Approaching Mehndi Application
Henna is a very sensitive medium to work. The henna leaves need to be treated in such a way that optimum color will result. Henna is absorbent and reflective of the energies in the environment. The best henna color and design work will come from a concentrated joyful place.Henna paste takes time to batch and then time to cure. Once applied to the skin, no matter how dark the henna, if the environment is not warm, then a light color will result. Henna needs and traditionally has developed in warm climates: Morocco, Egypt, India for example. So winter regions are host to mehndi seasonally, although fire places, radiators and hairdryers are year-round solutions.

There are several options to learning mehndi yourself. What they all have in common is the need for patience, time to learn and a kind judge of results. To do mehndi your self you will need henna paste, applicator and designs. You can mix the henna paste yourself or buy pre-made henna paste.

About Henna
The freshest henna is a green powder. Some other henna can have a brown appearance. It is known that the greener the mehndi powder the fresher, however it is unclear if either of these are the better for color, as this author has tried both kinds, and found each satisfactory. I have noted a green stain on my countertop after using one brand of green henna. I once booked a busy festival weekend with a henna that I had sampled as a dark color. As it was sold to me with "fresh from India" stories and recommendations, I confidently bought some and spent several hours sifting several ounces, batching it, and when testing it had almost no color. It is not easy to find consistently reliable in color henna and to know the best way to batch each kind.

In considering the all naturalness of henna one does not know for sure what kind of chemicals went in to growing it or preserving it. Some people say the brown henna has been exposed to air and possibly chemicals. It is best not to inhale the powder, and ultimately to test your skin for any allergic reactions. I have applied mehndi to well over 1500 people and this has produced two cases of slightly irritated redness around the henna. Both customers announced their sensitive skin condition before hand and kept the mehndi on regardless of the redness, as it was not enough to bother them.. The ingredients with in the henna paste, such as coffee, tea, lemon, eucalyptus, clove or mustard oil all can be a determining factor possible skin reaction. The eucalyptus can be difficult for some peoples respiratory tracks. Usually people who are sensitive will ask about ingredients. Hopefully common sense will prevail.

Travelers to areas of Mehndi tradition such as Morocco, Egypt, India and all points in between should also be aware of henna paste ingredients. Some folks have been known to add turpentine to help their henna turn a dark color. And it should be noted that in these exotic places the fresh urine of animals such as camel and yaks are added to the henna to help create a dark color. Sometimes what is called mehndi will be merely a black ink or paint. So if you want genuine mehndi ask about what's in the tube. You can also buy henna in the market places while traveling, or ask a friend to bring some back from their travels. Another note about travel comes in the form of an experience of a cross-dressing man who visited Morocco and was loving the mehndi on other women so much that he couldn't resist having it done himself. And when the police of the market place noticed his maleness and especially his mehndi, which is reserved for the women's culture in Morocco... well luckily the mehndi worked as a protecting and blessing force, as they did not bother to harass him any further.

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