How to Use Henna to Dye Hair Red

Henna is a paste made out of crushed leaves and twigs of henna plant.  The leaves of the henna plant are harvested, dried, and then ground into a fine powder. This lovely silken green powder is made into a paste using safe and natural ingredients.

The following tips will help you to achieve red hair with henna:

1. Make sure you buy pure henna with no ingredients present.

Body art henna, also known as mehndi, which you can apply on your hands is the best henna to buy when coloring your hair red. 

2. Depending on the natural color of your hair, the result will be darker or lighter.

Take 100 to 500 grams of good quality henna, depending upon the length of your hair. Mix this with warm water to make a smooth paste of it.  Optional: You can also add lemon juice to it.

3. Cover the bowl with a plastic film and leave it  at room temperature.

Let it stay for at least 7-8 hours. Check in between to make sure that it is not drying out.

4. Optional: It is preferable to wash and dry your hair before applying henna.
5. Put on protective gloves as henna stains everything it touches. Make sure it doesn’t drip on your clothes

6. Divide your hair in half and go inch by inch and cover the hair with the paste.

Henna is quite thick in consistency and gets even more difficult to apply if you have long hair. If you find it difficult to apply henna yourself then have someone apply it for you.

7. When you are done, cover the head with a plastic cap to prevent it from drying as henna stops working if it dries out.

Leave it for 3 to 4 hours to gets a rich shade.

8. When it is time to rinse the henna out of your hair, wash your hair with tap water and DO NOT use shampoo.

Your hair might appear super bright the first day while undergoing oxidation. Gradually, the color will deepen over a few days. Avoid using styling tools like blow dryers and hair straighteners as they will dry out the hair.

The color will gradually fade away but you can reapply it whenever you feel like.