I’ve been doing a lot of reading of actual books since my Lenten blog fast.� One of the books I have (re)read is Toxic Overload.� This re-read was spurred on by an article on hair dyes and bladder cancer I recently came across.� I can’t find a link to the study online, but here is a good synopsis from the USC website. (USC’s Keck School of Medicine participated in the research.)� Here are the thoughts from The American Cancer Society on the same study.
The study is old (2001) and I haven’t searched for opposing or more recent thoughts on it because (1) those often come from industry groups who benefit from more lenient interpretations of outcomes (2) I still remember the class I took in law school on expert witnesses and how you can manipulate statistics to say anything, and (3) I am not interested in swaying anyone from one side to the other.� What interests me in terms of health and spirit will not be the same as what interests the next person and the lengths I will go to remove toxins from our home environment are not the same as the next person.� In other words, to each is own.� I believe we are all adults capable of making up our minds on what is good for us and our families.
More� importantly, how incredibly cute is that product shot?� I can already picture myself dispensing that powder and mixing it up, all the while feeling very scientific while doing so.� I spent waaaaaay too much time on the Morrocco Method website last night and decided that I need one of everything.� For starters, I really want to try their all natural hair color made from henna.� Unfortunately, I am one of those people who colors her hair every month thanks to a head full of premature gray.� Full, as in most of the front of my head is white is left uncolored.� I’m interested in trying something more natural, and this just might be the ticket.� I asked my stylist if she would be willing to apply it for me, but she wasn’t buying what I was selling.� I understand, of course, but I am a wee bit nervous about doing it myself.
Have any of you tried coloring your hair with this or other all natural products?� How did it go?� I’m going to call the company for more information on how to apply it.� Does it stain?� Can it touch the scalp or face?� There is an image of me with a solid black scalp and a polka-dotted face that I can’t seem to shake.
My stylsit using an organic hair coloring (organiccolorsystems.com) and I LOVE it. I haven’t had any issues with skin discoloration, and my hair feels so fresh, healthy & soft when she’s done.
I have not tried any organic/natural hair coloring, with the exception of a less-than-successful henna experiment in my teenage years. However, I do use natural products for most of my face/body/makeup needs, and I would like to make the switch to more natural hair products…if they work! I love my current stylist, but her hair-dyes and recommended Bumble & Bumble products (also love!) are definitely not chemical free.
First, I owe you both a beer/diet coke/choice of beverage for jogging my memory. I could NOT remember the word stylist! I used colorist, even though I knew that wasn’t right because she also cuts my hair. Thanks!
Second–Rachel, are you in So-Cal? Eliza– I love my stylist and Bumble and Bumble, too. :)
p.s. I do have a friend who successfully colored her blond hair red with henna. She used it for many years, and it always looked great!
Eliza–actually, this is what I like about this brand. It doesn’t have to be red! I never used henna before because I thought you could only add red to your hair. According to this company, that is not the case.
OMG. this is so relevant. I just posted about this on my blog. I will be interested to hear what you decide to do and how it works out…
Well, I haven’t colored my hair since last summer because I’m preggers and feel too guilty rubbing chemicals into my scalp. As you said, this is a highly personal decision and many of my friends who dyed their hair during pregnancy had babies who are totally healthy. I just feel, as you do, like I should lighten the chemical load where I can. Plus, there have been scary recent studies about the chemicals in breast milk, but that’s another topic. I asked my stylist about henna and she said it’s not something she’d recommend because when I go back to having her color my hair, it will be hard for her to deal with the henna. But then again, maybe I’d like the henna and never want to use the chemicals again! And think of the money I’d save… So basically I want you to try this product and let me know how it goes. My gray hair is really depressing me, but I figure I can hang in there 11 more weeks until the baby comes.
I would love to know if it covers well. I also have premature gray (thanks for that AND the spider veins, mom!). Hopefully you can report back with good color and no grays. I’ll be waiting.
Would love to know how this turns out too. I used henna for about a year. I have dark brown hair, and it is possible to get a color that’s not red. You just Google it (hennaforhair.com is a great resource) to find your ingredient combo for whatever color you want. My problem was it took quite a bit of planning and prep. And it has to stay on the hair 3 drippy hours. (real henna does–not sure about the product you mentioned.) And henna isn’t that hot at coloring gray which is what I needed it for. Your hair takes the color, while the gray takes a light shade, which just makes it stand out. One perk though–henna makes your hair feel awesome. Immediately takes the straw texture out from over processing.
