Want Red Hair Colour or Red Lowlights on Dark hair?

Simply use henna ! The Renaissance Henna Hair Colour Kit comes with full instructions. Look through the hair colour galleries to give yourself an idea how it's likely to turn out. Bear in mind that you'll only get shocking red / orange tones or highlights on grey or white hair ( which you can easily mute to brown or black with indigo). If you have dark hair, the henna will add deep reddish tones and make your hair look like it has natural red lowlights; any odd greys will look like reddish highlights. The difference between lowlights and highlights? Highlights brighten your hair ( and can be shocking !) , whilst lowlights deepen your hair and are more subtle.

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Anisa's hair before 19/7/06 (age 10)	Anisa's hair after henna	Anisa's hair after henna 2
	Anisa's hair after henna 3
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Anisa's hair after henna 4		Anisa's hair after henna 5
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Want black hair colour ? Or black hair with red or burgundy highlights ? Want blue black hair colour?

Use henna followed by indigo in 2 stages if you want a dark hair colour with red lowlights or purple blue lowlights. Full mixing and application instructions come with the Renaissance Henna Hair Colour Kit.

Want brown hair colour? Or brown with red or burgundy lowlights?

Use henna + indigo. Full mixing and application instructions come with the Renaissance Henna Hair Colour Kit.

Want burgundy hair colour?

Use henna + indigo. Full mixing and application instructions come with the Renaissance Henna Hair Colour Kit.

The Renaissance Henna Hair Kit gives you a myriad of colours - pick one ! I can't guarantee your end result hair colour, but I can tell you that I'm certain you'll love it, that you'll be impressed, and that you'll be hooked ! Try it and you won't look back. Go on - because you're worth it !

Let's Work Together

Part of my aim in promoting the awareness and use of natural henna and indigo is to build up as extensive a hair colour photo gallery as possible to demonstrate the incredible range of hair colours that can be achieved with these natural herbal hair colours. I urge everyone to contribute to the Hair Colour Gallery by sending in photos of your before and after henna hair colour before and after henna / henna+indigo. Please send me your photos and I will display them here. Remember to tell me whether you had previously used any hair dyes or bleached your hair, if so how long ago, and how you mixed your henna/indigo; also give me a name that you don't mind being identified by. Feedback is always welcome, particularly as it inspires so much confidence in people new to henna and indigo for hair. Again, please do take the trouble to provide feedback if you can, and confirm that you don't mind me adding it to the Testimonials page; also remember to tell me what name and town to use for you.

Henna Hair Colour Strand Tests

I must remind you that hair colour strand tests don't always give you an accurate prediction of your end result hair colour and they don't always take on colour with the same passion as a full head of hair would. Many people are disappointed with the hair colour strand test result but amazed with the full hair colour application. Maybe it's the body temperature that makes the difference; it's hard to say. Also, do remember that your strand test hair may not necessarily be a true indicator of final all over hair colour due to the fact that the strand test hair may have uneven colour saturation, especially if you've previously used hair dyes. And hennaed & indigoed hair looks like different hair colour depending on where you're standing - it'll look like a different hair colour indoors compared to how it looks outdoors. It's a beautiful coat of many colours. In my opinion, henna / indigo should be used by every person on the planet at least once in a lifetime. It's too incredible to miss out on and if you never try it, you'll never know.

A Reminder about Previous use of Chemical Hair Dyes and Henna

If you've previously used chemical hair dyes, although you can go straight ahead and use henna / indigo, I'd recommend you wait as long as possible. My minimum recommended waiting time is 2 weeks, especially if you've just permed your hair. But my advice is to aim for 2 - 3 months before using henna after a hair dye if you can. The only reason why I advise people to wait as long as possible is simply to give your hair the opportunity of getting rid of chemical hair dye build up, and also to ensure the best hair colour take from henna/indigo. It's the compound (“metallic salt mix”) hennas which hairdressers moan about and say you can't use before or after hair dyes. My henna and indigo are not mixed with metallic salts - they are pure. They are not the same stuff your hairdresser is talking about ! My henna and indigo are safe to use both before and after chemical hair dye, but my advice to you is to wait as long as you can before using hair dyes either side of henna, because it's in your best interests to wait.

