How To Change The Color Of Your Hair With Natural Ingredients

#1

Whether you’re trying to cover up grays or just looking for a change, coloring your hair can make you feel like a brand new you. But it’s hard to be stoked after reading the long list of suspicious ingredients in synthetic hair dye. According to the National Cancer Institute, there are more than 5,000 different chemicals used in hair dye products, many of which are known carcinogens (though cancer has yet to be directly linked to hair dye in studies). Luckily, there are plenty of completely natural, nontoxic ways to update your look.

#2 Chamomile tea

Chamomile tea is your go-to ingredient for achieving golden highlights. You can brew the tea and then rinse your hair with it after a homemade shampoo. You should pour the tea over your hair several times (catching it in a bowl or basin so you can reuse it), and then let it soak into your hair for at least an hour before rinsing with clean water.

For an easier, more gradual method, you can also try making your own chamomile deep conditioner the way DIY blogger Rebecca Kelsey Sampson does with moisturizing ingredients like honey and olive oil. She says you’ll start to see results in about three weeks if you use it several times each week.

#3 Coffee

Now your favorite morning pick-me-up can double as your hair’s best friend. IF you are looking to take your hair a shade darker or cover gray, coffee can do the trick. Brew a very strong up of coffee and let it sit till it cools. Mix one cup of coffee with two cups of leave in conditioner and 2 tablespoons of coffee grounds.

Put the mixture on clean hair and let it sit for about one hour. Rinse with apple cider vinegar. You may need to repeat a couple of times to really see a difference.

#4 Herbs

Depending on what color you’re going for, you can use a variety of herbs to achieve it.

Here are some suggestions, depending on what your natural color is:

1.Red hair: Try calendula, marigold, rosehips, and hibiscus to deepen the red shade or add a few red highlights. The effects are cumulative—if you keep using the dye regularly, you will notice more color. Simmer the flowers in water for about 30 minutes, strain, cool, and then spray or pour on hair and allow to dry in the sun if possible.

2.Brunette/dark hair: Rosemary, nettle, and sage are all great herbs for dark hair. Simmer all three with water for 30 minutes, cool, strain, and spray or brush through hair. Allow to sit about an hour. You can also use the rinse daily after your shower. Be patient—it may take several days to notice a difference.

3.Blonde hair: As mentioned above, chamomile tea works, but you can also try calendula, marigold, saffron, and sunflower petals. To hide grays, try rhubarb root in two cups of water, simmer, strain, and pour over hair.

Add black tea to the darker colors above to help the color last longer. Catnip works for lighter colors.

#5 Use honey and vinegar

Honey and vinegar can also work together to lighten hair naturally. A simple recipe using honey and vinegar can be used on your hair if you want to lighten its natural shade.

You'll need to use raw, uncooked honey, which you can find at most health food stores. Use a cup of raw honey, two cups of distilled vinegar, a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and a tablespoon of ground cardamon or cinnamon. Mix the ingredients together into a paste.

Run your hair under the shower to get it damp. Apply the paste. Wrap your hair using plastic wrap and keep the wrap secure using a shower cap or swim cap. You can also simply wrap a towel around your head, like you would after showering.

Leave the mixture in overnight. Then, wash it out in the morning. See if you notice any difference to your hair's natural color.

#6 Cinnamon

Cinnamon is not only a great lightener but it smells great, too. Just take:

*Cinnamon powder

*Conditioner

You just have to add cinnamon powder to a small handful of conditioner and then evenly coat your hair from top to bottom. You may want to comb the mixture through to ensure that it coats evenly. Pull your hair up and keep it secure with a clip. You can use a shower cap to hold your hair in place and leave the mixture on overnight.

Rinse and shampoo first thing in the morning. This mixture is perfectly safe or hair so you can use it more than once if you want to really see highlights.

#7 Cocoa

Cocoa is another wonderful all-natural product that can be used to make your hair darker.

Here's how to use it:

1.Take a bottle of shampoo.

2.Remove half of the shampoo from the bottle.

3.Fill the rest of the bottle with cocoa.

4.Shake up the bottle so it is mixed well.

5.Use shampoo as often as usual.

Cocoa will subtly darken your hair. The cocoa will bring out the natural deeper tones in your hair. This may not be the best method for those with very light hair color.

This is great for light to medium brown hair colors. This method smells really good, making it one of my favorite ones to use.

#8 Mustard Seed Oil

Here's how to use mustard seed oil:

1.Put mustard seed oil in your hair.

2.Let your hair dry overnight.

3.Rinse it out in the morning.

4.This is a great way to darken your hair gradually over time. Results will show slowly, but no damage is done to your hair.

Mustard seed oil does not smell that great so this is best done in the evenings. This works on all shades of hair.

#9 Lemon Juice

Lemons are a great way to bring out some highlights in your hair. Spray the juice from a freshly squeezed lemon on your hair. Allow it to sit for at least three hours.

Go out in the sun if you can for a more dramatic look. If you have blonde hair, try mixing the lemon with chamomile tea,

#10 Rhubarb

If you don’t know what rhubarb is? It is technically a vegetable but legally a fruit. It is harvested in the spring with a short season that spans from April to June. This plant has a 3000-year-old history of medicinal and cosmetic use.

So a rhubarb rinse will last much longer than most herbal rinses. It is a good choice for summer. You can get rhubarb in your local health store or farmer’s market. According to herbalists, the strongest rhubarb dye comes from the medicinal species.

1.Chop the rhubarb root if you have the fresh ones.

2.Simmer 3 to 4 tablespoons of dried rhubarb root or half a cup of fresh ones in a quart of water for 20 minutes.

3.Boil this in a stainless steel covered pot.

4.Avoid breathing the steam. Let the ingredients steep overnight and strain the decoction in the morning.

5.Wash your hair as usual and then pour the rhubarb dye through your hair and catch the liquid in the pan. Repeat two or three times. Air dry your hair without further rinsing.

#11 Apple Cider Vinegar And Soy Sauce

The apple cider vinegar helps clean your hair; the soy sauce adds dark pigment. While this washes out quite easily, you can darken your hair with regular use.

1.In a jug, combine the apple cider vinegar and soy sauce and then set it aside.

2.Wash your hair with shampoo and proceed to condition.

3.Once you’ve rinsed the conditioner out of your hair, pour the vinegar-soy sauce mixture through your hair as a final rinse.

4.Do not rinse your hair any further and let it air-dry.

#12 Henna

Henna is one of the best natural ingredients you could use to color your hair. Not only is it extremely pigmented, but it also conditions and nourishes your hair. You can combine it with ingredients like black tea to dye your hair brown instead of red. The color lasts for about a month, and you will only have to dye your hair again when your grays start to show.