Henna Hair Color Update

PLEASE NOTE:  I did NOT use any henna from Alibaba or Keo Henna, and can not endorse their products.  They "borrowed" my pic for their listing.  I have used henna from Henna Hut or EathDye for many years since I posted this.  And, I get nothing from either henna supplier if you decide to try their wonderful henna.

*****************************************************

Wanted to give an update on how the Henna Hair Dye was going.  It's been about a year now since I started coloring my hair with "Red" Henna about once a month.  Have to say I love this stuff.  It's a beautiful color and pretty easy and pleasant to do.  But, I've heard a few suggestion for adding various things to the henna to get different results, such as essential oils, lemon juice or tea.  One was that vinegar would help set the color.

I have noticed that even weeks after I'd washed my hair I would still see color bleeding out into the drain. Thought I'd give the vinegar a shot.  I tried rinsing my hair with Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) diluted 50/50 with water after shampooing.  The next wash, I didn't see the color in the drain anymore.  So, I've come to the conclusion that it must either set the color or rinse the excess out.  But, thankfully I didn't notice any change in the color of my hair.



So, yesterday I tried using the ACV with the Henna for the first time.  This is the first time I've altered the mixture from just tap water and henna.  I used about 2 parts water to 1 part Apple Cider Vinegar with the henna.  After one hour (as usual) I rinsed with water and let set overnight. This time I also applied Coconut Oil to my hair after rinsing and slept with it in until morning when I washed my hair thoroughly with color safe shampoo.  I think it is a slight bit darker, but this could be due to the coconut oil conditioner, too.

Vinegar is supposed to make the mix more acidic, which is why it is used in other dying like fabric and Easter eggs.  I guess it works by stripping the oil/residue off so the dye can penetrate better.  I'm sure if I'd used more vinegar it may have also gone even darker.  Others have suggested using lemon juice for an even darker color, but this will also dry out your hair quickly and may produce a brassier orangish color.

The Coconut Oil is good for smoothing hair.  A little goes a REALLY long way.  Use sparingly.  It can also clog your drains.  But, it makes hair soft and can be used as a detangler.

So far, I'm not sure the vinegar is worth the added trouble of adding it to the mixture.  At least it doesn't cost much.  But, I do think rinsing with it afterwards helps prevent the color from staining the shower and towels.  I'll keep you posted if I try any other ingredients or techniques.  To read about my first experiments with henna check out this post.

Henna Hair Dye and a Couple Quick "Tips"

PLEASE NOTE:  I did NOT use any henna from Alibaba or Keo Henna, and can not endorse their products.  They "borrowed" my pic for their listing.  I have used henna from Henna Hut or EathDye for many years since I posted this.  And, I get nothing from either henna supplier if you decide to try their wonderful henna.

*****************************************************

Tried Henna on my hair for the first time about a five weeks ago.  I was so excited, I shared my results on Facebook as soon as I did it.  But, I'd like to share a few more things I learned. 

I've only altered my hair color a few times in my life.  But, as I've gotten older my hair sorta changed to a drab dark blonde and starting to get random grays popping up.  So, I wanted to try a new color.  I tried going dark brown and then almost black for a short time.  I didn't like the price of salon upkeep or the the chemical smell and constant fading of the home coloring kits.  When I became interested in tribal belly dancing, I'd started reading a lot of good things about henna.  I really wanted to try it.  People have been using henna to dye hair and skin for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.  But, alas, I couldn't find anyone that did it or anywhere to buy it near me.  It just never caught on in the US.  A couple years ago someone I met told me of a place online, but I'd totally forgotten all about it 'til now.  (Actually, I was kinda intimidated to do it myself.)  Finally, on a whim I took the plunge. 

Pure henna is more of an orange color and is most associated with Lucille Ball from "I Love Lucy" fame.  But, there are now mixes available for many color variations from red-orange to burgundy to brown to even black that uses a flowering plant called indigo, as well.



On the left of the pic above, it shows the day after I used a red mix on my hair.  (I didn't style my hair at all.  That's my natural curl.)  The right is a week later after a couple washings with regular store bought shampoo (and I got around to straightening it).  It was so easy to do.  Just add warm water, mix, apply, wait, and wash out.  I had my man, Mr Sam, help me with mine.  I knew that if he missed any spots, I could always reapply. 

