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(Edited 11/13/2017) DISCLAIMER: No matter what you do, any boxed henna will be a pain in the butt to wash out, and there's nothing you can really do to get rid of the smell if it's not your cup of tea. Also, let it be known that henna is semi-permanent. Therefore, it will gradually bleed out whenever you get your hair wet for the first week and a half or so, before settling to a more natural looking color. The strong henna smell also tends to go away in the first two weeks, in my experience. HOWEVER, many people don't realize that there are ways to make the application process much easier. I've been dying my hair with Light Mountain for years and while at first the mixture often ended up too dry and clumpy, I've finally achieved the perfect dye. Here are my steps: 1) I mix about a box and a half of this henna for my long hair, using ginger tea (made with boiling hot distilled water), lemon juice, nice smelling spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.), and a little bit of plain yogurt. I make sure to stop adding in things when the mixture is thick and creamy, and take extra care to make sure all powder has been mixed in. 2) Then, I let the hot mixture sit there for about an hour, covered with plastic wrap. 3) While the mixture is steeping, I wash my hair with shampoo and conditioner, then blowdry it until it's almost fully dry and add in some argan oil to the bottom 2/3 of my hair, skipping the roots (I have a LOT of hair). I also apply a bit of vaseline around my forehead and neck to keep the henna from dyeing my skin. 4) When applying the henna, I section my hair bit by bit from the bottom up using hair ties. I use my left hand to tug on the section I'm working on to make sure I'm hitting every side of the roots, and use my right hand in a plastic glove to glop on the henna. 5) IMPORTANT TIP: As I'm applying the henna, I also found it helpful to stir and add a little spoonful of yogurt as I go if the mixture starts to become dry in some parts. 6) When all roots and most of the body of my hair have been covered, I wrap my hair up in plastic wrap and sit under a bonnet dryer for a full hour under the hottest setting. I have never tried the method of simply leaving this in my hair for several hours, but I'm sure that works fine as well. 7) When I rinse out my hair, I don't use shampoo at all. I generally use conditioners that have tons of oils in them (e.g. coconut and argan oil) to facilitate the detangling process. It still takes forever to get it all out because my hair is so long and thick, and when I'm finally done with the second rinse I pat my hair dry and put in more argan oil to rescue it from the damage. I tend to lose a lot of hair in the process. 8) I try to wait at least a day and a half to wash my hair, and when I do I sometimes only use conditioner. Over the next day or two after dyeing my hair, the color tends to become darker. Just something to be aware of with henna in general. This makes it sound completely awful and while those 4 hours of mixing and applying and sitting and washing suck, it's totally worth it. Henna has done wonders for the health of my hair and makes it look absolutely spectacular in the sunlight. I've received so many complements by friends, family, and hair stylists. Chemical dyes are NOT worth the convenience! SUMMARY: Make sure you're allowing the henna enough time to sit to release it's color. Use yogurt to make the mixture creamier and easier to apply/stick to your roots. Also use lots of oil when washing it out and afterwards to complement the conditioning properties of henna. EDIT 11/13/17: I have short hair now, and surprise surprise, the process is much less difficult now!