Godrej Nupur Heena, 150g

UPDATE 2/22/15: I really feel bad for taking 3 years to update this review, but I've totally changed the way I've used this henna in terms of the preparation. My original review works very well, but is very time consuming, and as you can tell...it's filled with newbie flaws. Gorej Nupur Mehendi Powder is the only henna I've ever used, and it has helped me grow my hair 4 inches (with regular trimming, as well as a really cute cut about a year ago), as well as overall increased thickness and hair health. The way I prep my henna is as follows: 1 package of henna, 1 can of coconut milk (make sure it's coconut milk that DOES NOT contain other additives such as any type of sugar or other fillers. The only ingredients should be coconut and water) and a tbsp or two of liquid coconut oil. I add the coconut oil after the henna and coconut milk have sat in a warm place for about 6 hours. I add the coconut oil to the mixture and mix it well and apply it to my hair. Usually my hair's dry, but I've applied it to wet hair also and the results are the same. I leave it in anywhere from 3 to 6 hours. It rinses SO MUCH easier than the fiasco I experienced in my review below, and once the water runs clear, I co-wash (use conditioner instead of shampoo) about 3 times, rinse and towel dry. Unlike my review below, I don't mix the henna with the indigo powder, as I've noticed that the color doesn't seem to last as long. So after I'm done with my henna application, I follow up with the indigo just on my roots to cover the gray (which after the henna application is bright orange), leave it on for 1 hour, rinse, co-wash, rinse and it comes out perfect. When it's all said and done, my hair is so soft and manageable and PRETTY! NOW FOR MY ORIGINAL REVIEW: This was my first time using Henna, and for the most part, I love it! I'm African American with relaxed hair, and I'm trying to improve the health of my hair. Seeing as I relax and usually use chemicals to color my hair (cover the gray), I decided that I can at least stop using chemicals for color (and stretch my relaxers). I love the way this Henna colored my hair, and the 9 herbs I believe is an added benefit! Here is the way I prepared and applied my Henna:Thursday evening, I steeped 5 bags of Earl Gray Tea in about 2 cups of water. I then boiled about a half cup of red wine and added it to the water. I put it in the fridge, and let it cool down to luke warm. I then emptied about 1/2 of the contents of the Henna into a plastic bowl and added enough of the tea/wine mixture to get it to a pudding consistency. I whisked it until it was smooth, covered it with plastic wrap (pushed down into the container to sit directly on the henna so there is no air/henna contact) and then placed the cover on the container. My boyfriend likes to keep the apartment somewhat cool, so I needed to create a warm environment to store my Henna. I went into the wash room which is not as cool as the rest of the apartment, buried my container in the clothes basket, and turned on the dryer for about 1/2 and hour to warm up the room. I then left the container to 'marinate' for about 24 hours. You don't have to leave it for that long, but I wouldn't be able to use it until I got home from work Friday evening.When I woke up Friday morning, I was anxious to see if I'd made my mixture correctly, so I checked on it and it was brown so I knew I was on the right track. I put a dab of henna on my palm (I read on many henna websites that this was recommended to check to see if the dye released correctly), re-covered the henna, and placed it back in the clothes basket. After about 5 minutes I rinsed it off and my my skin was nicely orange where the henna had sat. Yay! If I wanted to, I could have actually used it then. Unfortunately, I had to go to work, so I left it until I got home that evening. (and the whole time I was at work, I hoped that it wouldn't have been left for too long and it started losing the color! I'm a newbie at this so I wasn't sure what would happen...)When I got home, I ran to my waiting henna, unwrapped it, and it looked great, so that was a relief! I got the indigo, 100g Pure USAWHR Indigo Powder Indigoferra Tinctoria To dye Hair Black Naturaly