June-July 2026
Gwyn has been part of Ancient Sunrise since her mother, Catherine Cartwright-Jones started the business. Her main job is seeing to it that we have on hand the henna, indigo and cassia that are the main ingredients of our hair color products. Because all of those ingredients have to be shipped from South Asia, it can be challenging work.
Articles and stores about henna, hair and traditions by Catherine Cartwright-Jones, PhD
by Catherine Cartwright-Jones, Phd
Ritual actions that perform and change space into sacred space can change people’s physical, emotional and metaphysical experiences within that environment, and their behavior within and around that space. The creation of sacred space within an environment changes not only people’s experience of and within that space, but the persons who perform the ritual action to create that space construct for themselves a special identity as creators and maintainer of that space, which includes the position of mediator between those who use the sacred space and the divine presence within the space.
"Ancient Sunrise Henna for Hair" explores the art, science, techniques, and history of using henna, indigo, and cassia to dye hair and addresses the problem of the epidemic of para-phenylenediamine sensitization: the increasingly dangerous and widespread allergy to chemical hair dye. We offer this book free of charge. We ask only that you respect our copyright and observe our terms of use. You may view or download selected chapters or download the entire book.
Lawsone in the henna will bind permanently to keratin without boiling1 or mordants2 if mixed with a mildly acidic liquid.3 The acid penetrates the cellulostic material in the powdered leaves, and makes the lawsone available for binding. As long as the mix is hydrogen-rich and mildly acidic4 the hydrogens on the corners of the lawsone molecule will be preserved, so the dye will bind to the keratin of hair in a Michael reaction. Lawsone binds so strongly to keratin that even repeated bleaching will not completely remove the color.
Customer Support FAQ:
Hard water and henna don’t mix
As you can see in this map, most of the tap water in the US contains significant amounts of dissolved minerals. It’s OK for most uses but can cause problems when used with plant-based hair color ingredients like those in Ancient Sunrise products.
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