Henna works with your own hair color and highlights, so the color varys a lot.  And, you can't go lighter, only darker.  The smell is pleasant enough.  But, most surprisingly, it really does seem to make your hair softer and healthier looking.  I think this is due to the shine it gives it.  It realy glows in the sun.  The "red" color I chose looked like chocolate pudding going on, but was more like mud when dried after the hour I left it on. There are no harsh chemicals, so you can apply it as much or as many times as you like without harm to your hair.  You can pretty much use it anywhere, too! Even on pets and kids, if you wanted.  I tried dying my eyebrows with it!  (Boy, did I look funny while I waited!  I looked like Groucho Marx!)  It will dye your skin temporarily, but if you apply it late in an evening, it will wear off your hair line by the next day.  Hands will take longer, especially fingernails!
You may be wondering why I took so long to share this info on my henna experience.  (What am I saying?!  It always takes me forever to post things!)  But, I've waited until I had completed a touch up to the roots, just to see how much success I would have with it.  They recommend touching up the roots about once every three weeks or so.  I waited just over a month.  But, it turned out just as well as when I first dyed my hair.  The color on my ends is really holding up to the washing.  But, it IS a permanent dye.  My mom has been using home kits for some time now.  And, they fade well before a month has passed.  After seeing my results, she decided to try henna as well, so I helped her a couple of weeks ago.  She bought the "burgundy" color, but since she already had a dark burgundy color on her hair, I thought it best we just try doing the roots and see where it goes.  We could always reapply to all of her hair.  It ended up about the same color as mine, which was a wee bit disappointing...well, maybe a tad darker.  But, it blended with her faded old color quite well. 



When doing my mom's roots, I didn't opt to purchase the application kit.  Instead, I tried a suggestion of just clipping the corner off of a ziplock bag.  However, the hole in the bag began to get larger and larger as I worked. And, I couldn't set it down or it leaked everywhere. So, I though, "there has to be a better way!".



And, looky here! There was a better way. And, it's an "upcycled" way!  So, here's a quick "tip" for those who want to try henna themselves and don't want to purchase the application kit.  Just make your own applicator tip.  Believe me, it works!


I was inspired by my dollar store pastry bag with interchangable screw on tips.  But, I wanted to recreate the idea using the tip off of an old bottle to apply the henna.  I couldn't just pour the mix in the bottle.  For one, the neck is too small to be practical.  But, also, I don't like when I get air bubbles and splatter mess everywhere.



I looked through my stash of bottles and decided on cutting the top off of an empty school glue bottle. They previously had non-toxic contents and have a nice narrow tip.  With a daughter in elementary school and all the crafting we do, I get a lot of these bottles. So, I cleaned one up really good with soap and water.  You could probably use other containers, like those for fabric paint or even a ketchup dispenser.  The flat design of the glue bottle is rather handy, though.  I left the shoulders of the bottle on to have somethinge to hold on to when twisting the cap on and off. 

 

After preparing the bottle, I cut the tip off of the ziplock bag as usual.  (It doesn't take a big hole.)  Then, I unscrewed the applicator cap off of the bottle and dropped the shoulder portion of the bottle into the bag.  Then, I just screwed the cap back on over the bag on the outside.  That's pretty much it!  You're ready to get dying.  Just open and close the top as needed to apply the henna like icing a cake with a pastry bag. I suppose you could do this with regualr henna for applying mehndi designs, too.  Or heck, ice a cake with it!
But, here's another tip:

 

One of the videos from the website suggested putting your bags over a cup to fill them.  Just pour the mix of henna powder and warm water into the bag over the cup.  (It took 1 1/2 bags that are 100 gram each to cover my long thick hair.  But, when reapplying only on the roots, I would say it only took about 1/4 of the bag.  I mixed 1/3 and had way too much left.)  Push out the air and seal up the bag.  You can use a rubber band around a large bag to keep it more manageable.  That made it really easy. 

I'm wondering if it would be possible to just mix the henna right in the bag?  Whatcha think?  I think I'd have to use a gallon-sized bag and mix it to the opposite corner of the applicator tip.  I may try a small batch next time and see how it works.

Yay!  Now, I'm a red head!  And, being so easy to keep up with, I think I'll stay this way for awhile.  I've found that it ends up costing me much less than the store bought home kits in the long run.  I can use one bag to do at least 4 touch-ups.  If you're interested, I got my henna "red" color from Henna Hut (www.hennahut.com).  They're a family run business near Houston Texas.  But, I believe their business is done strictly online.  The website is full of useful info and testimonials.  They were great about getting it to me right away.  And, they're conveniently on Facebook to answer any questions.  Hope you give it a try.  If you do, let us know how your results turn out!

Felt a Bit Like Cinderella Before the Ball!

I was fretting about not having a thing to wear to the Sky Commodore's Autumn Masquerade Ball the weekend before last.  I meant to have something spectacular finished way ahead of time, but of course life stepped in, and I was late working on the witch boots for this Halloween.  Really was excited to see Steam Powered Giraffe and our fav local band, Marquis of Vaudville, play again. 



