Meet our 2019 Henna Team
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Mehndi MadnessTM Blog
Krysteen
Marcia: is originally from Seattle and has been doing henna with Mehndi Madness for several years. She is also an Art Teacher and feels lucky to spend her time immersed in creation. She’s always in high spirits and loves being outside. The three words that best describe her is “Full of Adventure.” She especially loves nature, always hiking and camping around the PNW. Her Border Collie, Sky, is slowing down a bit now that she’s 9 and won’t go on the long hikes they were so fond of in her younger years. Instead there’s lots of fond memories, car rides and belly rubs. Her favorite magical creature is a Dragon because they are so smart and powerful. It must be a reflection of her true self because it is also her Chinese Zodiac. She likes to cook but doesn’t think she’s very good at it. And if there’s a chance to get Mexican take out, she’s all for it! She’s a bit petite, so if she could change one thing it would be to make herself taller so she could reach that top shelf. When it comes to henna or jagua, she prefers henna because of the earthy color. We’re so happy she has joined us for another summer!
Rebecca: We love her bright and open personality. Her favorite thing to do is drawing so Henna is the perfect job for her. She gets to draw awesome henna design all day! She hasn’t traveled much yet but if she had a superpower it would be teleportation so she could make up for lost time. Her favorite color is green because she likes being outdoors but I think it’s because it looks so good on her! She would rather drink a Mango Pineapple smoothie than anything else. She uses both sides of her brain and is finishing up a degree in Software Engineering. She loves math and solving problems. She has a crazy Weiner dog named Heidi and Costco Pizza is Rebecca’s favorite! She is our resident ginger, as Irish and Swedish as they come. She shares these traits with her favorite ginger, Madelaine Petsch, best known for her role on Riverdale as Cheryl Blossom. We look forward to working with her every year!
Madeline: Maddy is a native Puget Sounder and has been working with Mehndi Madness for several years as a party artist. This year she includes locations and festivals, becoming a full time artist. Her spirit animal is an Orca because they’re beautiful but dangerous when they need to be. She loves her dog Molly, 50% Lab, 50% Border Collie and 100% chicken as she is afraid of most things. Molly and Maddie spend their free time hiking. Her favorite color is purple and she’d be a happy camper if she could start every day with a quad shot iced latte. I mean, who wouldn’t! Her secret talent is peeling a banana with her toes and her dream job is whatever job she is currently working because she’s always living in the moment. We are so happy to make Maddie a part of the Mehndi Madness team.
Mariah: Mariah is the newest member of our Mehndi Madness team and art has always been a passion of hers. She splits her time between doing heart felt henna and being a preschool teacher. Born in Bellingham, she has recently moved back to the PNW after spending much of her childhood in Michigan. Her favorite thing about Michigan was all the water because she loves to swim. I guess she moved to the right place! There is no limit to swimming in Washington. She loves any pastime involving the outdoors, camping, hiking, a little bit of disc golf and boxing. That’s right, she can punch your lights out! If she invented a coffee drink it would be a Dirty Chai Latte with oat milk and spicy chai. She’s a cat person and prefers reading over movies. Her favorite kid’s movie is Pocahontas, talk about a passion for the outdoors! The grossest thing she’s ever eaten was Salmon Skin Sushi…never again! The three words that best describe her are compassion, preparation and joy! We are so lucky to have found her and expect to be dazzled by her all summer.
We’ll be discussing all you need to know about how to grow your own Henna plant, where to get it, and what the plant needs to grow. As well as, how to make a henna paste from the plant and what methods work the best!
The Henna plant is most common in tropical areas like India, Africa, Asia, and Australia. This is due to the plant needing a lot of sun, thus it’s usually found in the dessert. The botanical name of is Lawsonia inermis, a member of the Loosestrife family. It needs full sun and warmth and will not survive in frost. There are several reasons to have a henna plant, body art, hair color, fabric dye as well as the medicinal properties. It’s an antiseptic and an astringent. The plant can be bought on-line from several good sources as well as the seeds.
Try:
https://www.herbcottage.com.au/henna.html
https://www.caribbeangardenseed.com/
https://www.crimson-sage.com/
For the care of your plant:
❖ The highest dye content produced from the henna plant is in temperatures of 35-45 degrees Celsius, suggesting that this is the optimum temperature for the henna plant. However, the plant can also be cultivated in regions with average temperatures of 24 degrees Celsius.
❖ Grow your plant in a pot large enough for a fully grown henna plant, and water your new plant thoroughly. After this do not water again until the soil has completely dried out, then water it again heavily. This dry-wet cycle must be repeated to be successful in growing your henna plant. It’s important not to water the plant each day because if it’s moist at root level then it may suffer from root rot, pests and fungal disease.
❖ The plant prefers a sunny position and will grow in a range of soils, but it does best in a light to clay loam with the ability to retain some moisture. Which is good for the henna plant since you don’t want water it every day.
How to make the Paste: You can mix the henna paste using fresh or dried leaves. Dry the leaves by placing them in the shade to dry on a hot day. It is best to avoid putting the leaves in direct sunlight because the leaves may lose some of their potency. Once the leaves are crispy and completely dry, grind them using a mortar and pestle. Try to ground the leaves as finely as possible like flour and then strain the resulting powder through a sieve. This will remove any bits of stem or material that isn’t finely ground. If you don’t plan on using it right away, seal the powder in an airtight container and store in a cool and dark area. When you are ready to use the henna make the paste a day before you want to use it so that the dye properties have time to activate in the paste.
Mixing:
❖ Mix the powder in a non-clear plastic container with a lid. Add the henna leaf powder, mix it with lemon juice, Eucalyptus oil, and a little bit of sugar to the consistency of toothpaste.
➢ Eucalyptus oil can be swapped out with other essential oils like Tea Tree, Cajeput, and Ravensara.
❖ For a more in-depth walk through watch our video on how to mix the paste, https://vimeo.com/68808791
