Katam: the “black henna” that darkens hair naturally

Katam is a dyeing herb obtained from the pulverization of Buxus Dioica, the botanical name of a shrub that prefers rocky, arid and desert environments. When applied to the hair, this powder darkens it, giving it an intense brown / hazelnut color with violet reflections, especially visible in sunlight.


Don't store avocado like this: it's dangerous

Il katam, called black henna, is a dyeing herb obtained from the pulverization of Buxus Dioica, the botanical name of a shrub that prefers rocky, arid and desert environments. When applied to the hair, this powder darkens them, giving intense coloring brown / hazelnut with violet reflections, visible above all in sunlight.




Precisely for his darkening effect, the katam is improperly called black henna and sometimes baby Indigo. The Katam powder that we generally find on the market comes almost exclusively from Yemen. Yemeni women have always used this plant to get a darker hair, not being able to dye their hair black for reasons of religious nature.

According to Islamic doctrine, in fact, dyeing one's hair black is equivalent to openly manifesting one's negative aura, revealing one's evil nature and the ability to overwhelm others. Furthermore, in the past, disbelievers and women of easy virtue used to dye their hair black, so this practice is expressly prohibited to Muslim women.


The prohibition is contained in some sunne and fatwas, which emphasize the haram, that is, impure and therefore prohibited character of this particular tincture. Instead, the use of other colors is allowed.

Read also: HENNA: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TO DYE YOUR HAIR

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Index

name="katam-properties-of-dyeing-herb">Katam, properties of dyeing herb

Like all dyeing herbs, katam nourishes, revitalizes and restructures the hair, also helping to purify the scalp. Gives shine, strengthens the hair and disciplines it. It gives more volume, leaving the hair softer and shinier.

Schematically, this powder has properties:

  • volumizing
  • disciplining
  • polishes
  • restructuring
  • reinforcing
  • astringents
  • antibacterial

name="katam-when-it-can-be-used">Katam, when it can be used

The katam can be used pure on one brown base, in case you want to obtain a more intense brown tending to brown or to reflect the hair with shades plum / purplish. The use of absolute katam, i.e. pure on the hair, is instead to be avoided in the case of blond, bleached and streaked hair.



The reason is obvious: purple added to yellow gives as a result ... a greenish color! In the presence of white hair, the katam will color it a noticeable violet. For this reason, in case of white or blond / bleached hair it is advisable to use it in combination with henna, or even better, in synergy with henna and cassia.

Being the only herb capable of binding to the keratin of the hair, henna acts as a mordant for the katam. The use of lawsonia avoids the risk of extravagant colors and allows a better grip on the hair, extending the duration of the dyeing effect over time.

Cassia (Cassia obovata or Cassia Italica), in addition to having extraordinary restructuring properties, is useful for diluting the dyeing capacity of the compound, decreasing its darkening power. In this way, in addition to uniformly covering white hair, you can soften the red henna if you don't like it or you can accentuate the aubergine / violet reflections typical of the chestnut obtained with katam.

Read also: WHITE HAIR: HOW TO COVER IT WITH NATURAL MAKEUP AND REMEDIES

name="katam-how-to-use-it">Katam, how to use it

You can "play" with herbs, modulating them on our starting tone and varying the quantities according to the desired effect. The final result will depend, as in the case of all other dyeing herbs, on the interaction of a series of factors: first of all on the basic coloring, but also obviously by the percentage use of the single herbs that will form our mix and, last but not least, by the porosity of the hair.

By way of example only, starting from a light brown base and wanting to obtain a medium brown, you could apply a mixture made up 30% of Cassia, 30% of Lawsonia and 40% of Katam.

For a dark brown, tending to brown, a mix of 50% lawsonia and 50% katam could be used instead. But these are merely indicative numbers. It can increase the lawsonia to have warmer shades, or the quantity of katam to obtain darker tones, experimenting with always different combinations.


name="katam-do-you-cover-white-hair-">Katam, do you cover white hair?

Yup! To cover the White hair, the most effective method remains that of the double pass.

A first pass is made only with lawsonia, the only herb able to fix itself permanently on the keratin of white hair, and then a second pass with the darkening grass. Be careful though because the katam has a very high dyeing power. So, unless you want a very dark tone, even with the double pass method it is still advisable to use a mixture with lawsonia, or with lawsonia and cassia.

