Kenzi’s henna for hair is the same Moroccan and Rajasthani body art quality (BAQ) henna that you know and love; guaranteed to be fresh and pure to give you strong, shiny and gorgeous hair. Henna is a transparent and permanent dye that coats the hair shaft, binding with the keratin. It conditions the hair giving it shine and body, in addition to a rich red color. Because it is a transparent dye, it will not change the color of your hair, only coat it with color. Therefore, black hair will just have a reddish sheen when seen in direct sunlight, but blonde hair will become a brilliant orange, and brown hair will become a deep shade of auburn. If you are dyeing your hair to cover the grey, the grey hairs will come out a bright, almost pink orange (see below for proportions needed to cover grey or achieve certain colors). In order to dye grey hair darker it is recommended that you build up layers of color by applying henna 1-2x/week for a month or so.  Indigo will also help deepen the color; you can read more about this below. 

It is not recommended that you use henna, indigo or cassia on hair that has been recently dyed with chemical dyes, or hair that has been permed. There is a strong likelihood that the henna, indigo or cassia will react in unpredictable ways with the chemicals in your hair. It is suggested that, before you henna/indigo/cassia all your hair, you test the henna/indigo/cassia paste on some hair from your hairbrush or bits cut off from a recent haircut. Maison Kenzi cannot be responsible for the results of treating your hair with our henna, indigo or cassia but we will provide you with as much information as possible to bring about the results that you want. For more information about henna, indigo and cassia for hair go to HennaTribe.com for recipes and instructions.

Use about 100g of powder for short to shoulder length hair; add 50g for every 6 inches of length of hair past the shoulders. Mix henna powder with warm water (maybe throw in some nice, skin-safe essential oils) until smooth, about the consistency of yogurt. A thinner paste is easier to apply but can drip too much so adjust the consistency to suit your needs. Scoop all the paste into a plastic sandwich baggie and cut a 1/4 inch whole in the corner out of which you can squeeze the paste onto your hair. You can also henna or hennadigo your eyebrows so that everything matches. Apply with a Q-tip just on the hair of the eyebrows; try to keep the paste off your skin as it may stain.

Henna application instructions: Using gloves to keep the henna from staining your hands and nails, apply the henna paste to sections of clean hair making sure to get down to the roots as well as to the ends of your hair with the paste; to apply the paste to long hair, start with the layers underneath (pinning the rest up with a clip), squeezing the paste out of the baggie in a line from the roots down to the ends of a section, then squeeze and pull the henna down the section to get all the hairs coated with paste; continue to apply henna to your hair in this manner and if you have any leftover paste, smear that over your entire head; put a plastic shower cap or saran wrap over your hair, covering all the henna paste and then wrap a scarf or a towel around that to keep it all in place (the henna paste will stain fabric so use something you don't mind staining); leave the paste on your hair for 1-3 hours and then wash out using only water, NO shampoo; your color will be darker and last longer if you refrain from using shampoo for 24-48 hours after your henna application. If the henna has dried out it might be hard to wash it out in the shower; try soaking your head in the tub to soften the dried henna, making it easier to wash out; there will probably still be henna in your hair after rinsing so when you go to bed be sure to protect your pillow with a towel.

Indigo is used in conjunction with henna powder to dye the hair.  Added to henna paste and applied to the hair, indigo will give a slightly browner color, sometimes achieving near black (see below for proportions needed to achieve certain colors). The dye from indigo does not remain in the hair as long as henna; it lasts about 1-2 months.

Instructions for maximum grey coverage: apply henna to hair as normal, and then after washing it out, or sometime in the next week do an application of henna and indigo ("henndigo").

Henndigo mixing instructions: put henna and indigo in separate bowls (50-100g each for long hair, less for shorter hair) and add warm water to each bowl, just enough to make a thick paste; mix each paste in its separate bowl and let them sit for about 15-30 minutes; keep an eye on the bowl of indigo because once the surface of the paste has darkened to a deep blue it is ready to use; in a larger bowl mix the henna paste and the indigo paste together thoroughly; add more water to achieve the consistency that you desire; put the paste into a ziploc bag or a plastic bottle to apply (if you use a ziploc bag, seal the bag and cut a 1/4 inch hole in the corner out of which you can squeeze the paste onto your hair). 

Henndigo application instructions: See application instructions for henna, above, substituting "henndigo" for "henna".

Cassia mixing instructions: Cassia obovata, sometimes called “neutral henna” for is conditioning properties; it leaves your hair strong and shiny but does not dye the hair red like henna.  Cassia gives hair a golden glow and can be used repeatedly for long-lasting conditioning. Cassia can be mixed with some henna to give a strawberry blonde color, or more henna to give a coppery glow to the hair. Put the cassia powder in a bowl and mix in hot chamomile tea to form a paste.  If you are trying to achieve a strawberry blonde or coppery color, add the proper amount of henna to the paste (see below for proportions needed to achieve certain colors).

Cassia application instructions: See application instructions for henna, above, substituting “cassia” for “henna”.