Henna- dos and don'ts for best stain
While henna is known by many names including Henne, Al-Khanna, Jamaica Mignonette, Egyptian Privet and Smooth Lawsonia, the art of its application is referred to as Henna (Arabic) or Mehndi (Hindu).
As much as making the henna tattoo is an art, saving the tattoo for longer & getting a dark & rich color is an art as well & its something only you can do. An artist's job is done as soon as the tattoo design is completed & your job starts from that very moment.
Lawsone molecules form very strong bonds with protein molecules and also penetrate the skin quite well. If you put some lawsone on your skin, which has a lot of protein, the lawsone will seep in deeply and stick to the proteins.
Henna contains hennotannic acid that binds with cells, so the henna paste must stay moist and in contact with the skin for a while. When applied, the henna paste is always black, but the resulting pattern with natural henna varies from light orange to dark brown. Henna tattoo stain will be light/bright orange at first and will darken to a deep brown over the next 48-60 hours. This gradual darkening of the stain is a sign that the henna paste is 100% natural!
I strongly recommend to get the Henna tattoo at least 2 days before the Wedding or occasion so the stain reaches to its peak color.
It depends on you how well you take care of it to make it last longer.
With the high quality & pure Henna we use, a good stain is guaranteed but how dark the stain turns is greatly effected by how well care is taken.
Magic Formula:- Time + Heat - Water= Dark & awesome Henna stain
Some useful tips to keep in mind:-
1. Wash your part of the body (where you are getting tattoo) very well with soap & dry it.
2. Apply eucalyptus oil if available (Tiger balm works too).
3. Leave paste on skin for as long as possible. But remember to keep the paste moist. The longer the better.
4. Keep spraying lemon sugar syrup every couple of hrs. Make sure you do not apply too much else the henna paste will be dilute & may smudge the tattoo design.
5. HEAT is a friend of henna. Warming your henna design with the henna paste still on your skin will help in achieving a dark stain. You can warm your hand/ foot over the stove, or in front of the fireplace or a space heater, or even use a heating pad.
6. Apply more sugar-lemon juice syrup. Heat again. ( Be careful & do not burn yourself, a gentle warm temperature is good enough).
7. As long as the henna paste is moist, it will keep staining…heating makes u sweat and hence moistens the paste.
8. Unroll cotton balls and stick them onto the sticky henna design. Wrap with an old sock, toilet paper, or medical bandage…anything will work, to keep the henna paste on the skin and to protect the design from damaging & messing cloths & various households. If leaving on all night, be sure to keep tattoo WARM ALL NIGHT...the moment your skin gets cold, henna stops staining. You can wrap up your henna design with layers of tissue paper and then one layer of plastic wrap to retain heat.
Caution:- Do not sweat too much or the plastic wrap will cause your beautiful henna design to smudge.
9. After 6-8 hours, do not wash off with soap and water. Scrape the paste off gently. Once the paste is dry, it will come off very easily without any struggle.
10. Avoid direct contact with water for the next 24 hrs. Keep stain coated with olive oil to create a barrier.
11. Avoid direct sun light for as long as the henna paste is still on the body.
What factors determine the darkness of henna stains?
1. Time Duration:
Natural henna MUST be kept on the skin for as long as possible. A minimum of 4 hours is suggested, while it is recommended to keep the henna paste on overnight (8-10 hrs) for a really rich stain. The longer the henna paste is kept on the skin, the more time it has to release its dye and go deeper into the layers of skin.
2. Body temperature:
If your hands are usually icy cold, your henna stain may not turn out dark. The palms are generally warmer than the rest of the body which is one of the many reasons why your henna stain will be the darkest on the palms.
Make sure that the room where the mehndi will be applied is comfortable temperature-wise, preferably slightly warm.
3. Exfoliation:
Since henna stains the layers of skin, if you have exfoliated right before having henna applied, then henna may not have enough layers to be absorbed into and might result in a stain that is not optimum. Therefore it is recommended to do waxing, shaving, massaging, etc. a day or 2 before getting your henna done. Your body sheds skin cells continuously, some people have a faster rate of exfoliation than others. Two people can have a henna design done on the same part of body, follow the same after-care, and still one person's stain may fade faster than the other's.
4. Body Part:
It is just not possible to get a henna stain to be as dark on the arm as on the palm. The reason is the difference in the skin composition. The palms of hands and soles of feet have considerably thicker skin (more layers of skin cells) than any other part of the body.
5. Water Contact:
Keeping fresh henna stain away from water for the first 24 hrs is very important. The more you wash dishes, wash your hands, swim, the faster your skin cells will exfoliate, hence taking the henna stain along with them. Chlorine in pool water will have an adverse effect on your henna stain. If your henna stain was not very dark initially and had not stained deep into the skin, then it will also fade away very quickly.
