Autumn 2022 Hottest Hair Trend: Plum Hair Henna Recipe

Autumn is the best time for a colour upgrade for your hair, and we love to switch it from summery pastels to deeper hues.

Colours like burned orange and rich purple abound, which is the inspiration for our newest henna colour recipe:  plum hair.

We’re being slightly misleading in saying it’s a Henna recipe, it also relies heavily on indigo and beautiful beetroot makes a return (it last appeared in our fire engine red guide).

This colour is for mid to dark haired brunettes.  If you have black hair, you’ll get a gorgeous shine and some reddish-purple lights.  If you’re lighter, or grey, this will need at least three applications to get colour and a pre-tint (see below) but you’ll struggle to get depth.

Remember, Henna results vary a lot based on the condition, length, and type of your hair, so a strand test is vital to get the shade you need.

PRO NOTE: As we always say, it’s not possible to lighten hair with Henna.  Please do not apply Henna over bleach or permed hair as it damages it.

Darker hairs will find a gentle copper tint and golden lights – it may add depth to the colour but this mix will not change the colour.

IF YOU DO NOT HAVE THE TIME TO MIX YOUR OWN DYE, YOU MAY FIND ITS PURE VERY DARK BROWN HAIR DYE A GOOD ALTERNATIVE.

Pre-prepping:

A good clarifying treatment is a great idea before you try this dye.  We advise using our beautiful, new pre-colour clarifying mask.

This way you have the cleanest start possible with no additional oil or product on the hair which may interfere with your result.

If your hair is light, mix up a standard Henna mix (details on our packets) and leave in the fridge overnight, then coat the hair thickly and leave for up to eight hours. 

This will be very bright, but the idea is that you’ll add lots of colour back into your hair.

The Autumn Plum Hair Recipe:

Our purple, plum result is created with a mix mainly consisting of Indigo, which is dark and purpley blue, lemon juice for acidity, which brings out the red, two teaspoons of beetroot juice and a big splodge of henna for richness. .

Ingredients

• Beeswax hair wrap
• 3 parts Indigo Powder
• ½  part organic Henna
• Juice of one lemon
• 2 teaspoons of beetroot juice

Instructions

Always use a Wooden or Glass Mixing Bowl (never metal) and spoons

1. Put the powders into your mixing bowl and add the lemon juice and beetroot spoon-by-spoon

2. The mixture should not drip from the spoon but look like a thick paste that can be easily spreadable

3. Pop in the fridge overnight to set.

4. Parting the hair into sections, brush, or comb henna into clean, dry hair. We currently love these brilliant plastic-free toothbrushes from Acala for application.

5. Put a shower cap on and leave the henna mix on your hair for up to eight hours.  Rinse well, then if more intensity is required, reapply after 72 hours (to allow the Henna to oxidise).

It’s vital to do a strand test to see how long your hair needs to go the colour you want and to get the blend right.  Our guide to ‘Things that can affect the result of your henna hair dye’ should help you.

For more advice on colouring your hair with organic henna, ask our hair colour experts now