NO PPD ,emptied about 1/3 of the packet in a separate plastic container, mixed that with enough water to create a pudding like consistency, and let it sit for about 10 minutes.My goal was to color my grays, which was mainly on my front edges. I had a few flecks of gray on my roots all over my head, but from ear to ear around the front half of my head was about 1/2 gray and half natural color. If I wore my hair back, I looked like I had a grayish halo. Yay me. Sooo....After I let the indigo sit for about 10 minutes, I added about 1 tablespoon of the indigo to my henna mixture, and about 1 tablespoon of my henna mixture to my indigo. The goal was to add the indigo with a little bit of henna (darker mixture) to my edges and my roots (I didn't want an orange halo), and the henna with a little bit of indigo (lighter mixture) to the rest of my head, hoping that my edges would be about the same color of the rest of my head in the end. I then added about 1 tablespoon of paprika and 2 tablespoons of honey to the lighter henna mixture. I applied the indigo heavy mixture to my edges, and sectioned my hair and applied it to my roots. I then got the henna heavy mixture and applied it to the rest of my hair. It took a bit of extra time to do the separate applications, but I knew what I wanted and was willing to spend a bit of extra time to achieve it. I didn't actually time the application, but I figure somewhere around 40-45 minutes. It was my first time applying it, so I figure the next time might be a bit quicker.After I completed applying the mixtures, I wrapped my hair in saran wrap, covered it with a plastic shower cap, and also about an hour in, I covered the plastic cap with a hot wet towel. And planned to let it stew for about 4 hours. Mind you, because my boyfriend and I decided to stop and get a drink and a bit to eat, I got home about 8:00. By the time I finished applying the henna, it was about 9 PM. Ugh.About 2 1/2 hours in, I was so tired I decided to wash it out knowing that if I wasn't happy with the color, I could re-apply it in a couple days. I was content in just getting the benefits of a healthy henna treatment.I rinsed my hair and was very happy that the water ran clear in about 5 minutes. I then washed my hair 3 or 4 times and was a bit dismayed because my hair felt very hard. Very, very hard...which I expected, but was still not used to.I towel dried my hair, added a mixture of Kinky Curly Knot Today Conditioner, 8 oz, Honey, and Olive Oil, wrapped my hair in saran wrap, covered it in a silk wrap, and went to bed to let it deep condition.I woke this morning and rinsed my hair, and it was still hard. Annoyed.I washed it 2 times, added more conditioner and let it sit for about 10 minutes. I rinsed it out, and it felt a little bit better. A very little bit. It was very difficult combing out my hair, but remember reading somewhere that once you dry your hair, it will feel better. Actually, as I was combing out my very hard and knotted hair, I was contemplating if all of this was worth it. Combing tangles out of your hair is difficult enough...but when you have to do it when it's as hard as straw was just disappointing.In saying that, after I got the knots out and I blew my hair dry, it felt and looked better than I ever remember it feeling before. And, the color came out perfect!! I didn't have to leave it in for the 4 hours I'd planned. 2 1/2 hours worked just fine! My roots, edges and the rest of my hair is a nice dark brown/burgundy color. Exactly what I wanted!I'm giving this Henna the 5 stars it deserves because my hair feels soooo good, and it looks just a fabulous. Soft, shiny, with a nice dense rich color.I will use this again, as it did exactly what everyone said it should do. Right down to making my hair feel hard like straw until it dries. And from what I've read, it might feel that way for the next couple of days (if I decide to wash it, it might have the same straw feeling until it dries). My mission now is to do more research on how I can get the knots out a bit better and easier. Anyway, I highly recommend this Henna. And if anyone can suggest how my hair can be a bit more tame when I rinse and wash it right after my application, please leave a comment!Thanks!!

