Henna has come a long way from rusty orange and difficult preparation. I'm happy when I see brands making innovations -- easier application, a bigger range of colours. Today I want to talk about my new Henna love Henna: Ayluna Henna in Chili and Mahagoni.
I've always wanted to be a redhead, but my dark brown hair peppered with greys gave me at most a chestnut tint. I didn't want to go down the chemical routine. My hair loves henna and on my mom's hair I have seen the how harsh chemical dyes can be.
I got the Ayluna Chili Henna just for my usual root touch-up. But I was so surprised at the intensiveness of the red that I had to dye the lower sections so that it didn't look weird. You can see the results here, the colour variation is due to me having lots of grays. Alyuna's red shades mix henna with madder root which gives a beautiful wine-red dye. It also contains Indigo, which keeps the colour from going to the infamous rusty direction. Brahmi, Fenugreek and Chamomile care for the hair and add shine.
The henna powder is ground quite fine, like Khadi Henna, which makes it much easier to apply and wash off that "normal" hennas. The colour stays brilliant after several washings. I feel like the Mahagoni shade is more of a wine red, while the Chili has a more typical rusty henna tint. The Ayluna Henna gives my hair volume, though less than the one from Khadi.
My hair is shoulder length and very thick, and one package for ca 7€ gives me at least 5 root touch-ups.
My hair is shoulder length and very thick, and one package for ca 7€ gives me at least 5 root touch-ups.
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| The strands towards the front is what the Ayluna Chili looks like. The auburn strands at the back are from the red Khadi Henna I used in the past. |
I pre-treated my hair with the Detox Hair Mask from Khadi, which is meant for deep-cleansing and pre-colouration. It's a mix of Moroccan lava clay and Reetha fruit powder. The clay absorbs oil, dirt and other impurities. Reetha (soap nut) is a great cleanser with an acidic pH -- I've loved washing my hair with them, can't believe I haven't blogged about that. The paste was rather difficult to apply, but I felt that it cleansed my hair really well. The Henna coloured my hair more evenly than usual. It also does a great job of cleansing the scalp. I suggest you try it if you have
problems with dandruff, itchiness or oiliness.
One thing I found problematic -- the warning to not let the mixture come into contact with metal was not included in the instructions but below them, and was easy to oversee -- I had already put the powder into a metal bowl!
One thing I found problematic -- the warning to not let the mixture come into contact with metal was not included in the instructions but below them, and was easy to oversee -- I had already put the powder into a metal bowl!
The package is rather small for 10€, but it does last for several uses.
What do you use to cleanse your hair before using Henna? Have you tried Ayluna? What was your impression? Let me know in the comments.
What do you use to cleanse your hair before using Henna? Have you tried Ayluna? What was your impression? Let me know in the comments.