Henna: The application

My previous post was a brief introduction to Henna which you can read here. I'm breaking up these henna posts because it's a lot of information. This one will be about my experience with the application.


I have put henna in my hair twice already. I ordered Body Art Quality Jamila Henna from Butters and Bars. It comes in 100g foil packs and is a green powder. I did a simple mix: two boxes with about a cup and a half of green tea to make a thick paste....

When the dye releases, which takes several hours, the henna turns brownish. It's supposed to be left in a warm dry place. Some people leave it over night or 12 hours, and others just put it in their head right away and let the dye release there. To get the full effect of a henna treatment (color, conditioning, strengthening) it takes about four hours. I actually let mine sit for a couple of hours in front of a heater to make it brown, and then started applying it to my freshly washed, damp hair. Note that I am using gloves...

The more henna on your hair the better, I mean they suggest for it to be caked on. Two boxes was just enough to cover my hair, but not enough to cake my strands like I wanted. I applied the henna and then wrapped it with saran wrap. The first time I did it, I actually had errands to run so I had to put a big ass hat on my head and go to the store, but I left it in my hair for about 5 hrs.

NOTE: Henna is quite messy. I would recommend putting newspaper down and having paper towels nearby. Don't freak out if it gets on the skin, it's not a big deal just wipe it off. If you don't wipe it off right away, it'll stain your skin an orange color but will go away after a few days. Also, if you are hestitant about trying it, be sure to test a shed hair (from your hairbrush or something).