My roommate brought home two packages of dried chamomile flowers from the 99 cent store (just 69 cents each, woohoo)! We've tried using chamo before to lighten my hair but didn't really see anything by way of results, maybe we were doing it wrong? Here's what we did:

-boiled the flowers in a teaball in a pot of water
-let the water cool
-washed & conditioned hair, rinsed everything out
-removed tea ball and poured chamo water over my hair
-rinsed hair again with water

Is that the way you're supposed to do it? Any suggestions are welcome!! I'd like to try this again tonight since my roommate is here and has time to help.

Thanks!

Tracey

I usually infuse the flowers for about 6-8 hours, simmering on the stove. Add water as needed. Then, after washing, I rinse over my hair and leave on for at least 2 hours, usually overnight. Smells nice, so overnight isn't too bad. The result is noticable, but not overly. For more noticable results, repeat weekly.
Teechia

How much water do you use in the pot, and how much chamomile? Also, the next day do you shampoo and condition (and lose the chamo rinse)?

Thank you, Teechia!

Tracey

Well, I don't exactly measure, but I use about 1 1/2 cups to 2 cups of flowers, to about 8 cups of water. The flowers will get really mushy, so when I'm done simmering them, I strain the mixture several times, first with a tupperware strainer, and last with cheesecloth. I don't shampoo & condition after, just rinse well. You may want to add a leave in conditioner for easier detangling. I've been known to not rinse too, LOL, your hair will be soft and fragrant.
Teechia

I used about two cups of the chamo flowers and simmered them in 2+ cups of water for about six hours. They do get mushy, lol. I strained the liquid through a cheesecloth - it came out a pretty sort of golden amber brown colour. I shampooed my hair with MM and then poured the liquid through my hair and left it there, without rinsing it out. That was last night. This morning I haven't noticed any difference except that my ends are really dry! I sprayed in some MM Diamond Mist conditioner.

I guess I'm just going to have to wait until I can afford to try the MM golden henna, or until I can move back home where the sun is my friend and does nice things to my hair before it looks lighter and more golden and not so dishwater brown again, unless anyone else has ideas about how to naturally lighten dry, fragile curly ash blonde hair?

Tracey

For the rinse I would recommend putting the chamomile into a mason jar and pouring boiling water into that and leaving it over night, as opposed to letting it simmer for so many hours. You might think to add some moisturizing herbs like lavender and rose petals as well (I pick them up pretty cheap at my local health food store in the bulk herb section).

As for lightening your hair, the sun causes just as much damage. I've seen comparison photos of chemically bleached hair and sun bleached hair under a microscope and they look the same! that is, the same degree of damage.... they both alter the cortex. I'm adding this bit because I know a lot of people put chamomile and/or lemon (or nothing!)in their hair and then sit in the sun thinking they are getting a non-damaging colour change but they aren't.

The veggie dyes aren't permanent. In order to get a permanent change, you'd need to alter the hair's cortex, which in turn is damaging. Here's a good link that explains about dyes:

http://www.hairscientists.org/article23.htm

and a quote...

"Vegetable dyes: extracted from plants e.g. Saffron and Camomile, Privet, Black Myrtle leaves, Poppy heads, Green Walnuts, Ilex roots. Most vegetable dyes will wash out of the hair.

Henna however is a 'permanent dye' (the molecules are small enough to enter the cortex of the hairshaft) with the colour being oxidised by atmospheric oxygen. Henna may change the feel and lustre of hair.
Vegetable dyes are basically harmless and do not require allergy tests. It is unlikely that any adverse skin reaction or hairshaft damage would result from their use. Egyptian (Vegetable) Henna however can, in some people, make the hairshafts seem dry and lustreless. This is not injurious. This form of henna is used in some shampoos e.g. to provide auburn highlights.

Camomile is another vegetable dye. The active ingredient is Apigenin (tri-hydroxyflavone). It is obtained from dried flowers of the Camomile plant. It coats the hairshaft adding a yellowish hue."

HTH, Sheba

You can drop a couple or just one bag of chamomile teabag from the store into a bottle of shampoo. Let bags sink to the bottom and the shampoo is ready. The bags can be left in the bottle. The shampoo ( I 've used Suave chamo shampoo for this) will be an amber yellow