I’m totally checking into that hair color though. I’ve been back to “real” color and it’s killing my hair.
You guys are really giving me the confidence to try it out. I will have to work up the courage and do it.
Jenny–I’ve heard that about henna and about this line, in particular. Your hair becomes incredibly soft.
I dyed my hair with henna products from the local beauty supply store for many many years, before my gray hair started to become more than salt in the term “salt and pepper”…and actually was white hair with a few brown ones.
and I loved it, it was easy. But it wasn’t as permanent. It washed out quicker and didn’t cover all the white hair. It was ok, when I was in my thirties…now that I’m 51, I don’t think it would cover so well. And BTW, henna comes in shades other than red.
Oh, but it stinks like bad sewer mud. But not for long.
Jules,
I used to make a concoction to color my grays and it really worked. It’s 1/4 cup dried sage and 1/4 cup dried rosemary boiled in 1 cup water, strained and cooled. (It keeps in the refrigerator.) I applied it after washing my hair with a spray bottle but that was messy so then I dipped a cotton pad into it and rubbed it on the gray parts of my hair. It works really well, and I think it smells nice (my family, however, did not agree) and my hair was soft. I found it on the internet originally with a few variations. Now I go to an environmentally friendly salon and still color only the grays, but honestly I like the sage/rosemary concoction better. Supposedly, if you keep using it, the grays disappear after a while. I may go back to it, actually, because I don’t like the whole salon thing.
hi pancakes, randomly found your post so here’s my 2 cents!
i’ve used henna a few times and highly recommend it. it brings out beautiful natural tones and leaves your hair soooo soft and shiny and healthy. you dont need a hairdresser to help you apply it, a friend or family member could do it, its just a bit messy during the application process, so with an extra pair of hands its fairly simple. the mixture drips a little so what i do is have some wet tissues on hand to clear up any spills as quickly as i can and also lay down protective covering (like newspaper in the bathroom or wherever you choose). ive always had time to wipe away any splotches, the tile in my batrhroom is white and i dont have any orange patches at all.
i usually get a hint of orange on my scalp in some places, which naturally fades/washes off in a couple of days but its really not noticeable unless youre scrutinising yourself up close in the bathroom mirror :)
it doesnt wash out much so it lasts quite a long time, so you may not have to do it every month (though i guess that also depends on how fast your hair grows!)
happy henna!
Eliz
Just so you know, henna does not work on hair that is previously colored, it just won’t take it. if you have gray/white hair it will come out orange. yikes!
henna woks best on hair that is not colored, and ranges from light brown to black. it will give it a really beautiful reddish tint. and remember to wear glovesson your hands don’t get orange. Enjoy! henna is really great for hair and nourishes it . love natural beauty secrets!
Ani,
That has to be the coolest thing I have every heard. I’m off to google…
Jules,
Let me know how it goes.
This is so interesting! I’ve been warning my stylist when she tries to talk me into coloring my hair that she’s going to have to try something different. She usually laughs but sounds a little scared. How do you find salons that don’t frown on this? Any tips on bringing mine around? Jules, please keep us all informed about what you find out. I’m so ridiculously excited about all this new info., I might not be able to sleep! I know I sound like a big dork, but I can’t help it. :)
hey, jules. my stylist said that loreal professional has something, and it works like a dream. she recently went to a workshop in SF to work with it and was at first very skeptical. it worked so well, they they are going to start offering it. i do know many that have had aveda color and don’t like it since it really doesn’t last. i, too, have that stubborn pre-mature graying problem and have to color and highlight every 6 weeks. i am looking forward to trying the loreal stuff.
Jules – I just died my hair with henna from Lush cosmetics for the third time. I love it! If you look in the message boards, there’s loads of advice, but I find the process is foolproof. I don’t add any of the recommended bits by other users, and I always love how my hair turns out.
For reference, I have blah brown hair and like to dye it darker. You can see how it looks by the new about post on my blog. That image was taken at my birthday party this weekend!
Very interesting. Hmmm, bladder cancer is the cost of not looking washed out and grey? Eeek! Thanks for opening our eyes to a new way of thinking. LUV the product shot too.