Henna for body art is a beautiful and safe way to adorn the skin. One of the qualities that makes henna so well-loved is its ability to stain the skin for as long as two or three weeks. This makes henna one of the few cosmetics that does not need to be reapplied daily. Henna can last through long celebrations, vacations, and special events.
Elaborate designs, such as those applied for weddings, take several hours to apply. Naturally, one would like to achieve a dark stain, and to have the design stay on the skin for as long as possible. It can be quite disappointing or frustrating to see a beautiful pattern turn out too light, and then fade in a couple of days. Ensuring a dark, long-lasting stain begins with the placement of the design, and ends with proper aftercare. Keep reading to learn how to get the best results out of your henna.
Location Matters
Henna works best on areas of the body where there are several layers of stratum corneum, and where skin is thicker and rougher, such as on the hands and feet. The dye molecule can penetrate and bind more fully to these layers. The stain will fade slowly, as the skin is exfoliated away naturally over time.
Areas of the body where the skin is thinner and smoother will not work as well with henna. Upper arms and legs, and the torso will see lighter stains that will fade faster. These stains will never reach the deep, espresso-brown shade one might achieve on fingertips, no matter what you do. The skin simply isn’t thick enough.
Start with Dry, Clean Skin with No Oils
The skin is naturally hydrophobic, and does well to prevent many substances from entering across its barrier. The skin naturally produced sebum to protect and moisturize the skin. Oils from sebum, or from moisturizing products will prevent henna from successfully binding to the keratin in the skin.
The day that you plan to apply henna, avoid applying lotion or other moisturizing products where you plan to have henna. Immediately before application, thoroughly wash the area with soap and water, or wipe with rubbing alcohol to create a clean, oil-free surface.
Use Quality Henna Paste with Terps
A good henna stain cannot happen without good henna. Mass-produced pre-made pastes contain low quality henna (or none at all), cheap solvents in place of essential oil based terps, and an assortment of concentrated food dyes. If you’ve ever gotten food coloring on your skin, you’ll see that it stains immediately, but washes away within a couple of days. This is because such dyes do not bind to keratin on a molecular level the way lawsone does.
Pre-made pastes may also contain PPD, which can create a dark, long-lasting stain, but at great cost. (To learn more about PPD reactions, click here)
Insist on using only hand made natural henna paste. Quality paste made from high dye-content henna and aromatherapy grade essential oils is not only safer, but more effective. However, not all essential oils are effective for darkening henna. “Terps” are essential oils nicknamed for their monoterpene alcohol content. The monoterpene alcohols are what allow for stronger dye release and a darker result on the skin. To learn more about Terps, click here.
Leave The Paste On As Long As Possible
With henna, patience makes all the difference. Manufacturers of mass-produced henna paste have tried to create a faster, darker product to serve customers who want immediate results. Same goes for commercial hair dyes which promise coverage in 30 minutes. In the long run, “fast and dark” often translates into “cheap,” “unsafe,” and “quick to fade.”
If you want a beautiful, dark henna stain, go into it with the awareness that you may be spending the better part of a day with limited use of your hands, or other parts of your body. Henna has been used on brides and on women about to give birth, with the benefit of forcing the woman to sit or lie still for several hours. Elaborate, intricate henna designs were a sign of social status, because they indicated that the people who wore them could afford to not work for several hours as the paste was applied and left on.
If you are unable to afford a day of idleness, plan to have your henna done in the evening. Wrap the design, and leave it on overnight. Henna needs to be left on the skin at least three or four hours for a good result, but some choose to leave it on as long as twelve hours or more.
The toes and outline of this beautiful slipper design are a dark, oxidized stain, while the light orange fill is from henna paste that was applied and then removed quickly.
Seal It
Henna doesn’t always like to stay on the skin. Sometimes, henna will dry and flake off within a couple of hours despite your best efforts not to mess with it. This will depend on the level of humidity in your area, and the henna paste formulation. If the paste is drying and flaking off too quickly, this means it will have less time to transfer dye onto the skin. There are a number of methods for sealing henna so it stays moist and in contact with the skin for as long as possible.
Many artists use some sort of lemon-and-sugar mixture which they apply over the design once the paste is dry enough to touch. This method seems to work fairly well in keeping the design sticky and flexible. However, it may not be the best for summer days, as citrus can cause photo-sensitivity, and the mixture may be quite appealing to bees and other little winged friends.
Strong setting hair spray is also a good trick. Get the kind that is meant to keep your hair locked in shape through hurricanes. Spritz it over the design and allow it to dry. Sprinkle glitter over top of it if you wish.
Other options involve applying medical tape over the design, or wrapping it with a soft paper or cotton. Wrapping a design is especially handy if you need to leave it on overnight without worrying about waking up to a bed full of henna crumbs. The following section will discuss wrapping.
