These tips specifically refer to the natural henna based herbal hair dyes such as Logona, It's Pure Organics, or Sante brands or to pure henna and indigo.
Everyone’s hair is different
Some people’s hair is porous and therefore easier to dye and holds the colour longer than others. Some people’s hair can be very resistant to dye and will produce a lighter colour. Certain types of Asian hair can be very resistant to hair dye. Hair at the temples can be ake the colour as strongly as the rest of the hair.
If your hair is porous it will be easy to dye and you can get away with shorter processing time whereas if your hair is resistant you will have to follow all the rules and tick all the boxes and possibly leave the colour on for a longer time.
The only way you can know beforehand how your hair will take to the colour is to strand test first.
General Tips
1. Apply to clean dry hair. It is OK if your hair is bit damp as long as it is not too wet. If it is too wet it could dilute the colour.
2. There should not be any substance on your hair which may block or prevented the colour from bonding with the hair - e.g. residue of conditioner, styling product, oil, or serum.
Silicone based serums and styling products coat your hair like plastic and prevent hair dye from sticking to your hair. Silicone based products are often used to protect your hair from heat styling such as straightening irons or hair dryer styling. They are very difficult to remove and cannot be removed by ordinary shampoo. You need to use a special product, either a chemical based clarifying shampoo which can buy from a high street store or Logona Mineral Clay Pre-Treatment. Styling products from Suvarna are not silicone based.
3. Make sure your hair is thoroughly saturated with colour during application
4. To achieve a stronger colour leave the product on for a longer time up to them maximum allowed for the product.
5. If the colour is still not dark enough you can apply a 2nd coat either all over your hair or if there are patches of hair that are not coloured dark enough you could put the colour on again just in those areas without putting it all over your hair.
Please note that if you repeatedly put layers of colour on all over your hair it may build up too much colour on the ends of your hair and make them too dark.
6. If your hair is proving to be difficult to dye you can try applying heat whilst the hair colour is on your hair as this will help the colour to bond with your hair. This is because heat opens the hair follicle to give the colour something to stick to.
One way of gently warming your hair is to wrap your hair is cling wrap or plastic processing cap and then wrap in a towel round it to keep your head warm. For a more intense heat you could try sitting in the sun or applying a hair dryer over your hair for say 10 to 15 minutes. Before applying direct heat your hair colour should be protected by the processing cap on plastic cling wrap.
7. If you use part of a packet of hair colour powder and keep the rest of the packet for a later application, it is important to make sure it is very well sealed in an air-tight plastic bag or container and stored away from sunlight and heat. If not properly stored it could deteriorate.
Tips on applying powder dyes
The powder dye should be mixed to a creamy consistency. It should be soft enough to spread on your hair. If it is too thick to spread and falls of your hair in lumps, add a little more liquid. If it is too thin and runs down your neck it means there is too much liquid in it.
You can apply the colour with an applicator brush but we prefer to use gloved fingers to apply it because it gives you more flexibility. If you do use gloves to apply it you may find the thicker gloves latex or nitrile better than the polythene gloves.
Tips on Using Pure Red Henna Powder and Indigo Powder
If you are using the It’s Pure Organics Red Henna Powder and combining it with indigo powder there are additional tips which you can read about in our Good Henna Guide which you can download here. For example it is recommended to soak the It’s Pure Organics Pure Red Henna Powder for 8 to 24 hours in some acidic liquid such as lemon juice. It is not recommended to soak indigo powder.
Indigo or any mixture containing indigo should be used immediately once mixed with water and not left to sit. It should not be mixed with water that is over 50 degrees.
For getting optimum results from indigo see this blog post here
After Care to enhance the longevity of your Hair Colour
Following all the application tips above will also help to enhance the longevity of hair dye on your hair. However it will firstly depend on which product you used - the shades with more red in and therefore containing more henna will last longer than the dark brown shades which contain more indigo. It also depends on your hair type, how often you wash your hair and what you wash your hair with.
The more you wash your hair to quicker the colour will wash out. We recommend using a mild organic shampoo without any sodium lauryl Sulphate or ammonium lauryl sulphate. You can see a guide to the shampoos we sell at Suvarna here: www.suvarna.co.uk/which-shampoo.html
The Logona Colour Shampoo is very good here because it is mild and contains a small amount of natural colouring that helps to top up the colour on your hair in between dying it: www.suvarna.co.uk/herbalshampoos/logona-natural-colour-care-shampoo.html
The Logona Colour Conditioner is specificially designed to help extend the life of your hair dye as it coats your hair to lock in the colour: www.suvarna.co.uk/conditioners/colourcondioner.html
Picking a Suitable Hair Dye
If you are following all the tips here and are not getting a strong enough colour it could be that your hair is just very resistant or it could be that you are using the an unsuitable product. For example if you are wanting to go from a light colour to a dark brown colour Logona hair dyes would not be suitable. You would need to try It's Pure brand to get a dark brown.
If you need any help with picking the right natural hair dye for you, or if you have any other natural hair dye technical questions drop me a line here