Often on the market we find katam as the main ingredient of the so-called chestnut henna or in the mixtures called “hazelnut”, in which the various herbs have already been mixed at the origin. These ready-made mixes can be tried safely, as long as you always pay close attention all’INCI.

Only the botanical names of the plants must appear. If you read ingredients that don't convince you, my advice is to let it go. Your hair will thank you!

Katam is an extraordinary herb because it allows you to cover white hair by obtaining various shades of brown, without necessarily dyeing it with the typical henna red, in case the red is not to our liking.

The final result is always subjective, so the common imperative of all dyeing herbs applies: experiment! Again, there are no firm rules or exactly predictable outcomes. One of the characteristics of dyeing herbs is their anti-seriousness: the results are always subjective, and each of us will be able to obtain them colors and shades different from the others, with an effect that is always unique and always extremely natural.

Even starting from an almost identical color base, and applying the same compound for the same shutter speed, the final result will still be different. The imponderability of the results can be remedied through the golden rule of all dyeing herbs: first try on a hidden lock, in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.

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Katam, differences with henna

Unlike henna, katam favors a basic environment. For an optimal preparation, it is necessary to add a pinch of table salt and a little bicarbonate to the hot water in which we dissolve the powder.

Il sale it is able to fix the color better, while the bicarbonate, an alkaline substance, serves to favor the complete release of the coloring pigment, further accentuating the violet reflections typical of katam. It is sufficient to wait 15/20 minutes and then the mixture obtained can be applied directly to the hair, from roots to ends.

It is advisable to avoid metal objects, which could react with dust. Wood or ceramic should be preferred, but plastic is fine too. Obviously it is very important that the powder is pure, so it is recommended to always carefully read the INCI of the packages, in which only the wording Buxus Dioica must be reported.

In case you decide to mix katam with other herbs, the advice is to prepare them separately. In a bowl melt the henna, alone or added to the cassia, exclusively with hot water. In another bowl, the katam is macerated with water, a pinch of salt and a handful of bicarbonate.

After about twenty minutes, add the two batters and mix carefully, until a homogeneous mixture is obtained. Once the application is finished, the garment is wrapped with a cap or with transparent film to maintain the humidity of the batter, which otherwise, if it dries up, would lose its dyeing power. THE shutter speed they vary according to whether or not you need to cover gray hair.

If applied alone, the katam requires a pose of about an hour, two at the most. If, on the other hand, there is a need to cover gray hair, 3 or 4 hours of laying are necessary.

Katam, how to rinse

At the end of the application, it is advisable to thoroughly rinse the hair with water only to completely eliminate the baby food from our hair.

Any residue could cause itching and inflammation. A noe of conditioner can be used if needed. Instead, it is advisable to mix an acidic substance such as vinegar or lemon juice. The acid rinse is essential to regulate the pH of the skin, close the scales of the hair, polishing it and fixing the color in the best possible way.

Katam VS Indigo

Katam is very similar all’indigo (Indigofera Tinctoria), with which it is sometimes confused (just think that they are both called black henna and katam is sometimes called baby indigo). Furthermore, due to the difficult political situation in Yemen, katam is not always available and there is a tendency to replace it with indigo.

In common they have the characteristic of darkening the hair and being able to turn off the red reflections of hair previously dyed with lawsonia. But indigo is darker than katams. In addition, different shades are obtained. Katam bestows gods warmer reflections, plum / aubergine or purplish colors. Indigo, on the other hand, gives cold reflections, of an intense and deep blue. Both herbs release color, unlike henna, which is permanent as it layers on the hair shaft. But katam discharges slower than indigo.

Natural dyes, experiment!

As already said about henna, you have to be patient with dyeing powders, don't get discouraged after the first try, but try, try again and try again. An adequate knowledge of the characteristics of each individual dyeing grass, supported by a minimum experience on the subject, it will allow us to better master the universe of natural dyes.

After some time we will be able to indulge ourselves, experimenting with new solutions until we find the one that suits us best. The good thing is that during these experiments, our hair will benefit greatly from using them wonderful plants.

Source and photo source: Beautilicious Delights

Angela Petrella

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