Henna

Henna (Lawsonia inermis) is a flowering plant. Henna is a tall shrub or small tree. It produces a red-orange dye molecule called lawsone. This has been used to dye skin, hair, fingernails, leather, silk and wool.

In India, henna is used as fresh leaves rather than as dried powder. It’s used in various festivals and celebrations by women and children to make desingns on their hands. It is left on overnight. When it gets dried it leaves a bright red or reddish brown design on the hands, which makes the hands appear beautiful.

Henna has many traditional and commercial uses, the most common being as a dye for hair, skin and fingernails.

Henna has been followed for centuries as the herbal treatment for the hair. It is also useful to control falling hair and dandruff. It promotes hair growth and prevents hair loss. It also conditions the hair. It has a cooling effect on the scalp.

Prepare henna in the following procedure, apply it on the hair, leave it for 1 hour and then wash it off. It not only cools the scalp but also gives good color to the hair.

Things needed for henna paste:
1 cup henna powder (available in any ethnic store)
1 tsp gooseberry powder (it gives nice black shade)
1 tsp black coffee or
1 tsp black tea
Juice of 1 lemon
½ cup curd
10 drops oil

Henna Powder

Preparation:

Mix all of the above items together and leave it for 12 hours. Then apply the paste on the hair. One egg yolk also can be added at the end to make the hair smooth and silky. Leave it on the hair for an hour. Later wash the hair well with a good shampoo and dry it. This definitely gives a good feeling for the hair. As some drops of oil are added while making the paste, it makes even the dry hair smooth and silky.

Henna Paste

Mend those Split Ends

The ends of hair that have split into strands are called Split Ends.

The causes for split ends are:

The natural protective oils of the scalp fail to reach the ends of the hair, as it grows. The reason for this is getting too much exposure to the sun, going through too many shampoos, use of hair dryers and hot irons. The hair gets brittle at the end due to dryness and gives way to split.

Split ends are most often seen in long hair but also occur in short hair that is not in good condition. This can be a problem for anyone trying to grow his or her hair.

The Solution:

The split ends have no permanent cure. The best cure for the split ends is to cut them off. The hair should be trimmed frequently to avoid the split ends. The split ends grows faster than the hair. If they were not treated in time they would spoil the health of the hair.

Exposure to excess heat and too much brushing and combing should be avoided.

If you want to grew your hair long don’t ignore the split ends, because, as they split they also break away making your hair get shorter every time you brush it!