So, this is the outfit I came up with with mostly stuff I had. Amazing what a few new pieces can do for a new look. Just goes to show you don't have to totally start from scratch for a new look, right?  Though most of it is made up of stuff I'd already made or found like the corset and underskirts, I managed to make a new tabistry hat to match my corset and sew a gold overskirt and sleeves. I'll discuss the hat more on my tabistry blog.

As for the overskirt, it is five panels gathered at the seam with an adjustable casing.  All the strings are hidden at the underside of the skirt under my corset.  I'm still not completely happy with it.  Being a crunch for time, I had to sacrifice in places.  I plan to go back and add a front panel, prehaps removalbe to change the color that will help to straighten it out at the front edges.  The gold drapey sleeve thing is just a tube of fabric pinned to the inside of the corset.  I wore a black tank under it and made some black removble sleeves out of tights.

This was my frst outing in a hoop skirt. We had aquired the hoop skirt with another larger one from, where else but, our local flea market (One for me and one for mom.).  We got them from a nice lady who used to have an awesome vintage clothing shop there. She has since moved to another larger flea market. She has some great stuff. I also found a pair of spats in her shop that are a wee too tight in the ankle for most of my shoes and a great metal chain belt I will have to wear one of these days. But, back to the hoop skirt. Not the best thing to dance in to the type of music we heard, and was a real trick to get in the car in. But, I survived without and traumatic mishaps or exposure.



Mr. Sam wore the top hat and vest we created for the Willy Wonka event earlier this year. The canes we have were also from back then.  I reworked the striped one I have from a wooden staff that had a giant skull on top.  You can't see in the pic, but I resculpted a smaller skull on the top with paperclay.  His cane was from the flea market.  The mask he wore was one he'd put together when he was working on his first top hat and steampunk outfit.
 

It was a great time as usual. Awesome show.  Well worth the effort I (didn't) put into a new outfit for it. We even got to chat briefly with Toby, the lead singer of MOV.  Great guy.

 

There were too many amazing costumes to count.  The crew of Airship Serenity was in full force that night.  There was a lot of steamy eye candy.



Though I've been tinkering and all round mucking them up, I must give Joseph Hernandez a member of Airship Serentiy the credit for shooting these photos. To our shagrin, we had yet again forgotten the old camera. I was sad because I really would like to have gotten some close up pics of all the hardwork my mom put into stylin my hair into a Victorian updo with ringlets. Using about a thousand bobby pins, she did a fantastic job that really set off my outfit.

 

Thaks for stopping in!  Pardon the pun, but hope you too are having a ball crafting! 

Porkpie and a Cocktail - 1 Hat into 2

Be amazed as I tell you how we turned one ordinary unassuming cowboy hat into not one...but TWO totally new hat creations just like magic!  Yes, you read that right.  We created this porkpie hat for Mr. Sam...



...and a cocktail hat for me... 



...out of one used cowboy hat!  Well, okay, it might not be too terribly "amazing" or "like magic" in any way.  But, it is definitely thrifty, right?! :) 

Not so recently we acquired another cowboy hat (this one is from my dad who heard us yammering about our interest in reshaping felt hats).  Right away Mr. Sam had started making it into a short top hat style like the previous brown one, but he didn't like how it was turning out due to the red vent holes on the sides and gave up.  After it sat for awhile in our craft shelf, I finally pulled it down, reshaping and shortening it even more on top to the porkpie style we've come to know and love. 



This one is much shallower than the brown one because of the deeper fold.  When he put it on I kinda thought he reminded me slightly of when Johnny Depp wore a porkpie in "Benny and Joone", except that this one is black and the brim is shaped slightly different.

 

After finishing it, I don't think the red rivets look so bad.  Though, I think it would be nice with an extra wide hadband with red in it.  You think?  I'm contemplating making a band out of seed beads.  Perhaps a snake pattern or something.



Then out of the blue, I managed to pull a second hat out of the first.  Or, should that be off of it?  All I know is there's one thing we keep accumulating from all these felt hats.  (I think 8 now actually, not including our gazillion tabistry and leather hats!)  It's lots of scrap felt from the excess brims.  Cowboy hats tend to have really wide brims.  And, we keep cutting them down to about 1 1/2-2 1/2 inches, leaving me with a pile of felt rings.  And, you probably know by now that I can't throw anything away.  :)  So, the other day as I was straightening up the craft room, I was inspired by the coiling of the scrap felt as I put it up.  It looked like it would make a unique little cocktail hat for a rockabilly-ish night out.



