Tag: herbal hair dyes

Sage To Darken Gray Hair And Promote Hair Growth

Natural Remedies

Culpeper says of Sage that it ’causes the hair to become black’.

Garden sage has many therapeutic uses.

In the garden, its flowers provide medicine and nectar for the bees, as well as a herbal tonic to the neighbouring plants.

It is well-known as an aid to oral hygiene.  It has strong antiseptic qualities and is supposed to whiten tooth enamel.

Sage is still used today in some tooth-pastes.  It is reputedly one effective remedy for bleeding gums,  and improving gum health:  The crushed fresh leaves are massaged several times a day onto the gums and teeth.

The tea is gargled to relieve sore throats, colds and flu,  and ulcers in the mouth.

It can be effective to reduce fevers, and has been used in the past for thyphoid fever. (see ‘Herbal Remedies  and Homeopathy’ published by Geddes and Grosset.)

It is a valuable nerve medicine, and is a useful stomach remedy for improving a weak appetite.

Natural Herbal Hair Dye and Tonic:  Sage can help restore healthy hair and improve the colour.

Strong sage tea encourages hair growth and darkens the hair, if it is used on a regular basis. Many herbalists describe it in their writings:  see John Heinerman’s ‘Encyclopedia of Fruits Vegetables and Herbs’.

Rosemary is another wonderful herb which can help hair growth, but it does not have such a darkening effect on the hair, as sage does.

Recipe For Sage Hair Dye:  Here is a simple, natural hair dye and tonic which you can try.  It is perfectly safe to use, as it does not contain any harmful additives such as you might find in commercial dyes for darkening the hair.

Take two cups of fresh sage leaves and put into a stainless steel saucepan.

Add one cup of dry black tea leaves

Add half a cup of cider vinegar and eight cups of water.

Simmer very gently, with no lid, for one hour on a very low heat.  You should have around half the original quantity of liquid left at the end of an hour.  If you need to add a little more water, make sure you do so well before you finish simmering the brew.  If you add more water at the end of the simmering, then your mixture will not keep so well.

Take off the heat after an hour of simmering.  Set aside to cool.

Once your sage mixture has cooled properly, strain it off.

To the liquid remaining add the same amount of vodka.

Put into a bottle with a screw-top lid and store in a cool place.

Massage around a tablespoonful of the sage infusion into the hair each day.  Use more or less, depending on how much hair you need to cover.

Massage the sage tonic well into the roots of the hair as well, so that it feeds the scalp and hair follicles.  Massaging the scalp with the sage tonic will help the hair to grow again.

The oils in the sage leaves will put a natural shine to the hair.

Once the hair is sufficiently darkened, which may take several weeks, you can reduce the amount of applications each week.  Once or twice a week may be enough to maintain the darker colour.

Sage is really very good for the hair in so many ways.

Alternative Sage Tonic Without Alcohol:  You could make up your sage tea without the alcohol if you wish.  Only, remember that your mixture will not keep for longer than a week, and it must be kept in the fridge.  You could make up a lesser amount, enough to last a week, and then make up a fresh brew of tea for the following week.

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Natural Organic Home Made Herbal Hair Dyes

Commercial Hair Dyes are mostly VERY bad for the health.  This is because the harmful  chemicals which are in them get absorbed through the pores of your skin.  After entering through the pores of the skin, they enter the blood-stream, and find their way to the liver and other parts of the body.  The liver stores nutritive elements for the body to use, but it also stores harmful chemicals as well, which is why using cosmetics on your skin, using herbicides, pesticides, and other chemicals, should be avoided.  Chemicals stored in the liver can cause cancer, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, and other diseases.

It is best to  avoid using those harmful commercial hair dyes, and use natural herbal hair dyes instead.  These don’t have the same vibrant colours which commercial hair dyes have, but they are still effective for either darkening or lightening the hair.

Powdered henna is a popular herbal dye and conditioner which is used for dying the hair, as well as the fingernails. This can be bought at many health food shops, and at shops which stock Indian spices.  Henna herb usually produces  a bright red colour, which can give wonderful red highlights to dark hair.  If your hair is going grey, though, then henna powder does not work so well on the hair as a dye.

Here are a few suggestions for dying the hair with some other, easily procured,  natural herbal hair dyes which you might like to experiment with.

Natural Herbal Red Hair Dye With Privet Leaves and Guavas.

Boil up  two cups of  privet  leaves and two cups of red guavas  in just enough water to cover.   Simmer for twenty minutes.  Let the mixture cool, then strain, add two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar.  Use the mixture to rinse the hair with.  This colour will become more intense if the rinse is applied once daily for three days.  This rinse could make your hair dry, so be mindful of that if your hair is already dry.  A few drops of almond oil could be massaged into the scalp and hair after the dye has dried.

Other vegetable and herbal material which can be used to make a red dye for the hair are:  chopped raspberry leaves, chopped raddish leaves or radishes, chopped beetroot leaves or beetroot, and cranberries.  You would use 2 cups of your chosen vegetable or fruit, to 2 cups of privet leaves, just the same as the recipe above.  Myrtle leaves can be used instead of privet leaves, in which case you would use 2 cups of myrtle leaves to, say,  one cup of chopped beetroot and one cup of chopped  radish leaves.

Natural Herbal Hair Dye With Brown Colouring: 

Strong Sage Tea for brown colour:  Simmer one cup of chopped sage leaves in two cups of water for 10 minutes.  Let cool, add two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, and use as a hair rinse.

Strong black tea can be added to the sage tea for added effect.

Walnut Herbal Dye for dark brown colour:  Pick 20 green walnuts which still have their outer husks on.  Put into a bowl.  Chop one cupful of walnut leaves and add to the bowl.  Sprinkle over one rounded tablespoon of sea salt.  Pour over just enough boiling water so that the walnut leaves and green nuts are covered.  Leave overnight.  Use the next day as a rinse.  This rinse will  darken the hair the more often you use it, so it could be applied several days running. Again, this herbal mixture is quite drying:  It might not be suitable for all hair types.  You could try massaging a little almond oil into the scalp after the dye has dried.

Alternatively, 2 cups of walnut leaves could be chopped and simmered in enough water to cover, for 20 minutes.  Let cool, strain, and add 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar.

Other herbal material which produces a dark dye for the hair: rosemary leaves, stalks and flowers,  globe artichoke leaves, marjoram leaves, and elderberries and  elderberry leaves.  Select two cups of the herb, chop up, cover with boiling water,  and simmer for 10 minutes.  Leave overnight to infuse.  Strain and use in the same way as for the other herbal rinses, massaging into the scalp and hair for three days in a row.

Herbs To Lighten The Hair:  Simmer for 10 minutes 2 cups of chamomile flowers, or privet or myrtle flowers, in just enough water to cover.  Leave to cool, then add two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar.  Use as a rinse for the hair.

Rhubarb Root To Lighten The Hair:  Boil one cup of rhubarb root in two cups of water for 20 minutes.  Let cool, then add 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar.  Use as a rinse on the hair.

Hollyhock Flowers To Lighten The Hair:   Use 2 cups of hollyhock flowers and 2 cups of water.  Simmer for 10 minutes.  Allow to cool, then add 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and use as a rinse for the hair to help lighten it.

Use Honeysuckle To Lighten The Hair:  Use 2 cups of flowers, stalks and leaves from the honeysuckle plant.  Simmer in 4 cups of water for 20 minutes.  Allow to cool, add 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, and use as a hair rinse.  More effect is noted if it is used over a period of several days.