has anybody tried sugar and eucalyptus oil with henna, on hair?

i keep reading that sugar and this oil helps to hold the henna color well and i add neither of these. my color seems to fade out in 2 weeks time. maybe because i use natural unprocessed (i hope so) henna.

Can you please share what all you mix in henna and what henna brand you are using?

no, i dont like my intellectual streak now. :x

I'm using Logona henna mixed with hot water and nothing else, because Logona is already pre-mixed with jojoba and EOs.
I'm happy with the results I get so I'm not planning to experiment, but I've read that certain EOs help the henna to release more pigments. I remember that tea tree was on the list, but I'm not sure about eucalyptus.
And I know that for Mehndi (sp?), henna "tattoos", you keep the pattern damp by repeatedly dabbing with a cotton wool pad soaked in sugar water. So it does make sense that it would work on hair, too.

Make sure you don't get a scalp reaction to the EO, especially if you use a lot (test on the inside of your elbow for a few hours first), otherwise I don't see how this could hurt to try. Maybe even use honey instead of sugar, it has the sucrose plus added conditioning benefits.

I use a few tablespoons of honey in my henna gloss mixture.

RBR

thanks madeleine and RBR. i'll add honey to my to-try list :)

whats this henna glossing mixture? can i pls know.

I have read plenty of sources that suggest using sugar as a mix in your henna when you're using it on skin because the sugar makes the mixture stick to the skin better as it is drying.

I have also read that adding certain EOs such as eucalyptus and rosemary and other oils containing terpineols add to the dye release and other such beneficial reactions in skin henna painting.

For hair, I don't think that adding sugar is a beneficial ingredient. I don't see how adding a few EOs, especially those with "terps" can hurt your hair.

HTH!

I have also read that adding certain EOs such as eucalyptus and rosemary and other oils containing terpineols add to the dye release and other such beneficial reactions in skin henna painting.

Ah right, that's what I meant. They did talk about "terps", I just hadn't remembered the term. With a Google search on "henna" and "terps" you get quite a few hits, and it looks like Eucalyptus is one of the "terp" EOs.

I once had a kit for henna paintings on skin and it came with a bottle of oil that smelled like a mixture of turpentine and pine :? . You had to apply it on top of the henna painting as a kind of finish so that the colour would stick to your skin better.
I guess that this was the kind of oil that Heidi mentioned.

I have been mixing straight lemon juice and henna for my hair.
I had been adding some eo's for the smell but it didn't really make a difference and I kinda like the smell of henna

I've terped henna for my hair before, and it didn't make a big difference in how well the color stuck. All it resulted in was hair smelling like mint-coffee-henna. I'm not sure how lavender turned into a mint smell, but... It did.

how did i miss this one? i answered and probably previewed and closed the window w/out submitting . LOL.

thanks so much. i'll try the rosemary oil in my henna mixture. there was some eucalyptus oil in abottle soemwhere. gotta look for it. if i find it, i'll use it. no more buying! :) i'll put the honey too...

so i'm thinking of putitng, coffee decocotion, lemon juice, acv, olive oil, rosemary oil, and some honey... leave it overnight and nuke it int he microwave for 2 mins, then whip an egg and add to this and apply overnight. :D

Hey Smiles ...
the concoction sounds very good...do keep us updated on that..

It had been more than 3 yrs since I applied henna...so I finally decided to buy one here and try it myself..

must admit it was not the easiest thing I have ever done.. :x
I mixed henna + shikakai + amla + aritha + coffee + cloves in a heavy tea concoction. Kept it overnight.
Then added 2 eggs before applying.
Kept it on for 2 hrs. :rolleyes:

The hair did get a lil softer, but I did not notice any color :(
I really wanted some "henna tinge".

May be next time, I should use the sugar+lime juice thingie :?

Good luck to you Smiles... ;)
Pria

thanks pria, i'm not going to use sugar and lemon juice :D i think that mixture might dry the hair. so its lemon and honey. now that makes me wonder, what if i mixed molasses instead of honey? :shock: that conditions too. well, kitchen experiments!!

sure i'll keep you posted. now that reminds me. probably if you remove oil from henna, the color would come well. one of my friend's mom, shared her method with me. if she wants color, she doesnt mix henna and oil together when she applies. she doesnt apply on oiled hair as well.
and she told me not to not wash henna with shampoo. just rinse it off , leave for 8 hours stright and then that night, i need to oil my hair and wash with my usual shampoo. this helped her hair color to come out well. i've tried and it worked great for me too.

thanks for reminding. :D Out goes olive oil from my previous post's recipe now! you might want to give it a try. but gosh! with your length of hair, how heavy would your hennaed head be?

If you are just going for the conditioning benefits of the henna, adding the egg, and the molasses and the herbs is beneficial. But it will probably interfere with the release of the dye in the henna.

If you want the best color, I think the lemon or lime juice alone is your best bet! Other acidic additions like coffee (which will diminish the red tones) and ACV will aid in the dye release as well, to a lesser degree than citrus juice. I agree with your friend's mother: the more clarified your hair is, the better the color (I liken it to cleaning and lightly sanding a surface prior to painting). If you oil your hair prior to hennaing for color, you'll want to make sure you wash the oil residue completely out of your hair. And adding oil to the mix inhibits the dye release as well (not EOs, but carrier oils like Olive). And using a typical shampoo afterward will just strip the color all that much faster.

heidi, i use henna for covering my impatient gray streak. and since my hair is dark black, i dont want red shades. so darker brown will make it look like highlights. and coffee gives me a brown shade. i've stopped using chemicals on hair (ok, i used kenra sample after a month). i'll probably wash my hair with my herbal cleanser (herbal powders mix) and them apply henna.

so, how about this combo - henna, lemon juice, acv, coffee decoction, clove, cinnamon powder (i have the real stuff, have to powder them fine) a little honey to prevent henna from drying (my henna colors well if its wet), sage powder/eo, rosemary oil - do you think this might give a darker shade?

this mixture will probably dry out my already dry hair. so, next day, i'll probably give a avocado, egg or mayo deep conditioning and wash it off with my herbal cleanser.

Hi smiles, that sounds like a great mix! I add a little indigo to mine to get the darker shades, too, but my hair isn't as dark as yours to begin with. I haven't tried mixing walnut powder and henna yet, but I think I'll try that next.

And yes, doing the egg mixture after the henna will likely be more effective.

Good luck! And post your results (of course we want pictures!)

Hi smiles, that sounds like a great mix! I add a little indigo to mine to get the darker shades, too, but my hair isn't as dark as yours to begin with. I haven't tried mixing walnut powder and henna yet, but I think I'll try that next.

And yes, doing the egg mixture after the henna will likely be more effective.

Good luck! And post your results (of course we want pictures!)

indigo and walnut powder? :) i'm tempted to give it a try... next mountainrose order in another month or so! :D

sure, i'll post results. :D