I made a kind of tapered slanted pill box by wrapping the felt around in a more deliberate coil.  The top was then covered with a piece of scrap felt.  I embellished the front with a big black removable pin.  This way I can be indecisive and change it to match my outfit.  Like the red paper hat I posted about, I used a piece of netting (probably from produce or something), this time in black, to make a short veil.  Later, I went back and added the black lace trim.  (Forgive me for "photoshopping" the top of the hat in this pic.  I actually didn't put on the lace trim until a few days after the event.)



For this last mintue event, I just pinned the hat on my head using hairpins.  There is a ridge created just under the outer ring by the overlapping coiled strip that I secured the pins so that they weren't visible.  But, eventually I will sew in a clip/comb or two to keep it in place.  I have to say, the hairpins kept it in on my head pretty well considering how wild we can sometime dance!  :)

 

We had a really good time.  Watched some talented performers and, best of all, listened/danced to some great live music.  Need to do it again soon! 

In other news, I've got a mile long list of crafting to get back to on top of tutorials to write.  And, Halloween is approachng very sneakily.  So, if you don't hear from me for awhile, don't panic.  :)  I hope to have some spectacular stuff to show when I come up for air.  Until then, be craftastic!!

New set of Pistachio Hair Falls

Finally posting a new pair of super long pistachio hair falls. From loop to the tip of the tassels they're at 30" long. The shells on these were an experiment in transitions with the Kool-aid and food coloring dye used in my previous falls.



I soaked the shells half immersed in the dye. The red color separated and bled up the shell giving a three-toned transition from purple to red to natural. I strung them so that the shells also transition from heavily purple to natural with green shells at the top to resemble leaves. It created a lovely flower-like effect. I also strung small clusters of green and purple above to look like buds and a small green and natural bud at the tassels on the bottom.



I sealed these shells with satin acrylic spray paint, so they have a little shine to the shells. I used some scrap yarns to fill in the tassels. Though not pictured, I also created some green feather dangles that can be clipped into the tassels.



Because they were part of an experiment, I absolutely have nothing in my wardrobe that goes with these falls. So, I'll either need to start a new outfit around them (woohoo!) or I'm pondering offering these on Etsy.com if anyone is interested in owning them. After the Holidays I hoped to get started making a few pair in a sorta snaky scaly pattern.

Not sure if I'll be posting any more projects before Christmas. Though, we do have a hat in the works that I'd like to show the WIP on. Until next time, have a Crafty Holiday!

Turtles! - Personal Craft Swap with rottenlittleboys

Made a new pair of falls for a personal craft swap. My partner is in tribal bellydancing and requested some of our pistachio hair falls. She likes turtles and fish so that is the theme I went for.



From the top loop to the end of the tassels, these falls are about 28" long. I added a black hair elastic to the loop to put around a pony tail.

I have to say I'm not fond of photographing these long falls. It's difficult to get the whole length in the pics. So, let me chop them up for you. :)



I had planned to decorate the falls with some fish charms, wooden beads and silver bells. But, while I was stringing the shells on the top section of the falls I got this great idea to also make some little turtles out of the pistachio shells. I used some shells that I dyed with Berry Blue Kool-aid for the turtle backs. The Kool-aid made a nice bright turquoise blue (and smell great). Then, I went back over it with a dark turquoise and black fine Sharpie marker to draw some shell pattern and covered them with clear gloss spray paint to make them shiny. The turquoise color contrasts nicely with the burgundy beads.



The falls are strung with brown and black acrylic yarns. The wooden beads were taken from some secondhand cranberry Christmas garlands. They're a realty pretty burgundy color. The feathers were leftovers from a bunch I tore apart for the little felt pirate hat I posted about a while back. I put the feathers and the fish charms on clasps so that they are removable. That way she can wear them in other ways.

I really like how these turned out. Might just be my fave pair, yet. I've been making all kinds of colors of shells, but I seem to prefer the look of stringing the natural ones and using the dyed shells as accents. I've got a few more pairs partially finished. But, I'm going to be taking a break from them to paint some witch boots. If all goes as planned I should have some boots posted by the end of the month.

And, now on to what I receive in return:



My swap partner, littlerottenboys, sent me a really nice 12" locker hooked turtle rug that mom and I plan to enlarge to use in our yurt for camping. You can check out the personal/private swap gallery for more info and to see larger images of the rug.

Pistachio Nut Shell Hair Falls for Daughter

The daughter and I made another pair of hair falls using our dyed pistachio shells. This pair is for her, but they ended up longer than mine. oops! :)



Here's a close up of some of our dyed shells in red, yellow and blue to look like flower petals and green for leaves. If I'd have planned better, I would have turned the last row of each group over. I think it would have made a better transition.



