Lush henna......can anyone help please?

[caffinequeen]

Hi. For a while I have been thinking of dying my dark brown hair red. I have used semi-permanent hair dye in the past (years ago, all grown out now) but this time I have listened to my inner hippy and bought some Lush Caca Rouge. How long should I keep it on for? The instructions just say at least an hour, trouble is, I don't want to go to all the hassle of doing it and end up with just a slight hint of red.

I would also be grateful for any other tips and hints you might have for henna-ing my mop.

when i used to henna my hair i used to keep it on for about 4 hours with my head wrapped up in clingfilm and a towel.

it went a lovely red. i miss henna but i have too much grey hair now

never used lush stuff so i don't know what it's like, i used to get mine from the local hippy shop.

My DD1 has used the Lush henna on her very dark brown hair. I would call the result rich and luscious rather than glaring!
Do all the clingfilm stuff and keep it on for ages. More than 2 hours at least.

I have dark brown hair and never found the lush stuff very good. The body shop one used to be better, I've not done it for many years now though. If you have dark hair then wrap it in clingfilm and leave it on overnight. It won't go bright red but you will have lovely coppery lights in your hair.

I used to use the Rouge one from Lush on dark brown hair and it definitely didn't make my hair red, just coppery. I did like the colour though, and it does make your hair feel thicker. And shiny.
Main downside is it looks like a cowpat once you've mixed it up with water..

I agree with the others, it does not give you red hair, more chestnutty/auburn glow. does make the condition good though

i use a semi permanent dye on my dark brown hair every 3 - 4 weeks to keep it bright red. it's a schwarzkopf one that was recommended by antoher mumsnetter, it's called copper canyon red, shade 58. it's the best red i've ever used .

I use the marron and brown ones mixed on my dark brown hair, leave it on for four hours under a shower cap and one of those towelling turbans. Gives me a warm chestnut glow and leaves it very shiny. Going to go and out it on in a minute in fact.

Practical tips - use a cheese grater to grind it up. In fact I buy a whole block and grind it in the food processor now and keep it in a plastic bag. The shower cap is much easier than cling film. Put vaseline all round your hairline and ears to stop staining. Wipe up any spills from your bathroom as soon as you have finished and allow for needing a good 10 mins in the shower to wash it all out. I rinse under the shower until the water runs fairly clear and most of the gritty feeling has gone (a good 5 mins) and only then use shampoo, probably x 2 and conditioner. Clean it off your shower curtain immediately if you have one.

Come back and tell us how you get on!

Thanks everyone, that's Friday evening's job then so I can wash it off Sat am. Cling film on my head....there's a new look for the bedroom .

Chestnut sounds good so fingers crossed.

WhoKnows -I like the idea of the food processor, does it stain it?

I agree, shower cap or cling film and lots of towels on your pillow, and leave it in overnight. Sod to rinse out in the morning, like a very dry flaky cow pat but worth it.

The results are fab but I find it more trouble than it's worth. It's like daubing hot mud in your hair and washing it out is a nightmare. I used marron and it does turn green while it's working

Don't know about Lush, but do know about ordinary red henna.

Sieve the henna. Add hot water and a good bit of cheap conditioner - this helps it stick to your hair.
Cheap plastic shopping bag over hair. Hold in place with a pair of black tights with legs wound round and knotted. (Not YOUR legs, natch).

You may need over night for a deep colour.

Lulu how does the semi perm colour affect your hair condition? I have been thinking about henna to improve my hair condition and to get a hint of red, but it sounds like too much hassle, especially keeping it on for so long!

my hair is quite fragile anyway, but the colouring seems to help it ,makes it a bit fuller and easier to manage. i had my hair done at a salon in January and she said it was in pretty good condition all things considered, i had a few highlights too and the red takes very brightly on those parts and my hair is still fine. I use serum and protector before drying and straightening. i've been using this particular colour for a year now and very happy with it

Thanks Lulu, I'm going to give it a try! I have seen that colour in superdrug so will pick some up next time I'm there.

it is good, I buy it in Savers, it's £1.99

I love Lush henna. I have dishwasher mouse colour hair (boring, boring, boring) and usually use either the Rouge or Marron. It is a bit of a messy job, and even with cling film on I tend to drop little bits like really bad dandruff once it starts to dry and crumble a bit! Don't stand around on cream colour carpets too much just in case. I've heard that collecting shower caps from hotels is a good idea to double-bag your head in!

Certainly immediately afterwards my hair is lovely and shiny and a really vibrant colour; that phase lasts a couple of weeks then it fades out a little and looks more natural, but it is noticeably a different colour for good until it grows out.

Things to bear in mind:

• It does look like mud/baby poo
• It does smell a little "funky" when you mix it up; I'm used to it now but it's a bit odd at first!
• Washing it out may block up your plughole if you have long hair and use lots; try to do it gradually and rinse the plug out as your go
• It may stain your bath/shower a bit but just give it a spray with cleaner and wipe while you're still in there then rinse and it's good to go; better to do it before it dries on

There are quite a few video tutorials on youtube if you want more advice. Good luck!

Thanks again everyone.

So, last night I put the poo henna on my hair (along with some cling film, a cheapo shower cap and a towel)...I was slightly concerned about the bedroom carpets when I was walking about but they appear to have survived.

The final result is nice, quite subtle but that's probably a good thing, it was harder to get through my hair than I expected (more mud than liquid) so I'm not sure how even it is. Will try the other 1/2 of the bar in a week or so to add more colour and hope for the sunshine so the red shows!

I did mine last night too (didn't get round to it the other day), left it on overnight for the first time, it was come out more chocolatey than usual. I'm waiting for the sun to come out too, that is when you get a real feel for the redness.

To get it as even as possible I clip most of my hair up and put it on the lowest layers first, then let it down 2 or 3 x layer by layer putting the mud on. I do it over the sink and add more water as I go along, it seems to thicken up quite quickly. The other thing I do is try not to move my feet while putting it on so I don't get any on the soles of them and tread it out of the bathroom.

Hmm got a bit on the bathmat 'cos I had some on my feet but it has come out so all good. Was more worried about the little bits flaking off...had the carpets professionally cleaned last week so DH would not have been impressed!

I find dry crumb bits don't stain, but the flannel I use to wipe any off my neck and face does stain. There were a few dry crumbs in my bed this morning but they brushed off.

I've been using LUSH henna for over 10 years. It always makes my hair feel silky and full. My natural colour was a deep rich red. However, with age, I've been developing more and more gray. LUSH covers it completely. If I let my gray roots grow to long, sometimes my roots end up a more vibrant lighter shade of red. At that point I'll henna again, just the roots, in a couple days. I generally mix 2 parts maroon with 1 part rouge. I usually plastic wrap my head and leave it for 2-5 hours. Once I had to wash it out in an hour, and the colour was still good. However, the colour is better with 2 hours minimum. The henna can stain clothe (weirdly not skin) so I'm very careful to put a garbage bag over chairs I'm sitting in, etc., until I wash the henna out. I'd suggest this product to anyone. While it takes about 4-5 hours per month to do (cutting, cooking, application to hair, washing) ... going to the hair salon for a traditional dye job is more expensive, less effective, more chemically toxic and still takes 2-3 hours (including travel time). Avoid the cancer, use the Lush. ;)

When this thread was started you'd only been using it 5 years. ;)