Henna on Greying Hair / curly girl dyes

[reggaesongbird]

Hi
I have a reasonable amount of grey hair.
I also have very porous long curly prone to frizz hair. I've been dyeing my hair for years, both at home and in salon. At home I only focus on roots but I'm a hippy at heart, I hate putting all this crap on my hair, it really dulls my hair and contributes to frizz
I used henna a lot as a young person and really miss the vibrancy of the colour but I seem to remember that people were warned against using it on greys as I think it turns them orange?
Does anyone know anything about this?
Also I see people talk about the curly girl method on here, does anybody know if there are specific dye brands which are kinder to my hair type?
Thank you 😊

Hi, I must be about 80% grey but thanks to henna and the distribution of my greys (fairly even throughout) and my remaining natural colour being dark brown I look brown with chestnut lowlights. Very vibrant in sunlight. As my grey increases I'll obviously have to rethink my options or perhaps just embrace the grey, but for now I don't look orange :-)
I have to do my roots every 3-4 weeks, but not a problem as I keep henna leftovers in the freezer for this. I use ordinary red henna, I've tried the Lush caca brun but it doesn't seem to work well on my greys, they look yellowish. I suspect it may be something like cocoa butter in the formula. My hair is naturally wavy but the henna makes it straight, to the point where it's difficult to curl.

Hi Magickl thanks for your response. You make it sound so simple, when I've researched it people make it sound so complicated, mixing in various other elements etc, I never tried the lush henna, always went for the powdered stuff, do you just do old school mix with hot water or are there newer better methods now? I remember the smell as if it were yesterday and haven't used for over twenty years!
How long do you leave it on for?

I just mix it up with cold tap water (I'm in Scotland with soft water), add a squeeze of lemon or lime juice, fresh, not the jif lemon. Or any type of vinegar if I'm out of citrus. Just anything cheap and acidic to encourage dye release. I mix it till its as smooth as I can get it, though it still looks lumpy, the lumps will go though. I cover the Pyrex bowl I've mixed it in with clingfilm and leave it usually all day while I'm out at work. Until the surface looks green/black anyway. Normally takes at least 3 hours. I add a few drops of lavender oil just before applying, but not sure if it actually does anything... I slap it on dry cleanish hair, pop clingfilm over it and hope nobody visits for at least two hours. I used to sleep in it but tbh I find no difference. I only do the entire strands 2-3 times a year now I have the deep shade I want. It's usually roots only. My favourite is jamila henna, but I'll use cheap zarqa brand too. Lush American Cream is the best conditioner for covering the smell just after henna :-)

Thank you so much that sounds straight forward and fun. I remember sleeping in it and the mess! My kids would love it!

Gloves are a must of course, and rinse until you feel like your back is aching... Then rinse a bit more! Cleaning the bath after isn't fun, but the sooner you do it, the easier it is.

I Am contemplating henna after growing my hair out. I must be 40% grey and hated the chemicals and the upkeep. But im not sure that Id be doing the right thing going back to having to do the roots every 6 weeks or so. Part of the joy of having gone grey is that I don't have to worry about roots.
But I did love the feel of hennaed hair.

I second what Magickl says - I have been using henna on my greying dark brown hair for several years. It gives the appearance of fairly natural red highlights. As they fade, they can look more orange-y but the red/brown is restored with a repeat application (which you'd need to do anyway to cover roots).

I buy packs of organic henna powder online (e-Bay) - 100% lawsonia inermis, no additives - and use exactly the same mixing/application technique as Magickl. I find it conditions my hair wonderfully.

A tip for a quick 'emergency' root-touch-up is to buy a pack of those cones of ready-mixed henna designed for mendhi tattooing and keep it in the fridge.

A final thing - I have cats and they adore the smell of henna and will try to eat it during the mixing process - so if you have cats, you might want to keep them out of the way!

Dorisdolalee it's a big thing isn't it to change the way you've done your hair for years, things sound promising on here tho!
Thanks trustysnail for your input and eBay info, I think I will buy some and give it a whirl! Highlights wreck my hair so perhaps naturally occurring henna ones would be better.
majickl sounds fab, not so keen on bath cleaning element tho!

I don't have cats!