DIY at-home henna: how to make it and tips

Dyeing hair with natural products has become a trend in recent years and one of the most used products for this is homemade henna for hair.

Before explaining how a natural dye is being prepared based on this product and the benefits it is capable of bringing to your hair, I consider it necessary that you know exactly what henna is all about.

Henna is a powder made by crushing the dried leaves of a rather big plant or shrub with intensely perfumed leaves known as 'Lawsonia inermis' in North Africa and South Asia. It has been used in hair for many years in different regions of the world, not only as a natural dye but also as a wonderful treatment to give hair life and strength, among other things.

Benefits of Natural Henna for Hair

Although one of the main benefits that characterize henna and for which it is commonly used is its great power to dye hair naturally. However, henna is capable of providing many other benefits while dyeing your hair, some of the benefits of henna are:

• It helps eliminate unwanted dandruff, so dyeing your hair with it is an excellent option to get rid of this hair problem.

• If you have oily hair, henna can help regulate the production of oil in the scalp by the sebaceous glands.

• Its application as a natural dye protects the hair from external factors that can destroy the fiber, such as high temperatures from heating equipment and pollutants.

• The nutrients that makeup henna are effective in moisturizing and keeping the hair nourished while it is being dyed.

• In addition to adding color to the hair, it gives it a natural shine and a little more volume.

Having known the benefits of henna, you can check out the store to buy natural henna for hair and proceed to prepare it at home, but first, you need to take a couple of things into account.

What You Should Know Before Dyeing Your Hair with Henna

Although henna provides very good benefits, when it comes to dyeing your hair with it, you need to consider several aspects, which include:

• It may be impossible for your intended color to be achieved using henna as a dye, this will largely depend on the current tone of your hair, that is, depending on how blonde or brown you are.

• Henna is a natural dye, therefore it is temporary, the time and durability of the tone are much less than that provided by chemical dyes, however, this is not a problem, when after each wash you notice that the tone is disappearing What you need to do is reapply your henna dye.

• Remember that among the main tones that natural henna without hair color offers you are the reddish ones, even so, you can achieve much lighter tones such as dark blondes to brown, almost black, depending on the way you prepare it.

• Henna for gray hair can be used perfectly, taking into account that these will not be completely covered as is the case with chemical dyes, rather it would serve as a kind of toner.

• Although henna is much less reactive than chemical dyes, it is not exempt from causing allergic reactions, so if you are a person with a sensitive scalp, it is ideal that you carry out the strand test first.

How to prepare your henna at home?

With natural henna, you will get mainly reddish tones. Gather the following ingredients to prepare henna at home:

• Natural henna powder

• A tablespoon of olive oil.

• Water.

A. Preparation:

1. In a bowl, preferably glass or plastic, pour the natural henna.

2. Microwave some water and slowly pour it into the bowl with the henna powder.

3. Stir with a spoon that should also be made of plastic or wood.

4. If necessary, add a little more water until you get a smooth paste, thick enough to distribute it on the hair without spilling.

5. Let the mixture rest for at least half an hour, so that it cools down and we can apply.

B. Application:

1. The first step will be to cover the entire area of your face with a little cream or Vaseline, to prevent the natural henna dye from staining your skin.

2. Also, avoid staining your clothes or shoulders by covering them with an old towel.

3. Comb and section your hair for easy application strand by strand. Your hair must be completely dry.

4. Apply the henna from the roots to the ends.

5. Once all your hair is covered, put on a shower cap to prevent spills.

6. Leave on for at least two hours. The longer the better.

7. After the time has elapsed, remove both the henna mixture and the Vaseline that you placed on the edge of your face with plenty of warm water and the usual shampoo. Make sure to rub the scalp well with the tips of your fingers to avoid any mixture residue.

8. Remove excess moisture with a towel and let your hair air dry.

Now, this is the easiest way to prepare henna to dye red hair, if you want to give your hair a different tone, you will need to combine it with other ingredients such as henna with beer or chamomile to get a blonder tone, or henna with black tea for dark tones. Check out some of the perfect hair products that you can use from our store.