Stupid Simple DIY - Applying Henna to Short Hair

If you prefer the tips without the explanatory babble, click Read More and scroll to the bottom. 


I'm not an expert on henna by any stretch, but I have applied it to my hair enough times to have come up with a pretty good system. I dabble in mehndi, but that's a post for another day. There is a lot of great information available on henna and how to get the most out of it on your hair, most if it at Henna for Hair. But, I keep my hair short, Jean Seberg short, and there isn't a lot of information (at least, not that I could find) on applying henna to short hair. So, through a bit of trial and error, this is the method I've come up with.

For starters, I've found it's best to henna hair just before cutting it. There are too reasons for this. First, the shorter the hair, the more apparent the roots; so if you don't feel like a day of hair maintenance, dye first and you won't have to walk around with obvious roots. Second, longer hair holds the henna in place. Henna is the consistency of mud, you don't want a mudslide down your face and neck. Just like trees, grass, and other plants prevent mudslides down a hill, hair prevents a mudslide on your head. This is also the reason you will want to mix your henna a bit thicker than the stirred up yogurt consistency that is normally recommended. Something a bit thinner than mashed potatoes works well when applied to my dry hair.

Keeping the mix simple works best, just henna, water, and lemon juice (lime juice and chamomile tea work in a pinch). Henna for Hair has an entire page devoted to the different things people mix into their henna, but adding terps is a bad idea, especially if you have short hair. Terps, or terpenes, are what you add to henna to get a better stain on the skin, but they have no effect on staining the hair.

Stupid Simple DIY-Treat Tubes for Cats and Small Animals

I picked this trick up when I was a zoo intern. We would save toilet paper and paper towel tubes to use as enrichment for the smaller, usually domesticated, animals (rabbit, chinchilla, opossum, etc.), and I've adapted it for use with my cats. I also use these to hold everything from scrap embroidery floss to cotton swabs. It's so stupidly simple you can probably follow along just by the pictures, or with brief directions, but we all learn differently, so I'm going visual and verbal (well, textual?... that sounds a little, um...). Also, my nail polish is fantastic, and I wanted to show it off.

Start with an empty toilet paper roll, or cut down a paper towel, wrapping paper, aluminum foil, etc. roll.

(click to enlarge to properly take in my nail polish)