Once your henna stain is deep and dark after 48-72 hours of application, To have a beautiful dark henna stain, and expect it to stay that way for the next 1 month is just not possible. We cannot stop our skin from exfoliating! Henna stain lasts anywhere between 1 to 3 weeks. By 3 weeks, your henna stain will either be gone, or become very light.
HENNA FAQ:-
How long tattoo lasts?
Depends. Tattoo color depends on various factors like what part of the body, how often the part of the body is exposed to water, how well care was taken while the paste was still on the skin & ofcourse exfoliation rate. That said, tattoo lasts 1-3 week but peak color doesn't last more than a week.
What is Black henna & is it safe?
Black henna is made up of chemical (mainly PPD-para-phenylenediamine). It is very harmful & may leave lifelong side effects including blisters, open sores, scars & loss of pigmentation.
How to differentiate between Natural henna & black henna?
There are many ways to differentiate both products:-
PASTE COLOR:-Natural Henna past is dark green or greenish brown in color while black henna paste is black.
SMELL:- Natural henna has a strong odor while black henna has either chemical or no fragrance at all.
TATTOO COLOR:-Natural henna leaves orange color & start turning dark in 24-48 hrs but black henna leaves a black stain in no time. If you see artists have black spots (instead or orange or brown), its a hint she/he is using black henna.
TATTOO DESIGN:- Artist cannot make very fine & smooth design with black henna due to the paste composition while with natural henna is all about very minute, intricate & fine designs.
HENNA CARE TIPS:- If the artist doesn't give you lots of instructions on how to take care & why is it important to keep the tattoo away from moisture, it is a RED flag. Natural henna needs lot of care to get dark color but black henna leaves black stain without any care at all & moisture doesn't effect the stain either.
BEACHES:- Most of the artists (I am not saying all) uses black henna or a mixture of natural & black henna as the air is very moist near beaches & it makes it impossible to get a good stain.
IS Henna safe on pregnant woman?
YES! 100% Natural henna is completely safe & as a matter of fact pregnant woman are recommended to use henna on their belly as henna absorbs all the heat from the body & gives a cooling effect.
Does Zainab uses Natural Henna?
Yes we use all natural 100% herbal henna & get it from India. However people allergic to citric or any essential oils (which are natural too) should be careful as lemon & other essential oils are mixed to get a dark & longer lasting stain. Patients taking lithium pills should avoid henna.
While henna is known by many names including Henne, Al-Khanna, Jamaica Mignonette, Egyptian Privet and Smooth Lawsonia, the art of its application is referred to as Henna (Arabic) or Mehndi (Hindu).
As much as making the henna tattoo is an art, saving the tattoo for longer & getting a dark & rich color is an art as well & its something only you can do. An artist's job is done as soon as the tattoo design is completed & your job starts from that very moment.
Lawsone molecules form very strong bonds with protein molecules and also penetrate the skin quite well. If you put some lawsone on your skin, which has a lot of protein, the lawsone will seep in deeply and stick to the proteins.
Henna contains hennotannic acid that binds with cells, so the henna paste must stay moist and in contact with the skin for a while. When applied, the henna paste is always black, but the resulting pattern with natural henna varies from light orange to dark brown. Henna tattoo stain will be light/bright orange at first and will darken to a deep brown over the next 48-60 hours. This gradual darkening of the stain is a sign that the henna paste is 100% natural!
I strongly recommend to get the Henna tattoo at least 2 days before the Wedding or occasion so the stain reaches to its peak color.
It depends on you how well you take care of it to make it last longer.
With the high quality & pure Henna we use, a good stain is guaranteed but how dark the stain turns is greatly effected by how well care is taken.
Magic Formula:- Time + Heat - Water= Dark & awesome Henna stain
Some useful tips to keep in mind:-
1. Wash your part of the body (where you are getting tattoo) very well with soap & dry it.
2. Apply eucalyptus oil if available (Tiger balm works too).
3. Leave paste on skin for as long as possible. But remember to keep the paste moist. The longer the better.
4. Keep spraying lemon sugar syrup every couple of hrs. Make sure you do not apply too much else the henna paste will be dilute & may smudge the tattoo design.
5. HEAT is a friend of henna. Warming your henna design with the henna paste still on your skin will help in achieving a dark stain. You can warm your hand/ foot over the stove, or in front of the fireplace or a space heater, or even use a heating pad.
6. Apply more sugar-lemon juice syrup. Heat again. ( Be careful & do not burn yourself, a gentle warm temperature is good enough).
