Henna and indigo are herbs that dye and nourish the hair naturally. Henna and indigo are sold in powder form. The powders need to be mixed with water to make the hair colour paste.
Benefits of Henna and Indigo Herbal Hair Colour
Henna and indigo provide rich, permanent hair colour and also have numerous benefits such as promoting hair growth, repairing and adding shine to dry/damaged hair, adding volume to thin hair, and improving the scalp condition.
Henna and Indigo and are a safe alternative to chemical hair dyes that contain harmful ingredients like PPD which can cause severe allergic reactions and damage the hair, leading to hair loss. With repeated use of chemical hair colour, these harmful ingredients start accumulating in the body, leading to serious health problems. Both our henna and indigo powders are 100% organic with no preservatives and harmful chemicals.
What Colour will Henna and Indigo Dye the Hair?
Henna can be used on its own to dye the hair in red tones. Indigo by itself dyes the hair in green/blue tones, so it is never used on its own. A mixture of henna and indigo dyes the hair in brown tones and black tones, depending on the recipe, application method, and the amount of time the hair soaks in the hair colour paste.
Natural hair colour can have different results for different people. Many factors affect the end result of natural hair dye such as current hair colour, hair condition, and hair type. For example, hair that is more porous dyes easily whereas hair that is less porous is more resistant to dyes. Since there are no harsh chemicals in natural hair colour, repeat application may be required to achieve the desired colour.
Henna and indigo hair dye is more prominent on light and medium coloured hair (e.g. blonde, light brown, or white hair). On dark coloured hair (e.g. dark brown or black), the dye is less prominent and looks like a tint.
Hair Colour Paste Preparation and Application
Henna and indigo powders need to be mixed with water to make the hair colour paste. Water activates and releases the dye from the powders (this is called the dye release process). Henna powder needs to be soaked overnight to achieve dye release whereas indigo powder can be mixed and used right away.
Using different ratios of henna and indigo powders results in different tones of hair colour. For example, a recipe with 100% henna will result in red tones and a recipe with 50% henna and 50% indigo will result in brown tones. The amount of powder you need depends on your hair length and thickness.
Proper application is crucial to achieving great results! The paste is applied in a thick layer to sections of hair using gloves or a hair dye applicator brush. When all the hair is covered with henna paste, a shower cap or plastic wrap is used to cover the head; this keeps the paste moist. For best results, the hair must soak in the paste for 4 hours. It is then washed away with water and hair conditioner only.
Click on the links below for detailed instructions on how to prepare and apply the hair colour paste according to your desired hair colour:
Are Henna and Indigo Safe to Use?
Yes! Organic henna and indigo are safe to use on hair. If you have never used them before, you can do a patch test just to make sure you're not allergic to them. Click here to find out how to do a patch test for henna and indigo herbal hair dye.
Luxe Organic Henna is committed to bringing you the best organic henna products for hair and body art. Our products are made with organic ingredients and contain no chemicals. We get our supplies only from reputable suppliers who strictly adhere to regulatory standards and have gone through testing and organic certification for their products.