Q&A for How to Dye Your Hair With Indigo

Indigo is safe to use on your hair and much less likely to trigger an allergic reaction than permanent hair dye.

You can apply indigo by itself for a deep blue-black hue. For a softer color, you can mix it with henna, or you can apply over henna to increase its staying power.

Yes, Indigo is a natural dye made from a powdered crystal. It is the same dye used on jeans.

Getting anything in your eyes can potentially hurt your eyesight, so be very careful to avoid getting the dye in your eyes.

Yes, sometimes. You should be sure to use conditioner after, to avoid dryness.

No, you have to use henna for a black hair color. Using indigo only will give you a cool toned brown color.

You can use indigo weekly. However, each time you use it, it will make your hair darker.

You could be allergic or your body does not react well to the dye. Try a different dye to see if that helps.

Yes. Do it in two steps. First, henna your hair with good quality henna a few times over the next few weeks. The day after your last henna application, apply good quality indigo paste over your hair, and leave it in for two hours.

Only if you have a very light platinum color already. Brown + indigo = black. Orange + indigo = brown. Yellow + indigo = green. If a greenish blue is good for you, then rock on. You'd have to get close to colorless + indigo for it to look truly blue.

Mix henna with a heaped dessert spoon of coffee and warm tea water (5 teabags to 2 cups of water), mix till it forms a smooth paste, about the texture of cake batter, with a fork. Cover in a wrap and let it rest for a day. If you need to use it earlier, heat up with a hair dryer or heater, you will see the colour turn deeper brown. Apply to your hair and leave for two hours. During this time, mix indigo with two to three egg whites, water and a teaspoon of salt, mix with a fork till it forms a smooth paste, again like cake mix. Let to stand. Once the henna is washed off, semi dry and apply the indigo mix. The longer you leave it, the darker it will be. Measurements are dependent on length of hair.

Mix henna with lemon juice and prepare a paste with the texture of yogurt. Wrap it with aluminium foil and leave it overnight. Next morning, just before applying it to hair, mix indigo with water, add to the henna mixture, and combine them thoroughly. Do not forget to mix twice the amount of indigo than henna, that’s what gives you the black color. If you mix less indigo and more henna, it will give you brown.

People say so. I have tried to combine the two without success. A time consuming part of the process is having to wait at least 2 hours for your henna paste to release color before using. I've found that you can actually prep the paste in advance and, as long as you use it within the week, or even two if you want to push it, it works just as well as using henna prepared the same day. Then you can easily do your henna-then-indigo two step application in 3-5 hours total.

It only looks green as a powder. Once you add water to it and leave it for about 15 minutes, you will notice that the paste is blueish black on top.

You can use jojoba and argan oil on your hair after just a day or two with no adverse effects. The indigo tends to dry hair quite a bit.

You can but results might be mixed. For example, if you bleach your hair, then it can turn green.

You have to use a "blue black" hair dye. Using henna and indigo will not give you the blue undertones you want. Henna has warm undertones commonly seen as red.

Indigo is used to make hair darker with the aid of henna. Regardless of what color hair you have, indigo will release its dye. You don't have to do anything differently.

Yes, it will. But it may take repeated application in frequent intervals to gain the desired color.

Yes, it's safe. Indigo will not damage your hair whatsoever. But it will stain your skin like henna, so use Vaseline around your hairline.

Stress can certainly cause hair loss, but you may be allergic to that henna type. I've used henna for many years and tried a new brand which caused LOTS of hair loss.

Yes, and you can use any oil immediately after you've washed your hair after the indigo treatment.

Both henna and indigo can dry your hair if used too often. Be sure to deep condition your hair. You can even add some oil to your indigo mixture, especially when covering the ends.

It depends on your hair styling regime, but generally you should avoid shampooing too often. Also, use an umbrella, scarf or hat when going out in the sun.

No, you can use any shampoo to wash your indigo-treated hair. It will not strip the color unless you wash it excessively.

Some people complain of skin irritation after use, so as a precaution, it is always recommended that you do a patch test.

You can skip the henna and apply indigo directly on dark hair. However, if you find that the dye does not last very long, you may want to apply henna anyway, as indigo sticks to henna, so having hair that is pre-processed with henna will help the indigo.

Yes, it’s actually recommended that you put coconut oil on the ends of your hair before you wash it to preserve color.

It will mostly be a bluish-black color if the hair is grey. I recommend using henna first and then dyeing with indigo over it.

Yes, you can, although it's recommended you do it the next day. It is required to keep the indigo for 2 hours for full effect.