We knotted a simpler variation of what I did on mine (sans beads) at the top section. The lighting was playing tricks on me. The white yarn matched the shells until I got out into natural lighting.



After daughter was complaining about the difficulty she was having stringing the shells, I devised a makeshift needle threader that is just a piece of fishing line taped together at the ends. Instead of poking the yarn though the shells hole, we are now poking the threader into the hole after running the yarn through the loop. We're now able to string more than one shell on the yarn at a time and just slide the extras down to the end of the yarn to hang while we braid and tie the knots. Wish I'd have thought of this on the first pair. :)



These are so fun to make together while sitting around and such a great use for all the shells and scrap yarn I've accumulated, though I'm running out of dyed shells. I have mostly purple left. I experimented on some of the shells by dipping only a portion of the shells into purple dye. The red color bled up the shell making an interesting effect. I plan to use these for yet another pair of hair falls in the future. I'm sure you will see a few more pairs of these among other things before we are finished

Pistachio Nut Shell Hair Falls

If you'll recall last post when I mentioned making something with my dyed pistachio shells, I finally have some pics of what we did with some of them.



I made a pair of hair falls for my tribal bellydance outfits. Granted this pair doesn't really contain many colorful ones, I do plan to make some with more of them. I just wanted to experiment first. Daughter is still planning a bracelet, but we haven't got to it, yet.



The general construction for these falls was inspired by a great tutorial by bellygoddess. The same tute is also available here. The main body of the fall with all the shells is "macrame'd" in square knots while the top and inbetween portions are braided in a 4-strand round plait. I used some beads and scraps of yarn I've kept.



In a close-ups you can better see the orange-ish dyed shells I sewed on as an after thought. I wrapped the transitions with a rose colored embroidery floss.



The tassels are just extra yarn bits. Yes, I keep all the tiny bits of yarn even. They come in handy for this stuff. :) And, those tassel caps are from an old jacket's pull strings. :)



I also managed to finish a pop tab fall I'd started probably last year. It's kind of a sampler to see how I should weave the tabs in. You can see more about this one and future tabistry hair falls on my other blog devoted solely to tabs at tabistry.blogspot.com.

Super Quick and Easy DIY Hair Flowers Tutorial (No glue!!)

Ever buy or make hair flower accessories only to have them fall to pieces; the clips not stay in your hair; or worse yet the clips pull you hair out when removed? Well, that's what I've been battling with until the other day. I had a brainstorm and came up with the easiest and most secure hair flowers I've ever used to date. And, the best pluses are that they are cheap (being made from stuff around the house) and since no hot gluing is involved your kids can help you make them.



Here's what you'll need:

- Plain old buttons (At least one flat button and another shank or not)
- 3" long bendable hair pins (I used Sta-Rite brand from Sally's Beauty Supply)
- Artificial flowers (the kind that you can take apart)



I used cheap dollar store flowers for mine. What you'll be doing is taking the flower off the stem. Taking it apart by removing the plastic stud that holds the petals and other parts together. I took apart three different colored flowers (black, red and salmon-ish orange) and mixed up the petals. You can keep the parts in order or mix and match as I did. You can toss the studs. We won't be using them anymore.

Now we are ready to assemble our hair flower.



First, slip the shank or flat button onto the hairpin. Then, start sliding on all the flower parts from the top down. Add a flat button at the bottom and bend the prongs of the hairpin out to hold the button in place.



Lastly, curve the prongs with your fingers so that they resemble a fish silhouette. This will keep the flower parts on the pin while still allowing you to use the pins in your hair.

TIP: Depending on the placement of your hair flower, you may also want to bend the prongs to one side so that the flower faces out while the pin is flush against your scalp.



The pic above shows the center of the flower where I used a shank button. If your flowers are full enough, you won't really see this button while wearing it.

To secure the hair flower in your hair squeeze the prong tips together before poking into the your hairdo near the scalp in a side-to-side small zig-zagging motion. I was able to wear all six of mine the entire day from sun up to sun down without one falling out.

MORE TIPS:
• The great thing about this particular type of hair pin is that if you are going to be dancing roughly or bending over you can bend the prongs even more once they are in your hair to secure them even better.

• With the bendable pins, you can even have fun taking your hair flowers apart again and again and rearranging your flowers endlessly!

• You could also add a couple drops of scented oils to the center of your flowers to make them smell good. Or, soak a wooden button in the oil.



Hope you have found this tutorial useful. Have fun creating hair flowers!