Strand Test Hair Colour Pictures

Below are photographs of natural hair strands showing how they colour with henna, and how they intensify to darker shades after the indigo application. I'm afraid the photos don't do justice at all to the final end result colour - scroll down to the real life photos see what I mean. Also, please bear in mind that the henna used for these strand tests was mixed with part lemon juice and part water and therefore the henna colour is lighter than it would have been with a straight hot water mix.

Henna on Grey Hair

Kara

Kara says: “I had never henna'd my hair previous to this because of the grey streaks. Wasn't sure what would happen to it. But then decided to try doing a mix of henna and indigo powder. Probably next time, I'll do the henna application first. Wait a day or so, then do the indigo. Just because I know more now about working with the all natural powders. But for this round, I actually had the henna and indigo mixed together in the same paste. Left it on, wrapped in plastic wrap, covered in foil, covered in a towel for several hours. I LOVE IT! Really enjoy not having the grey showing, and the rich colors of the brown now, too. Don't think I'll ever go without it now :) miracles, k-” http://www.hennahealing.com

BEFORE HENNA INDIGO	AFTER HENNA INDIGO *the silvery threads which show just above the hair ornament are reflections of light streaks, not grey hair !

Colouring Grey Hair on Black Hair Colour with Henna and Indigo

Gary's Wife - White Hair to Stunning Black !

Received : 15.10.07

I bought some Henna and indigo off you a few weeks back and we have tried out 2 applications of it and so far so good.
 
Attached are 4 photos of a before and after nature, except that I forgot to take a 'before I started' photograph unfortunately - I was halfway through trying to stick the stuff to my wife's head before I remembered about it, sorry.
 
Some background info:
My wife is Thai, and she has that very jet black hair which is so characteristic of asians. She started going grey early and has been dying her hair using chemical products but we were worried about the possible side-effects - more so when I started finding out more about chemical dyes. So we decided to try a natural alternative, see what happened and if it didn't work then just let her hair go its natural colour. 
 
We waited six weeks after the last chemical dye, then twice used a Henna/indigo mix bought in a health shop but the results were dissappointing = so even if I had taken a 'before starting' photo it would have been much the same as the ones taken after the 1st application. I looked at a few internet sites selling natural dyes but decided on trying yours out first since the information you give is pretty comprehensive.
 
The problem with my wife's hair is that it is not just grey, but a startling white, there is virtually no natural colour left in probably more than 50% of it. So I knew we would have to apply it more than once before we'd start to get good results.
 
Application 1 was rather messy - I'm no hairdresser, so she had to endure me trying to plaster her head with this stuff but we got through it. The photos I took are a bit overexposed but you can see the chestnut colour that we were left with, the overexposure exaggerates it a bit, it wasn't really as obvious as that. Even though the colour was not great there was no white showing, the lighter hairs were not all that noticeable as the top had gone dark (probably got the application right on the top). Her hair felt lovely and had a really beautiful shine to it. The henna was left on for 3 hours and the indigo for 2.
 
Application 2 (four weeks later) was less messy - I'm getting better at it. The results were much better this time and I was really impressed, more because I think I managed to actually get at the hairs better and coat most of them properly - that must be the trick? Given that the hairs would be startling white otherwise I think the results are pretty good. The next one should be even better and with any luck will go completely black. This time we left the indigo on for 3 hours. The photos were taken the day after.
 
It's a bit of a palaver putting the stuff on, but really it's a small price to pay considering the only alternative is to put some pretty nasty chemicals on your head. Even if it never goes completely black we rather like the deep chestnut colour that it gives so even if that was the best colour we can get we'd be happy, but I suspect that it's my poor technique that means we're not getting a really dark colour rather than any shortcoming in the dyes. Do you have any suggestions?
 
You're welcome to use the photos on your website if you want but I'm not sure they illustrate the results well enough for that.
 
I'll be ordering some more off you sometime soon.
 