I'm 42 and have been dealing with grey hair for about the last ten years. To save money and to break away from more chemical dyes, I decided to use henna. It's taken me about two years to finally work up the nerve to do it, and, a few months ago, I tried the Lush henna for the first time. I loved how my hair turned out, but the Lush hennas are so sandy/gritty that they leave a huge mess all over the place. Based on the positive reviews for this Nupur powder, I decided to try it instead of using my Lush henna, and I'm so glad I did!My stylist had been coloring my hair dark brown with reddish tints that were only obvious when I am in the sun. Using this henna made it noticeably redder, even when I'm not in the sun. Since I was worried about it reading too orange, I mixed in some indigo powder.I spent literally hours and hours reading reviews here and on other sites to work up the nerve to use the Lush henna and this one, and I've found that looking through all those reviews -- esp. the one from Evolving Dish -- made the process much easier.As a point of reference, I have fine, wavy 2C curls that, when stretched, reach to the top of my waist. I'd say that I'm about 20% grey.Here is the process I used:1. The night before, I mixed the powder in a large Pyrex bowl, adding in hot water until it formed a thick paste that looked like peanut butter or brownie batter. When pouring the water just remember: you can easily add some more water, but it's much harder to take it out again!2. I then added in ten drops of lavender oil, some Burt's Bees Avocado Butter Pre-Shampoo Hair Treatment with Nettles and Rosemary - 4.34 fl oz, and some Dabur Vatika Enriched Coconut Hair Oil 300ml (Pack of 2 Bottles), which I had melted in the microwave. I also added in 1 TB of lemon juice (which is supposed to make henna read less orange) and 1 TB of apple cider vinegar (which is supposed to help henna cover the grey).3. Cover it with plastic wrap and allow to sit overnight in a warm place (which is supposed to help with dye release).4. In the morning, I mixed 2 TBS of 100 Grams Bag of Natural Indigo Powder (wasma in Arabic and Urdu) Indigofera Tinctoria New Crop with warm water and a pinch of salt in a Pyrex measuring cup. I let it sit for ten minutes while I prepared my henna area. Once the indigo is ready (and it will be green!), mix it into the henna bowl. (Before mixing in the indigo, I spooned some henna into a small Ziploc baggie and froze it so I could use it for a root touch-up in about six weeks.)5. To prepare your area, put down newspaper, trash bags, or old towels. I've also been putting on an old t-shirt with a big opening and putting a stylist's robe on over that. Make sure you have everything you'll need within easy reach -- hair color brushes, clips, shower cap, etc.6. Apply something like Vasoline all along your hairline. I've been using Lush's Ultrabalm.7. Put on gloves. I've been using a pair of Playtex dishwashing gloves. Another tip is to put a disposable glove under that on your left hand so that when you take the Playtex pair off, one hand will still have a covering to touch your hair.8. Apply it! I've tried it a few ways -- starting from the bottom up, and from the top down. I always start with my roots first, and use a hairdye brush to really work it into my roots, esp. where my greys are.--I start with the brush to slop it all on, and then massage it into the whole strand/chunk of my hair.--Really work it into your scalp and roots to make sure the hair is covered.--This last time I applied henna, I used a bunning technique I saw on You Tube (search for "Henna Caca Lush"), which worked great; you basically create little buns on the top of your head as you work, and the henna holds it all in place. I've also twisted it into a bun via small sections, and alternate the directions I twist them around the base in.9. Either put on a shower cap or use Saran Wrap to wrap it all up. You can also add folded paper towels around the base of the Saran Wrap to front and back of hair to catch drips later on.--If you use Saran Wrap, put it around really tightly - pull out a few feet, and twist it around itself while it's still on the tube - supposedly the tighter it is and the longer you leave in the henna, the less orange it will be. Then use that twist to twist it around the bun to keep it in place10. I bought this beanie Dickies Men's 14 Inch Cuffed Knit Beanie Hat to put on top of the shower cap or Saran Wrap. It helps keep the plastic in place and creates more heat.11. Clean yourself up (wipe the henna off your skin) and clean up any drips.14. Leave it in -- I left mine in for about four hours.15. When it's time to rinse it out, I dip my hair in a mop bucket of water, which loosens things up. Then I use a bunch of cheap Suave conditioner to get the rest out; it takes about 15 minutes of rinsing for the water to run clear.Now that I've applied henna three times, it takes me about 30-40 minutes to put it on my waist-length hair. I used about 3/4 of the package of this Nupur henna this first time, and had some left over.My hair is incredibly silky and feels so good!I can be sensitive to strong smells, but the smell of this didn't really bother me; I liked the herbal scent of it.I was also worried that this would leave my fine, 2C waves too limp, but they have retained their curl and I'm so happy with how my two inches of grey regrowth blended into the rest of my hair. The greys seem like subtle highlights.I'm officially a henna head, and don't think I'll go back to using commercial dyes again!Be brave and give it a go! I'm so glad I did!UPDATE ON 3-7-14: While I love how much easier this is to use than the Lush hennas, now that the color has had more time to settle, I think I'm going to go back to Lush. The color of the Lush hennas seems more vibrant in my hair, and the Lush henna imparted a shine that this hasn't. When I was using the Lush henna, people regularly commented on how pretty and shiny my hair was, and that hasn't happened at all since I used the Nupur brand. While much messier and much more expensive, the Lush one gives me better results, so I'll be returning to it.