My First Henna Experience; Will there be a Second???

I have quite a number of grey strands on my head. The why beats me really, lol. I found the first strand when I was a teenager and I was I should let it be that removing that one strand would cause more to grow out. So I left it believing others won't pop up, o boy! was I wrong!!! Hahaha! As years went by they kept on multiplying. I actually kinda like them but still I don't think I'm ready to flaunt grey hair yet.

I started thinking of ways to cover up the grey strands. I considered semi-permanent hair dyes/colours but after doing some research online I decided not to, especially because my hair is already chemically altered i.e. relaxed/texlaxed. Another chemical would probably be too much for it to handle without falling apart.  I finally decided to go with natural dye (Henna) especially because of the other benefits of henna asides natural colouring. I should do another blog post on the benefits of henna.

PREPARATION

• I steeped 2 bags of green tea in about 1.5 cups of hot water and allowed it cool.
• I mixed the steeped tea gradually into 200 grams of henna powder purchased from www.olori.com.ng in a plastic bowl and stirred with a plastic spoon until i had a nice paste. It was quite thick at this point but you will find out why soon.
• I covered the bowl and left it in my kitchen cupboard overnight. I also applied my pre-poo mix to my hair, wrapped my hair in clingfilm, covered with a shower cap and left it overnight.

APPLICATION

• I Shampooed with Creme of nature moisture and shine sulphate-free shampoo and wrapped my hair up in a tshirt.
• During my research on henna application and results I found that it tends to make hair dry and hard like a strong proteintreatment. I decided to tread with caution go for Curly Nikki's conditioning henna treatment. see here
• I divided the henna mix into two because it seemed like a lot (I poured the other part into a plastic bowl with a lid and poured in the freezer for later use). I then mixed in a sizeable quantity of Tresemme naturals nourishing moisture conditioner. This made the thick paste a little thinner and it was just perfect for me. The consistency was like that of set yoghurt.

• I then proceeded with the application using the method in the  video below 

                            

• The application wasn't as messy as I thought it would be, although I took precautions; protected the floor with newpapers, used gloves and wore an old tshirt. My edges and ears were also protected with vaseline to prevent stains.
• I left the henna in overnight and rinsed under a tap with warm water. It took a while before the water ran clear. I used Vo5 herbal escapes pomegranate and grapeseed conditioner for the rinsing.
• My hair felt quite strong just like after aphogee two step protein treatment and even better. I deep conditioned with aussie 3 minutes miracle deep conditioner to infuse some moisture back into my hair.

I really loved the results. My hair was strong and well moisturised and also very shiny. As regards colour, my grey strands are now copper red i think? was so happy. Grey strands are gone. My normal hair colour is almost jet black so I know it will take a while and several applications for there to be a significant colour change. I see highlights of red when I'm in the sun though especially my roots. Unfortunately, I couldn't get this in pictures, tried so hard but finally gave up.

There you have it! my first henna experience. Will there be a second? definitely! I'm officially a henna-head and I'm loving it. Going  forward I plan to apply henna once a month. My next application is later this week. 

What are your thoughts and experiences of henna and/or other natural dyes? Are you a henna-head? Please drop a comment.