Best regards
 
Gary 

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18.10.07
 
Hi Gary
 
Thank you so much for the in depth report on your wife's henna/indigo applications, and well done for actually doing the applications yourself ! Photos are great, thanks ! Yes, I find it gets easier with time as you get more more used to repeating the applications. And I find that once you've got it all packed in neatly and wrapped up then it's easy to get on  with whatever you need to be getting on with and the hours fly ! But that's if you're a stay at home person, otherwise I guess it can be quite bothersome having to wait so long.
 
As to how to get the indigo deeper, it's difficult as results do tend to vary from person to person and it can depend a lot on the percentage of grey hair. Because the greys are taking on the shocking red orange from the henna, and because of the amount of grey hair, you may find that it's a lot harder to then tone the greys down to pitch black. You could try not covering the hair for the indigo ( but that's very awkward with a 2 - 3 hours application so try lightly covering instead and cut some holes in to the plastic wrap to allow more air to get in ), and also try adding a dash of cidar vinegar and  a tablespoon or 2 of salt to the mix before applying. Also make sure the hair is thoroughly rinsed after henna - you can lightly shampoo also after henna but no hair oil or conditioners to be used at that stage. This may make a difference.. I can't guarantee it I'm afraid but I'm sure it's worth trying. Good luck ! hope results get better and better and hopefully you'll find that the colour really starts to build up and last longer.  
 
Thank you again for taking the trouble to write in detail.
 
Kindest regards
 
Sabrina

Received 18.10.07
 
Hi Sabrina
 
Thanks for getting back to me, very nice to hear from you. Glad you were happy with the report and photos!
 
I read your suggestions with keen interest, we had covered the indigo with a couple of layers of clingfilm to try and stop leaks! I didn't realise you need to let the air get at it so we will definetely try and allow air in around it next time. I'll try the cider vinegar and salt too. One item I left out of my description, we used vaseline around the hairline which was excellent for keeping the stuff off her skin, and easily taken off as it doesn't soak in - my fingers however seem to absorb the henna too readily (even though I wear gloves), I now have the fingertips of a 100 a day smoker.....
 
No chance of leaving the head uncovered I think, my wife is hyperactive (washing dishes at midnight, that sort of thing) so it's difficult enough to get her sitting still long enough to apply the henna and indigo - I enjoy doing it for her incidentally, she's my darling and it's one of the few opportunities I get to do some pampering instead of always being pampered (which I am) - she enjoys it but I'm not sure if having mud applied to your head can actually be classed as such! I won't tell my friends however cos it doesn't fit with the butch image....hahaha....
 
One thing that occurred to me when reading your suggestion is you may have a product opportunity there. There are materials you can get which are permeable in one direction only - meaning water can get out but not in. If you were to fabricate some sort of disposable shower cap type thing of such a material in reverse you could sell it with the indigo - no water would get out but the air would get in. Not sure where the best place to start getting such a thing would be however......If it's an idea which makes you rich please give me a share......
 
 
Best regards
 
Gary

18.10.07
Hi Gary
 
You don't actually have to leave the hair uncovered to get the indigo to take, but the way it seems to work is that covering the hair once you have indigo in will bring out more red tones and leaving it open will avoid the red tones and lean more towards blue black.....there's some sort of chemistry going on there. A couple more suggestions that may be helpful - don't make your indigo too runny; if you can achieve a similar consistency to your henna paste you should be fine with that and it shouldn't drip too much. Add sugar if you need to,  just to thicken the paste out... as much as necessary to enable a comfortable application without the constant drips. And try some Vaseline on your fingers before you put the gloves on .. that might help as well. And immediately you take the gloves off , wash your hands a few times with warm water and soap and any stains should start to fade although not immediately.. repeated warm water and soap washes will speed up stain removal.
 
The hat idea is intriguing  - I'll keep that in mind ! I wasn't aware of that....interesting.
 
As for the butch thing, well the measure of a man is how he treats his wife, and a wise man once said that the best of men is he who is best to his wife ! So I reckon by doing good you're definitely on to a good thing !  May you reap abundant reward.
 
