My relationship with Indigo

When I first began doing henna it was always accompanied with Indigo ( the indigo was used only after my pregnancy).  The results it yielded for me were not so close to the rich brown tones I was trying to achieve, but instead it toned down the burgundy plum undertones of the Jamila henna.

After many applications I soon correlated  my debilitating migraines with the use  of my hendigo. What I found out is that Indigo can cause migraines and it did exactly that in my case. So my indigo saga was short lived and I have resorted to other henna such a Moroccan henna which gives me more of a brown color minus the indigo.What I also like about the Moroccan henna is that since my hair itches with the henna left in for more than a few hours, this henna has a fast dye release and I also don't have to sit with it in my head for too long.

Although indigo and I did not work out, there are other treatments that helped alleviate a migraine for me. Due to my non allergic rhinitis as well as food sensitivities, my life has been laden with migraines. Fortunately for me doing my sukesh treatment or an amla brahmi treatment has either diminished the migraine, or completely eradicated it.

•ღƸ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒღ• Henna Me Silk 8~17~2012 •ღƸ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒღ•

 

Last Friday I henna using my Moroccan Henna- Yes, my Moroccan henna has arrived! As all of you know, I love my Moroccan henna and cannot be happier with the color I achieved using it, although I have been substituting it For the Jamila for a while. The Jamila is more towards the ends of my hair and shows a deeper Burgundy/purple/wine color if you will. The Moroccan yields a much warmer brown. I was so surprised and satisfied with the warm brown I got without using indigo or adding amla  to it.  I am contemplating adding amla to it this next time. I don't think I need it, but I am anxious to see the kind of color it will give.

 

I also Purchased the 500 gram bottle of cocoveda oil which I cannot live with without- well that and now my amla oil. The smell of this oil is just too intoxicating, full of herbs, and actually works well at moisturizing my fine hair type without weighing it down . My hair sucks this right up! Since discovering my amla oil I have been using my cocoveda oil mostly in my herbal recipes.

 I will not dare give the recipe this time. I wasn't thrilled with the consistency at all,  but I will be perfecting it. After all, I have 500 GRAMS of it! :-)

Check out the picture below which shows the difference in color between the Moroccan henna packages of what I'm assuming is supposed to be the same batch.?.  Not sure if I captured it too well, but here it goes..

 

•ღƸ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒღ• Henna Me Silk 4~11~2012 •ღƸ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒღ•

I was hoping to do My henna Tx's at least every two weeks, but with the addition of other ayurveda treatments I was thinking it was quite unnecessary. It seems that I have been close to target of one henna treatment a month. This is okay, but considering the amount of henna I would need for my new growth to reach saturation, once a month just isn't enough. 

To simplify what I just said: Ayurveda, at any level, is excellent for my hair AND scalp. But the permanent and permeable hair  'jacket' if you will, that is obtained from multiple applications is characteristic of henna specifically. So,  no matter what other great ayurveda treatment I  perform throughout the month, there isn't anything like henna itself.

The build up of it until you reach that saturation/ transformation point happens at LEAST  after FOUR applications. So let's do the math: On average hair grows about a half of an inch a month. It would take FOUR months for this half inch to even begin to become fully saturated, not even including the other 1.5 inches that you have grown and need to be hennaed 1,2, or 3 more times. So increasing  henna treatments to 2x a month will ensure that at least a good portion (an inch) of your new growth is getting as much henna as possible to reach full saturation and can be protected sooner ( in 2 months, not four). I really hope this makes sense!

Ok, so enough math for today! I did my henna. The mix was a bit runny and I did not like it. I added a bit of kalpi tone  because I am getting rid of it-Sukesh, my other affair after henna, is taking its' place. Although the mixture was VERY  unfavorable, my results were nevertheless incredible...... as always!

My recipe this time was

A dish of henna

a dab of coconut milk

a dollop of coconut oil

 a dash of honey

a dribble of kalpi tone

  a dip of coconut oil

and a drip of love

= I didn't measure a thing!

