To Henna or Not to Henna!!

So I found henna recently while researching my wedding actually... go figure!! I wanted to incorporate the henna into my wedding ritual. (Spoil alert) It seemed exotic, different, beautiful, and a cool way to pamper myself and my bridesmaids. So after talking to a couple of my friends I decided I would definately do it  and its one of the few things about my wedding that I'm not compromising on!!

This is one of the examples I found on the internet. Some brides also get the name of their future hubby painted in somewhere and it is hubby's job to find it (so romantic/sexy).

Anyway while researching henna for my wedding, I found out that BAQ or Body Art Quality henna is super good for your hair!!! "Henna is a natural remedy against hair loss. It is also of great use in maintaining healthy hair. Henna repairs and seals the cuticle, thus helps in healing hair shaft. This prevents the hair breakage and also retains the shine of hair. Henna balances the pH of the scalp, thus, preventing premature hair fall. Henna cures most scalp problems such as dandruff, dryness etc. It also reverses the effects of pollution on hair as well as dryness due to excessive blow drying. Additionally, henna also stops premature graying of hair."

Sounds awesome right?? But before I would just read one article and decide to jump in head first (literally) I wanted to research until I really knew if it was beneficial for me. Because althought I am not my hair, I truly believe that my hair is one of my best assets and to be completely honest I really love it! Short, long, really doesn't matter. So I found this ebook, it's totally free and a good resource for all things pertaining to henna and hair.  I read it top to bottom like 3 times and afterward I was about 99.3% sure!!

So anyone who knows me, knows that I have a few hair idols and Curly Nikki (http://www.curlynikki.com/) is definately one of them and guess what??? She hennas!!!  SOLD!! Below is her tutorial http://www.curlynikki.com/2008/12/henna-pictorial.html.

Since then, I've henna'd twice and I am so in love with the results!! Sooooooo I've decided to commit to henna'ing once/month. I have some pics of my process but silly me forgot to take pics of my hair right after soooo stay posted. I'll post some next month! But in the mean time you can check my bantu knot blog post. I henna'ed right before I did my knots in the picture and the final picture of the back of my curly puff  (pictured again below) is the result. You can see a slight red tint. Courtesy of the henna.

Side note about color *My hair is naturally REALLY dark so henna shows similar to a red rinse. You can only really see it in the sun and its really slight. But the 1 gray hair I have is bright!! so if your hair is light or you have highlights or grays, you should probably try it on a small section first to determine if the color is acceptable for you. Also DO NOT USE any henna that claims to color your hair any color but red/auburn. It's not pure henna!! and can cause you to blister!!! Some henna users will mix their own mixes with Amla powder or Indigo to get the dark brown or black color they want. This is ok and if you trust your supplier and they can mix it for you then fine but DO NOT use any henna  that claims to be pure but dye your hair blonde or any color other than red/auburn. USE ONLY BAQ HENNA!!!

FYI: I will only use Jamila crop. 1. because its the first henna I used and I really don't like switching up products. 2. Its finely sifted so if you have thick, curly hair it rinse out a little easier. and 3. It's a higher quality and 100% pure. I also add honey to my henna mixture during the second tea addition (I'll do a post about the wonders of honey soon!). The red plastic is a picnic table cloth that I used to cover my bathroom because henna is a natural dye and will stain everything (hands, walls, floor, counter tops, you name it). The Taz container is where I mix and store my henna. You just need a plastic bowl but I liked my Taz container that I've had since I was 14 so it was nice to repurpose it ( I think it was originally chocolate bubble bath)


Some people henna with lemon juice or some other strongly acidic liquid. The acidic properties help with color release. Using plain water won't give you all of the benefits.  I used green tea. 1. because so does Curly Nikki and 2. because its slightly acidic but not so much that it will dry the bajeezus out of my hair. I also add a little (like 5 drops) of lemon juice to it and of course honey. The final product looks like mud and smells like spinach. 





Side note* My kitty LOVES the smell and will act an ass to get to the henna so she usually gets locked out of the bathroom while I work.

So anyway to conclude all this... Should you henna? Totally a personal decision. But I totally do!! and women for hundreds of years have. Whether for body or hair... I think henna is beautiful!!! So for all my future bridesmaids... you now have insider information lol Any questions?