How to wash henna from hair?

The use of natural hair dyes does not lose its relevance for many years. Henna is the most popular type of natural dye and makes hair vibrant and shiny. But despite the obvious advantages, the dye still has disadvantages, the main one is the difficulty of removing the product from the hair. However, with a competent approach and following some rules, it is quite possible to wash off the henna, you just need to be patient and strictly follow the recommendations.

Henna is a powder of marsh hue, for the manufacture of which leaves of lavsonia are used - a plant growing in the Middle East and North Africa. In the composition of plant materials, the presence of essential oils, organic acids, vitamins C and K and tarry components is great. Thanks to the presence of natural pigments, henna is able to dye hair in bright orange, red and red-brown colors. An important feature of henna is its gentle effect on the hair structure: during dyeing, it does not destroy the native pigment, but only envelops it, forming a surface film. This leads to a densification of the structure of the hair and an increase in their volume.

However, this effect also has its opposite side. As a result of the enveloping effect of plant pigment, other compounds cannot penetrate the hair and change its color. Therefore, difficulties with washing off henna or repainting hair in a different color are often the reason for refusing to use it in favor of other less healthy hair products.

Despite the powerful healing effect of the natural dye, situations often arise when it needs to be washed off urgently. This happens when you get excessively red, and sometimes rich orange hair, the brightness of which was not included in the plans. This reason is the most popular, since often staining with henna gives a rather unexpected color effect. The second reason is the desire to repaint in a different color, and if there is henna on the hair, this is quite problematic.

In this case, washing off the natural pigment is a mandatory procedure, since the new composition will not be able to break through to the internal structure of the hair due to the surface film. Moreover, if henna is not completely washed off and remains on the hair even in small quantities, then dyeing with a different composition can lead to the appearance of the most unexpected shades - from raspberry to green. For the same reasons, henna is washed off before perming, because otherwise there will be no spectacular curls, and the hair structure will suffer significantly.

The henna contains a large amount of tannin, which penetrates deep into the structure of the hair and reacts with the keratin contained in them. As a result of such a compound, tannin gains the ability to linger inside the hair for a very long time. On average, henna can stay on hair for about 6 months, which is a fairly long period and favorably distinguishes natural pigment from synthetic paints and tonics. However, color fastness is not the same for all types of hair and depends on their structure, native color, color intensity and frequency of shampooing. So, natural pigment is best washed off in the first couple of weeks after staining, after which it will be difficult to remove it from curls.

If hair dyeing did not lead to the desired result and it was decided to rinse off the henna, then the greatest effect can be obtained by washing the hair four times with any shampoo immediately after dyeing. Such an emergency procedure will help partially remove the redhead and give the hair a more natural shade. However, one should not deceive oneself about this, since it is most likely impossible to completely get rid of the natural pigment and wash the hair to its color. This will require a whole range of procedures, involving the use of both professional drugs and home remedies.

Professional henna removers are acidic and blonding. The former remove the dye more gently and do not adversely affect the hair structure, while the latter include bleach powder, shampoo, water, an oxidizing agent and not only wash off the henna, but also noticeably lighten the natural color. Below are the most popular professional products that can be used not only in the salon, but also independently at home.

• Backtrack Shampoo from the collection of cosmetics Paul Mitchell is able to wash off natural pigment at a time. The high effectiveness of the drug is due to the combined effect of a remover, a neutralizer and a protective base, which are part of the kit. Before use, the first two components are mixed in equal parts, after which they are applied to the hair and left for 20 minutes.Then a protective agent is applied, they wait another minute, after which they wash their hair under running water. This tool is one of the strongest of all the samples available on the market and allows you to quickly get rid of the redhead without damaging the hair structure. The only drawback of Backtrack shampoo is its considerable price.

• Nexxt Color System Remover Emulsion It has a very gentle effect on the hair and acts as an excellent alternative to blonding agents. However, unlike the previous drug, you should not expect a quick effect from it. The emulsion involves repeated use, with a gradual color correction.

• Kapous Decoxon Emulsion specializes in flushing natural and synthetic paints and is able to remove the redhead at a time. Further adjustment of the shade will require several more applications, however, the bright orange color will disappear after the first application. The set consists of two bottles.

• Color Back Wash from the Italian company Nouvelle also consists of two bottles and is capable of performing complete or partial pigment flushing. And although complete use of henna will require repeated use, the effect on the structure and condition of the hair will be very soft and gentle.

• Emulsion Color OFF from the Russian company "Estelle" includes 3 components: a reducing agent, a catalyst and a neutralizer. The composition effectively removes the red color, without destroying the natural pigment and without lightening the hair.

However, henna can be washed off not only with professional compounds, but also with home remedies. As a rule, most folk methods require a longer application, but the negative effect on the hair is minimal. More effective and popular remedies that allow you to get rid of red color at home are presented below.