Hesh Kalpi Tone

 

Aside from Jamila henna, Kalpi tone was the first ayurvedic concoction that I began using on my hair back in 2009. I would mix it into my hendigo mix ( henna + indigo), and it would yield deeper, darker results in color. I then started using it on its own as a conditioning treatment, both with oils and with conditioners, as well as a mixture of the two. 

Mixing kalpi tone with a watery base ( like tea or just plain water) and then with oils yields a very unfavorable emulsion, in my opinion. It's like the two really don't want to mix together, and it becomes very strange to the touch and more difficult to apply. 

I have not tried using Kalpi tone with coconut milk, but I sure plan on to in the near future. It is very moisturizing when mixed with a conditioner and a bit of oil, and tends to run more when mixed with just an oil. I also like mixing it ( into a paste, not a rinse), with black tea so that I can combine my Kalpi Tone and black Tea rinse into one :-)

You can also use Kalpi Tone as a rinse by mixing it with warm tea and then straining it through a stocking hose to rid the particles that people often complain about being left behind. I have yet to use this as a rinse and don't plan on to; although I may be using less product to achieve the rinse, I feel like I'm wasting it when it's done this way. I prefer for all of my treatments to sit on my hair for no less than an hour to ensure penetration.The only rinses that I do are black tea rinses that strengthen the hair and lessen shedding, as well as ACV ( apple cider vinegar) rinses after every hair service to close the cuticles of the hair and allow for better moisture retention.

I have never experienced these residual particles left in the hair after doing a KTT,  and I'm  not sure why this is so- maybe because I use conditioner and add oils???

The smell of this is very herbal-sweet-lemony...I really, really like it! It's a lot less 'in-your-face' than henna, so you don't feel over powered by it. It DOES have a particular smell to it, so please don't think you will not smell anything at all. This is just the nature of ayurveda, which I love♥♥♥! 

So what's in this stuff??

Amla Fruit (Phyllanthus Emblica Linn) 10%, Maka Leaves (Eclipa Aba) 10%, Mandoor (Iron Rust) 10%, Jaswandh Flower (Hibiscus Rosa) 9%, Narangichal (Citrus Aurantium) 8%, Shikakai Fruit (Acacia Conncinna) 7%, Kumari Leaves (hedychium Spicatum) 7%, Kapur Kachili (Hedychium Spicatum) 6%, Brahmi (Herpestis Monniera) 5%, Methi Seed (Trigonalafinum Greekum) 5%, Wala (Andropogan Muricatus) 5%, Khadir Stem (Acacia Katechu wild) 3%, Chandan (Santalum Album) 2%, Neem (Azadirachta Indica), Sitaphal Seeed Powder(Squamosa), Sugandh Dravya.

Did you just say "WHAT," because I did! Just know that they are a lot of good herbs for the hair! Briefly, Hesh Kapli Tone has the following advantages:

• Gives a natural black tinge to the hair
• May help to strengthen hair roots
• Promotes hair growth
• Controls hair loss and premature greying

What does it promise?

A natural beauty therapy for hair, Hesh Kalpi Tone adds a dark tinge to the hair and gives it a natural, dark shade. Made from natural ingredients like Aloe, Amla, Brahmi, Shikakai and other herbs, Kalpi Tone helps control dandruff, hair loss and premature greying of hair. The blend has to be used over the scalp, Kalpi Tone may help to strengthen hair roots and promote hair growth.

The one and only downside of this is that it DOES DOES DOES darken  your hair. Since I am lighter skinned I  do not like the way darker hair looks on me. My natural color is medium brown, and while darker hair does give your hair a more shiny and healthy appearance, it looks really artificial against my skin (especially in the colder months when I'm paler). So this will alter the color of  the beautiful tones you get with henna.

The MAIN benefit is that I've been a long term sufferer of migraines and this has helped to alleviate them, unlike indigo which I have stopped using for 2 years now because of the incessant headaches it was giving me ( and darker hair color that I do not like). 

Now, of course, the obvious benefit is stronger hair!!