BEAUTY WITH HENNA

Mehendi Design

Nowadays, cones and jacquard bottles are the most popular method to apply henna paste or Mehndi. But the most favorite tool among the users is a cone made of rolled plastic, similar to a cake decorating tube, with a tiny hole at the end. With the help of cone one can make incredibly fine lines and detailed designs. Mehndi also comes ready-made in tubes; these containers provide an easy method method of mehndi application, but often henna in these forms will lack a smooth consistency, and most professional artists avoid ready-made pastes because it is impossible to discern ingredients added.

A third simpler but more wasteful method of applying mehndi is to put a stencil that is hand-shaped over the hand and spreading the henna paste over the entire stencil. The extra tools in mehndi application include fine needles and toothpicks, which can be essential in fixing lines or lifting and moving a line, or picking up stray mehndi, and thin sewing pins that are useful to unclog the hole in the mehndi cone.

The Steps To Apply Mehndi

1. Make a smooth henna paste by sifting the dry henna powder to remove any debris and adding to it a hot mixture of tea or coffee and mustard oil until it has a mud-like firmness.
2. After the paste is ready take a plastic cone with a very fine key-hole at the end. Pour the paste into the cone and tie the broader end with a rubber band.
3. Hold the cone in the right hand and gently squeeze the paste on the palm and start making patterns.
4. Keep the palm horizontal and let the patterned-paste rest on it till dry.
5. Warm it near the fire and leave it on for as long as it takes to get the stains deeper.
6. When it is almost dry, dab a piece of cotton in sugar and lemon solution and apply lightly on the designs so it further darkens to a reddish-brown hue that can last for weeks.
7. After 2-4 hours wash off the hands with plain water.

Mehndi Tattoo Design

Henna is a beautiful, traditional way to experiment with body art without permanently marking your skin. Henna body art, or mehndi, is actually just designs drawn on the skin with henna paste made from dried ground henna leaves and other gentle, natural ingredients. While the best henna tattoos are done by experienced professional mehndi artists, you can do it at home.

Pour the contents of your bag of henna powder into a ceramic bowl. Always use high quality, body art grade henna (see Resources below).Add 1 tsp. of sugar to the henna powder and mix in. The sugar helps the henna stick to skin, so that it will stay on longer without cracking, producing a deeper color. It also makes the henna paste smoother and easier to work with.Add just enough lemon juice to get a brownie batter consistency. You could also use vinegar, wine or any other citrus juice. The sour liquid releases the plant dyes in the henna.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the paste sit until dye release is achieved. You’ll know the dye has been released when the surface of the paste turns brownish (as opposed to the original greenish color when you started).Add your “terp.” Terpines are hydrocarbon solvents that release and darken the henna. Tea Tree, Cajeput and Ravensara are the most common terp choices. Aromatherapy grade oils are safest for the skin.Re-cover the henna paste and refrigerate until ready to use (or freeze if you won’t be using it within a few days).
Prep the Henna Paste

Strain your henna paste to remove lumps by placing a nylon stocking over a cup and spooning the henna mixture into it.Pull the stocking out of the cup and put the toe-end, full of the henna paste, into a carrot bag.Gripping the bag tightly with one hand, pull on the end of the stocking with the other hand so that the henna is squeezed out.Pull the stocking out and the henna should be inside the carrot bag, smooth and ready to use.Snip off the end of the carrot bag and squeeze the paste through the bag into a 1 ounce applicator bottle (see Resources below to purchase applicator bottles made especially for henna application).

BUTY IN INDIA

Body Art With Henna

Body painting these days is increasingly becoming eminent world over. Mehandi/henna body painting is too getting its fame, mainly among the youngsters. You can create different body design effects by making your own safe and temporary Mehandi pastes. When one thinks of body painting, the usual association used to be with airbrushing or more traditional forms of paint and not henna painting. But henna/Mehandi body painting has become so associated with the idea of body painting that henna painting is what immediately comes to mind when any kind of art body painting is mentioned.

Art body painting used to be a rare thing to behold and usually as performance art in galleries or a specific exhibit at an art fair. But henna body painting has changed all that. Henna painting, which is also traditionally done on canvas, wood, paper, and animal hides, is the new standard. Henna body painting is now synonymous with art body painting in all its forms. The custom of creating striking tattoos and colorful henna body art is 5,000 years old; but what's new about this tattoo body art form to us in the West is the fact that it is a 'temporary form' of body art. Henna body art is beautiful and graceful and provides a person looking for tattoo body art with a temporary body art alternative that has a history, ritual context, and positive associations.