7. As long as the henna paste is moist, it will keep staining…heating makes u sweat and hence moistens the paste.
8. Unroll cotton balls and stick them onto the sticky henna design. Wrap with an old sock, toilet paper, or medical bandage…anything will work, to keep the henna paste on the skin and to protect the design from damaging & messing cloths & various households. If leaving on all night, be sure to keep tattoo WARM ALL NIGHT...the moment your skin gets cold, henna stops staining. You can wrap up your henna design with layers of tissue paper and then one layer of plastic wrap to retain heat.
Caution:- Do not sweat too much or the plastic wrap will cause your beautiful henna design to smudge.
9. After 6-8 hours, do not wash off with soap and water. Scrape the paste off gently. Once the paste is dry, it will come off very easily without any struggle.
10. Avoid direct contact with water for the next 24 hrs. Keep stain coated with olive oil to create a barrier.
11. Avoid direct sun light for as long as the henna paste is still on the body.
What factors determine the darkness of henna stains?
1. Time Duration:
Natural henna MUST be kept on the skin for as long as possible. A minimum of 4 hours is suggested, while it is recommended to keep the henna paste on overnight (8-10 hrs) for a really rich stain. The longer the henna paste is kept on the skin, the more time it has to release its dye and go deeper into the layers of skin.
2. Body temperature:
If your hands are usually icy cold, your henna stain may not turn out dark. The palms are generally warmer than the rest of the body which is one of the many reasons why your henna stain will be the darkest on the palms.
Make sure that the room where the mehndi will be applied is comfortable temperature-wise, preferably slightly warm.
3. Exfoliation:
Since henna stains the layers of skin, if you have exfoliated right before having henna applied, then henna may not have enough layers to be absorbed into and might result in a stain that is not optimum. Therefore it is recommended to do waxing, shaving, massaging, etc. a day or 2 before getting your henna done. Your body sheds skin cells continuously, some people have a faster rate of exfoliation than others. Two people can have a henna design done on the same part of body, follow the same after-care, and still one person's stain may fade faster than the other's.
4. Body Part:
It is just not possible to get a henna stain to be as dark on the arm as on the palm. The reason is the difference in the skin composition. The palms of hands and soles of feet have considerably thicker skin (more layers of skin cells) than any other part of the body.
5. Water Contact:
Keeping fresh henna stain away from water for the first 24 hrs is very important. The more you wash dishes, wash your hands, swim, the faster your skin cells will exfoliate, hence taking the henna stain along with them. Chlorine in pool water will have an adverse effect on your henna stain. If your henna stain was not very dark initially and had not stained deep into the skin, then it will also fade away very quickly.
Once your henna stain is deep and dark after 48-72 hours of application, To have a beautiful dark henna stain, and expect it to stay that way for the next 1 month is just not possible. We cannot stop our skin from exfoliating! Henna stain lasts anywhere between 1 to 3 weeks. By 3 weeks, your henna stain will either be gone, or become very light.
HENNA FAQ:-
How long tattoo lasts?
Depends. Tattoo color depends on various factors like what part of the body, how often the part of the body is exposed to water, how well care was taken while the paste was still on the skin & ofcourse exfoliation rate. That said, tattoo lasts 1-3 week but peak color doesn't last more than a week.
What is Black henna & is it safe?
Black henna is made up of chemical (mainly PPD-para-phenylenediamine). It is very harmful & may leave lifelong side effects including blisters, open sores, scars & loss of pigmentation.
How to differentiate between Natural henna & black henna?
There are many ways to differentiate both products:-
PASTE COLOR:-Natural Henna past is dark green or greenish brown in color while black henna paste is black.
SMELL:- Natural henna has a strong odor while black henna has either chemical or no fragrance at all.
TATTOO COLOR:-Natural henna leaves orange color & start turning dark in 24-48 hrs but black henna leaves a black stain in no time. If you see artists have black spots (instead or orange or brown), its a hint she/he is using black henna.
TATTOO DESIGN:- Artist cannot make very fine & smooth design with black henna due to the paste composition while with natural henna is all about very minute, intricate & fine designs.
HENNA CARE TIPS:- If the artist doesn't give you lots of instructions on how to take care & why is it important to keep the tattoo away from moisture, it is a RED flag. Natural henna needs lot of care to get dark color but black henna leaves black stain without any care at all & moisture doesn't effect the stain either.
BEACHES:- Most of the artists (I am not saying all) uses black henna or a mixture of natural & black henna as the air is very moist near beaches & it makes it impossible to get a good stain.
IS Henna safe on pregnant woman?
YES! 100% Natural henna is completely safe & as a matter of fact pregnant woman are recommended to use henna on their belly as henna absorbs all the heat from the body & gives a cooling effect.
Does Zainab uses Natural Henna?
Yes we use all natural 100% herbal henna & get it from India. However people allergic to citric or any essential oils (which are natural too) should be careful as lemon & other essential oils are mixed to get a dark & longer lasting stain. Patients taking lithium pills should avoid henna.