywhere from three to 24 hours. The longer you keep the color on, the more intense it becomes. But three to four hours is a good amount (you can always do another dye session later).
photos (c) Laura Kurki
After the long wait, you can wash your hair. This is another slightly more difficult part, since henna has a tendency to stick to your hair in clumps. So, be very thorough when rinsing it out. It’s usually recommended that you don’t shampoo wash your hair for a few days since the color might fade a little, but with Lush henna this doesn’t tend to be a problem.
Henna takes a few days to settle, so don’t fret if the color is a bit orange at first. It’ll tone down over the course of the next couple of days after which you can see the true color. If you want a darker, more auburn color, you might want to do another application after about a week. Henna keeps layering on the hair so it’ll always get darker. Just remember that if you go too dark, it’s hard to come back. Henna is a permanent color and there’s not much you can do to get it out. It is possible to put a blonde box dye on it (having done it myself a few times, I can say it’s doable, though not the healthiest option) but it’ll take a long time to get the slight red tint out. However, henna creates a natural, healthy color so it’s definitely worth trying if you want a hair-friendlier option than chemical dyes.
Embrace the red – maybe it’ll bring out the more fiery side of you!