How to Henna

Simplicity is the best policy for me and this simple recipe works best for me!

What you need:
Mixing bowl, plastic
Mixing spoon
2 plastic caps
2 pairs of plastic gloves
Newspaper
Towels
100gms of Henna (1box)
4 bags of Green tea
2 cups hot water
2 tablespoons of olive oil or 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
2 tablespoons of raw honey
Essential oil (sweet orange, lavender or vanilla) (optional – to kill the cut hay smell)
Inexpensive but good conditioner
Deep conditioner
Comb
4 Hair Clips
Rattail Comb

What to do:

Step 1: Wash your hair! You can do a co-wash if you wish, but if hair is dirty, then do a regular shampoo since you will not wash your hair after the henna is washed out. NOTE: I like to do a clarifying shampoo before applying my henna to ensure super clean hair. Wring hair so it is damp, not wet.

Step 2: Add 4 bags of green tea to 2 cups hot water and let seep until cool. (Apx. 15mins) Pour henna into a separate plastic bowl. Once green tea is cool/warm, slowly add the green tea to the henna until a thick paste is achieved. Put cover over the mix and let sit for 15-20 minutes.

Step 3: Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil or coconut oil, 2 tablespoons of raw honey and 6-10 drops of essential oil to your henna mix until well blended sort of like a pudding. Cover the mixture.

Step 4: Place newspaper on the floor, put on plastic gloves and have your plastic cap handy.

Step 5: Divide hair into four sections. Apply hennas starting at the base of the neck and work your way up to the top, finishing the back first and the front last. (Do not over manipulate the henna, but make sure it evenly coats each strand).

Step 6: Cover head with a plastic cap and let henna sit for a minimum of 2 hours. Some people chose to sleep in it overnight.
During this process, you can do one of 2 things:
1. “Steam” to warm up the henna while in your hair. Take a wet towel and place in the microwave for apx. 3 minutes or until almost hot and place on your head so the steam heats the henna. Repeat this process when the towel gets cool.
2. Sit under a hooded dryer. Do this only 5-10 minutes max a time and then 20 minutes off. You do not want the henna to get hard, just get heat to it.

Step 7: Rinse henna thoroughly from hair. Once most of the henna is out of your hair, you will need to do several rinses with the good, but inexpensive conditioner until the wash is clear. I personally use either Yes to Carrots or Neutrogena. Do not manipulate the henna while rinsing.

Step 8: IMPORTANT STEP!!! Comb hair—it should be virtually tangle free at this point, and apply a deep moisturizing conditioner. If your hair does not like protein (like mine) then use a good conditioner that contains shea butter or olive oil. Leave in for apx. 30mins then rinse thorough…

Tada! Style as usual! Happy henna'ing! Please share your henna stories and other recipies!
I will post a video tutorial of this shortly!

EXTRA TIP: the ladies at HennaSooq.com, HennaforHair.com and Butters-n-bars.com have some amazing information and products! Check them out when you can.