Table vinegar is considered a rather effective composition and helps not only to remove the redhead, but also makes the hair soft and silky. To prepare the solution, 4 large tablespoons of vinegar essence are poured into a bucket of 10 liters of warm water and mixed well. Then, hair is kept in this composition for a quarter of an hour, after which it is washed with shampoo and rinsed again with vinegar. However, it is not recommended to use the already used product in which the hair was wetted to rinse, a new solution should be prepared.

At the end of the procedure, a balm is applied to the hair, after which it is naturally dried without the use of a hair dryer.

Laundry soap is the most affordable and harmless way to get rid of redhead. The bleaching effect of soap is due to its alkaline environment, so that the hair flakes open, and the coloring pigment is gradually washed off. To remove henna, wet hair is lavishly soaped, left for 10 minutes, and then rinsed under running water. Then apply a nourishing mask and dry in a natural way. The procedure is repeated every 3 days until the red tint finally disappears.

Sour cream not only effectively removes red color, but also eliminates yellowness. To do this, take warm sour cream of high fat content and apply it to the hair along the entire length. After 50 minutes, the curls are washed with shampoo for oily hair and rinsed with warm water.

Kefir also has a whitening effect and is able to lighten the red color by several tones. To do this, a glass of fat yogurt is slightly heated, applied to the hair, put on a cap of polyethylene and wrapped with a towel. After an hour and a half, they wash their hair with shampoo for oily hair, then rinse and dry.To enhance the effect, the following mixture is prepared: 2 large tablespoons of soda and the same amount of vodka are added to 200 ml of kefir, then the resulting composition is applied to the hair, put on a hat or bag, insulated and left for an hour. Then the hair is washed, a nourishing mask is applied and dried without using a hair dryer.

Onions are also a fairly affordable way to remove henna, however, because of the specific smell they are not used so often. To lighten the dark red, the onions are peeled and squeezed juice out of it or beat with a blender until a homogeneous gruel is obtained. Then the resulting mixture is applied to the hair along the entire length and left for 5-10 minutes.

Alcohol also removes henna from hair well, revealing flakes and neutralizing the natural color pigment. The procedure is as follows: dry hair is abundantly moistened in 70% alcohol and aged for 5 minutes. Further, without washing off the alcohol, castor or burdock oil is applied to the curls, put on a plastic cap and warm with a towel. After a couple of hours, the oil-alcohol mixture is washed off with shampoo for oily hair, and then rinsed with a head.

However, oils can also be used in pure form. To do this, hair is greased with a mixture of olive and burdock oils mixed in equal parts, covered with cellophane and wrapped in a towel. Strengthen the effect will help additional heating of the curls with a hairdryer.

Ground coffee is also able to correct the shade and remove excess redhead. Of course, he will not be able to neutralize henna, but he will certainly be able to paint over a bright color. To more efficiently recolor the curls, instant coffee is mixed with black henna in a 2: 1 ratio, after which it is applied to the hair and left for 15-30 minutes. Dyeing time depends on the desired color and structure of the hair.

The yeast mask can not only remove henna from the hair, but also provide them with powerful support. To properly prepare the composition, you need to mix a pack of raw yeast with a bottle of kefir, mix and leave to swell. In the absence of raw yeast, you can use dry, at the rate of 8 g per 200 ml of kefir. After the mixture swells as much as possible, it is applied to curls and left for 2 hours.

If there is no kefir in the house, you can use a different recipe. To prepare it, a teaspoon of sugar is mixed with the same amount of dry yeast and pour a glass of warm water. After half an hour, the mixture is applied to curls, put on a plastic cap and wrap with a towel. After 40 minutes, the mask is washed off with shampoo and rinsed with hair. Judging by the reviews, it will take 2 weeks to completely get rid of the redhead.

Red pepper is also able to neutralize red pigment. To do this, the pods insist on vodka or alcohol, after which they rub the resulting composition into the roots and distribute along the entire length of the hair. After 20 minutes, wash your hair with shampoo, then rinse well and apply balm.

Since fairly aggressive products are often used to remove henna, colored hair needs careful care. To quickly restore the structure of curls after washing, it is advisable to follow a number of recommendations.

• Combing wet hair is prohibited.
• Due to the fact that decapitation often has a drying effect on the hair, the cut ends should be constantly trimmed.
• The use of chlorinated water during the procedures is prohibited.
• After washing the ringlets, it is recommended to rinse with rinsing balm or a decoction of herbs.
• Hair drying after washing and restoring activities should be carried out in a natural way.Use of the hair dryer is permissible only when working with cold air.
• After the henna removal procedure and further staining, biolamination is desirable.

See how to wash off henna in the next video.