Heat and Moisture Help
One reason why wrapping is effective is because it keeps the design moist and warm while it is on the skin. Henna’s dye will continue to migrate into the stratum corneum as long as the paste stays mildly damp. A warm environment causes the skin to be more receptive to the dye. Be aware that the paste should stay dry enough that it is not at risk of smearing or bleeding.
Carefully apply a good layer of toilet paper or pulled-apart cotton balls directly over the design, then wrap the whole thing with a layer of plastic, and keep it in place with tape. If the design is on the torso, lay the paper or cotton flat over the design, cover with plastic, and seal the edges down with tape. Wearing a tight-fitting shirt can help to keep the covering flat over a belly, back, or chest design.
To learn more about how to wrap a henna design, click here.
Medical tape works well for smaller designs. Simply apply the tape directly over the design until it is completely covered.
If you are not able to leave the paste on for several hours, heat can help speed up the staining process. Put a heating pad on the area, or use a hair dryer on the low setting
Once the paste is removed, heat will also help to facilitate oxidation. When henna is used on fabric, ironing the stain causes it to go dark very quickly. Hair that is dyed with henna will become darker if the person uses heated styling tools. Obviously, it would not be a good idea to press an iron to one’s skin, but exposing the skin to warm steam, a heating pad, or a nice summer day will help the stain darken.
Be Patient; The Stain Takes 24-48 Hours to Darken Fully
After the paste is removed, the henna stain continues to darken by way of oxidation. It won’t achieve its darkest state until a day or two later. The initial stain may be light orange, or even a deep red. Over time, the stain oxidizes to burgundy and coffee brown shades and darker, depending on the area of the body. Do not be disappointed if the stain you see at first is too light. In fact, you should be more concerned if a henna stain is fast and dark, as that is a strong indicator of harmful additives.
If you are getting henna for a special event, it is best to have it done a couple of days beforehand, or at least the night before. Otherwise, the stain may still be too light during the event.
As explained above, heat can expedite the oxidation process. Take care to only use gentle heat for short periods of time, to prevent skin damage.
A henna stain just after paste removal, and the same stain after oxidation.
Avoid Water, Chlorine, Alcohol, and Scrubbing
It is often recommended that a person avoids having their hennaed skin make contact with water for 24 hours after the paste is removed. This prevents the dye from loosening from the skin while it is still in the process of binding. Use a wooden tongue depressor, or the blunt side of a butter knife to scrape away the paste rather than rinsing with water.
When a henna design fades, it is due to the outer layers of the skin naturally shedding. Therefore, avoid over-washing the skin and using products that contain a high level of alcohol, like hand sanitizer. Try not to scrub or use exfoliating products in that area. Spending a lot of time in a pool or hot tub may also cause a design to fade more quickly.
If you ever end up with a henna design that you don’t like, or must fade as quickly as possible for whatever reason, simply do the opposite: go swimming, wash your skin frequently, scrub, and cover yourself in hand sanitizer.
Henna actually helps the exfoliation of rough, calloused skin. If you have feet that are in need of some love, cover your soles and toes in a solid slipper of henna. You will see the thickest skin acquire a dark, nearly-black stain. Every few days, soak your feet in warm water and scrub with a pumice stone. You’ll see those dark patches slough off, little by little, until your skin is much smoother.
Bonus: Henna is antifungal. Learn more about henna’s beneficial properties, and how to use henna on the feet here.
Keep Skin Moisturized
Again, the best way to maintain a long henna stain on the skin is to slow down the natural exfoliation process. Especially if you tend to have dry, flaky skin, it is a good idea to keep the hennaed area moisturized. Some henna artists provide a kind of after-care balm that is meant to prolong the stain. They are usually a homemade mixture of oils, essential oils, and beeswax. If you don’t have this special balm, no worries; a regular lotion or oil made for the skin should do just fine. Not only does a moisturizer keep the skin from drying and shedding, but provides an additional hydrophobic barrier to keep water out. You may want to reapply throughout the day, especially if the design is on your hands and you are washing your hands frequently.
If you want to treat yourself to some wonderful smelling, all-natural lotions, body butters, and oils, Mehandi has you covered.
These body butters are hand-made in small batches, and they smell delicious.
Reapply If Possible
If you got your henna done on a trip, or hired a professional, it may not be possible to have the design reapplied once it starts fading. If you have a steady hand and access to some good henna paste (for best results and safety, mix it yourself), you may try tracing over the pattern yourself.
If you applied your henna yourself, and are very happy with the design, simply retrace the design once it starts fading to keep it fresh. Henna stains build on each other, causing increasingly darker results. I tend to maintain a henna slipper on my feet during the summer months, and after the second or third application, my soles are nearly black. They stay that way as long as I reapply about once a week.
If you have additional questions about henna after-care, feel free to comment below or visit www.hennapage.com for all things henna!