All best wishes
Sabrina 
 

Received 18.10.07

Hi Sabrina
 
That's very interesting and could possibly explain why the hairs underneath tend to be redder than the ones on top - I had thought it was because I had only managed to get enough paste on the top ones to dye them effectively cos some of the hairs really do go very dark. I think next time I will try to 'massage the hair' every so often to try and get air moving through it, or blow air through the wrap with a hair drier now and again, and see if that does the trick. I'll certainly put vaseline on my fingers next time.
 
Haha, I never heard that about how a man treats his wife! That's encouraging :o)
 
Here's a little doodle for you I did earlier while enjoying some lunch. 
 (it's another product idea!....sou'wester, mortar board and trowel!)

 

Best regards
 
Gary

Received 19.11.07

Hi Sabrina 

I've attached some photos again of my wife's hair, taken this morning, after application number 3 of Henna and Indigo last night. 

I tried your suggestions and am very happy to say that they worked. If you compare the photos to the last ones I sent you'll see her hair is very much darker than before - I had a quick look at the previous photos and they aren't very good, the reddish appearance is greatly exaggerated by the camera, it wasn't as obvious as that. Anyway, these pictures I have adjusted the colour until it is more like how the hair actually appears, the flash makes the red stand out more than it does actually. 

I made the paste thicker and added salt this time, damping the hair down with spray to help it stick, and really packed it on. I managed to fashion a sort of top-hat on clingfilm which we left completely open at the top to let the air get at it and then she sat still and watched telly for 3 hours. That really made it go very dark, although I think I had packed the top too much and perhaps it stopped air getting to some of it. Anyway, the results are fantastic, again the photos don't really reflect how good the result is this time but we're delighted with it, I'm sure you'll see the difference. 

We're just about to go to Thailand for a few weeks (on wednesday this week), she intends to get a friend to cut her hair quite short so it'll be easier to apply the stuff next time. 

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm sure next time will be even better, might even get it totally black you never know!

 Best regards
Gary

Maryam

Maryam has kindly allowed use of these photographs to demonstrate the use of henna and indigo on grey black hair.

Maryam says : “I have tons of grey and I used Sabrina's henna and indigo combination before she started marketing it and I was so pleased with the quality of the henna and indigo, not to mention the results, that I agreed to let my hair go grey to show everyone just how it works. Even when it's grey you can see hints of burgundy left from my previous henna indigo applications. As you see in the pictures below, the henna alone - at first - makes my grey hair look orange, but actually if it's left alone it deepens after half a day or a day to a more even reddish tone which is quite nice. However, I prefer an overall darker hair colour as I have dark hair anyway. Once I put the indigo on, the orange red tones deepen to between darkest brown to black, but with red undertones which I really like. For me, it's such a relief to have discovered this product because without it I didn't enjoy the henna (mehndi) on its own in my hair due to the amount of grey. But now it's great ! .

Maryam's henna application

Here's the henna paste going on, and finally wrapped round with plastic wrap to hold it all in place and keep warm - henna likes warmth !

Here is the black grey hair after henna application

	hair brushed forward over the face	this is the henna hair on day 2. Note:the white streaks are light reflecting off the hair

Maryam's indigo application

And here is the indigo going on, and then how it looks after the indigo application. Note the indigo was not covered at all whilst the colour developed.

Here's how Maryam's hair looks after the indigo application.

		hair brushed forward over the face

Unfortunately most of the above photos are taken in bright sunlight and the hair is reflecting light which misleadingly gives the impression of some grey hair remaining; the bright sunlight photos have not brought out the true intensity of the dark colour from the henna and indigo. Next time, I'll try to get photos taken in natural light indoors to demonstrate the true depth of the colour. But better still, try it to find out for yourself !

Maryam's hair some 5 - 6 months later

These photos were taken on 2nd January 2006. I wanted to show how the colour has built up and deepened since those last photos were taken. I regularly use henna which I normally leave in for a couple of hours or longer, immediately followed by indigo which I usually leave in about 30 mins to 1 hour. I use the colour roughly once in 6 weeks, sometimes once in 4 to 5 weeks. I'm really pleased with it ! By the way, my hair has been cut which is why my hair now looks a bit different ! Best wishes, and thanks for supplying an awesome quality of henna and indigo which continues to work wonders on my hair ! Maryam.