Greetings Eco Peeps! This week I selected two unrelated topics to discuss in sustainability news. First I looked into sustainability in hair dyes and second I looked at the latest developments in guitar technology.
Hair Dyes: The Dirt on Eco Friendly Dyes
I have used both natural plant extracts like Henna and Indigo and commercial dyes that are Eco friendly. I am frequently asked about how to go about buying henna and its comparison to other dyes out there. I wanted to try henna because I desired an auburn color that looked natural without the use of damaging chemicals as I am allergic to some hair dyes. The web page http://www.mehandi.com offers both information and purchase information for Henna and other natural ingredients to make dyes from plant extracts. I found this site to be informative and the results were accurate. I tried one of the recommended "recipes" for brunettes who want a bit of the red sparkle in sunlight. My witches brew took a few minutes to mix per the instructions that came with my henna order via Mehandi.com via the www.hennaforhair.com site. I was careful to select a BAQ (body art quality) henna so as to get the cherry red highlights with out chemicals. If you don't want to spend six hours with your head in a wrap you can still be Eco friendly with commercial boxed dyes.
So What's in the Box?
I tried Age Beautiful's Anti Aging hair color carried by Sally's at www.sallybeauty.com. The Age Beautiful brand dye is a new line from a Holland manufacturer. I tried the shade 5N which is a medium brown. I chose to go with this boxed dye over others because I had over processed hair and this dye has proteins and other nutrients. The packaging of the dye is made with 100% wind energy. More information on wind powered energy products may be found at www.NewWindEnergy.com . The inner flap of most products will specify if they are a New Wind Energy product or not. For me the boxed dye did what the label said it would with the exception of the color being much darker than indicated. I wanted a natural looking brown and I ended up with jet black hair partially because my hair was in a damaged condition before dying. I have found that both boxed dyes that use energy efficient packaging and henna both provide nice color to my brown hair but each has it's own advantages and disadvantages.
The Verdict:
I like the copper and cherry red highlights from henna but they tend to look less natural and less professional. Boxed dyes do contain chemicals but the color will be more consistent. I chose to compare the two types of dye because I care about finding earth friendly beauty products. I was a bit apprehensive in using either type of dye as I am sensitive to many commercial products. The most important decision when using henna is to make sure it is BAQ so that the henna etc. does not contain ingredients that are dangerous. The Mendahi page is the only henna retailer I know of that actually sends samples to chemists to certify the lawsone content and absence of chemicals like lead, contaminants, and pesticides. Other retailers may sell BAQ henna but Mendahi actually tests the content. I would use either product again depending on the color I want as a result. I too can be either a "black cat" or a "red cat" with henna or commercial dyes. I have gotten good results on both with complements. I currently use the Age Beautiful product because it takes less time and the color is more natural looking. Cherry red highlights can be beautiful but they are a bit eccentric for my line of work. As a law librarian the dark brown to black shades of the commercial boxed dye look more professional.
Guitar Technology : It's All About the Body
I did a Google search for "sustainability and guitars" out of curiosity this week. I wanted to find products concerning my passion for music, playing guitar particularly, and here is what I found. Some string manufacturers are creating strings from recycled metals. Advertising of this kind of string is not often publicized. I suggest reading labels in the music store when trying to find a sustainable string. Major manufacturers like Fender and C.F.Martin are coming out with models using sustainable woods like bamboo. Niche manufacturers are turning to hemp and other plants to build instruments rather than using current non sustainable woods like mahogany, spruce, maple, rosewood, poplar, and others. While some niche manufacturers offer various body materials like recycled plastics, compressed fibers, and others are being used. Hemp pulp is used by some smaller manufacturers to produce bodies that are much lighter but that the luthiers claim is still as resonant as traditional materials. I look forward to seeing some of these options available at my local music store. I have a Fender, Martin, and Traveler guitars in my collection. I am skeptical of the new sustainable materials until I try one in person because I love the resonance of traditional materials. It's good that there is interest in furthering sustainability efforts with green materials but I don't want a sacrifice in sound. These changes in manufacturing could mark a new era in music. The electric guitar was a revolutionary development in blues leading to modern rock. I wonder if these sustainable materials are all hype or if they will change the face of popular music once again. For now, I will have to wait to judge for myself. When I start to find sustainable instruments locally I will see how they play. Until then I will remain skeptical.
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