Lush Henna - Anyon done this without destroying the bathroom?

[AprilSeptember]

Ok. My thin, fragile hair has had enough. I have gone full-hippy (as DH calls it) and bought a block of Caca Rouge from Lush.

I like this more now I have found out it literally means "red shit"

After watching every single video I can find, I am excited to be a flame-haired Merida type, but less excited at the UNHOLY MESS everyone seems to make.

I am thinking, as I have chin-length baby-fine hair, can I do this upside-down over the bath to avoid destroying my bathroom? If I fill a bowl and then just sort of dunk and scrub until it's all in? We're about to put the house on the market so if I can avoid dying the bathroom orange, that would be ideal.

Or is newspaper/a tarp/the garden my only option?

Help!

Oh, and: my hair feel verrrrrry soft and my wispy bits around my ears (usually very stretch when wet) feel very smooth and sleek. It's also (sorry if this makes you sing it for three days) SHINY!

I'll post a photo tomorrow in daylight, when it's dry

Hiya, I've got some tips after doing it for about fifteen years now. My friend brings it back from Iran sometimes but the lush stuff is just as good if it's grated. You don't have to grate it but it will help otherwise it tends to get lumpy. If you can soak it in lemon juice beforehand it'll deepen the redness. Stand naked in the bath to do it with rubber gloves and wrap your hair in the old 5p carrier bags, two should keep everything in, then shower to get all the bits off around it after you've secured them around your head, sort of knotting the handles iykwim.

I sleep in mine with an old towel over my pillow, the bloody stuff is so heavy on your head I couldn't stand around in it and get on with my day, but my hair is long mind.

It will make your head a bit red but it doesn't last, it'll wash off by the end of the day. It's so addictive, when you see the quality of your hair afterwards! It's like having it laminated, I never get split ends! Enjoy xxx

Oops, bit late! Hope you like the Colour! X

When does it stop smelling? I’ve washed it twice and I still smell like the hippy shop I used to frequent as a teenager

Not for a looooong time.

Great

I remember reading that if you mix in ginger powder it doesn't smell. I've never tried it, and of course it doesn't help now Eminybob, but maybe that's something for next time?

Ok, so what was a little patchy at first seems to have fully developed now. I've been left with a rich, natural-looking ginger/copper.

It's very dimensional - lots of depth and very shiny considering it was bleached from medium brown to almost level 9 blonde. It's also very thick and sort of lush-looking - my hair is usually quite brittle and wispy looking and this has definitely added body. Whoever said it was like your hair is laminated was right :)

Definitely develops with time. Much richer today - and it felt like two-day old hair from the first rinse out to tonight.

This is it now - best I can do in this light

Wow. That is seriously nice.

That looks great - very natural, and so shiny and full of bounce.

I have used it before and loved it.

It is like cow poo. The hotter you can stand it, the redder it will turn out. DO NOT MICROWAVE. Vaseline in your ears and around your hairline When you have it on, cover with clingfilm and then I would put on an old fleece beanie, to hold it in place and also keep the heat in. I looked weird. Dribbles of greeny-brown will run out from behind your ears, wipe them off before they stain. Leave for as long as you can stand and hope nobody knocks at your door.
I would kneel in the bath and remove the shower head from its cradle, using it low down near the drain to minimise splashing it everywhere.

Rinse, then conditioner, rinse, then shampoo a couple of times then condition lightly. Seemed to work better using conditioner first to help slide out the residue.
I really want to do it again, I have way more grey now so I would have beautiful red sparkly hair. Just need time...

Oops posted before I read the last page. Wow OP that's gorgeous! Now I REALLY want to do it again...

really lovely OP!

buying henna powder from eBay is much much easier

schade I've just bought some of this from Ebay but there are no instructions. Do I just mix the powder with water and slap it on?

I have been using real henna for over a year now. Its sooo much easier!!! The results are also much better. I have dark hair [well used to, its grey now!!] so I mix it with indigo. It comes out a beautiful auburn colour :)

Dancegirl You need to mix the henna with water/lemon juice or I use tea. You need to leave it for a few hours for dye release. You need to check it and the best way is when you have left it for about 2hrs after mixing the tea or whatever you are using, you dip your finger and place a spot of the henna on your palm. Leave it for a couple of mins and rinse. If it leaves a good stain on your palm, your henna is ready for application :) You can look this all up on the net or you tube.

hennacat.com/

This is where I buy my henna and you may find useful links/advice

Thanks never how do I know whether to use water/lemon juice or tea? My hair is dark brown (dyed) with grey and I want to achieve a reddish-brown chestnutty colour.

Dancegirl How much grey do you have? I say this because if you use pure henna any grey will turn bright orange. If you have the odd strand, that's ok. If it is more you need to mix the henna with indigo powder. If that's what you need to do, I can post more details about it.
I mix my henna with tea [cooled down] Mix it until all the lumps are out. Then I leave it for a couple of hours and test to see if it is ready [ using the stain test]. I used to use lemon juice but it seemed to take ages for dye release. Not sure if there was any difference in colour. I would use tea. Its quicker. If you have no time to dye it and you have dye release [It can take several hours] You can freeze the mixture and defrost it at room temperature later. Its quite handy!

You can buy indigo from henna cat if you need it. Let me know if you think you need a henna and indigo mix. It sounds complicated but it isn't :)

Thank you never that's very helpful. I will have a look at the link.

My hair is mostly dark brown (dyed) but I currently have grey roots coming through. I normally do a mixture of having it coloured at the salon and using a box dye. Thought I'd try the henna this time instead! So I'll need the indigo?

Yes. Otherwise any grey roots will come out orange. Henna is essentially reddish orange. You need indigo to get varients of brown. You can go onto you tube and search for hendigo or henna indigo mix. I looked at loads of videos before I started.

Aw fanks

So I'm an addict. I can't get over this shine.

I've since put a layer of Caca Brun on top to deepen the colour and I've got a sort of auburn/chestnut. But I'd like to go darker - like the colour of a conker - and the lush stuff is supposed to be more of a gloss - is that right? I think that's why it's just toning and not brightly colouring?

Is pure henna/indigo more permanent?