Monday, April 4, 2011

Boredome and Henna

Ok, so for those of you who don't know what Henna is.. It is an Indian tradition which has been practiced for thousands of years. It is also practiced in Africa and the Middle East. The Henna plant is believed to bring love, luck and prosperity. Mehndi (the Indian word for body painting) involves using a paste made  from the crushed leaves of the henna plant; when applied to the skin, it leaves these beautiful markings that fade naturally over time.

Now, today I decided to try this LOL and I painted both feet and one hand with Henna. The darker lines are the paste still on my feet and the redish orange is when it's off. The reddish orange over the next few days will trurn to a reddish brownish color. 









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4 comments:

  1. XinaedApril 8, 2011 at 11:10 AM

    I lived in Pakistan for a year, so I'm well aware what mehendhi is. I love the way it smells...and the way it makes your head feel when you use it to dye..though that's not the main reason they use mehendhi to dye hair. It acts as a cooling agent, it cools the skin during the summer months when it is the hottest. :)

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  2. Karin OverfieldApril 9, 2011 at 12:41 AM

    i didn't know it was ever used to dye hair.. also, a cooling agent? please elaborate.. that sounds interesting

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  3. XinaedApril 9, 2011 at 1:25 AM

    I tried googling, so I can link you to a source. However, every place I'm seeing doesn't go in to too much detail about it. Only one actually talks about the why it is used ie for the natural cooling effects of the skin during hot climates. Now more than before, it is used for purely aesthetic reasons, but back before there was power, (and still in places where power is scarce) it is used to keep the head cool. It's like toothpaste made with mint. The mint in the paste is cooling to the touch. Even after you've washed it from your skin.

    Where I stayed in Pk, we had days where we had no power. And the men especially the ones that worked in the sun, would dye their hair regularly once a week to help stay cool while out in the hot weather and sun. :)

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  4. Karin OverfieldApril 9, 2011 at 11:00 AM

    wow, thats really interesting! and makes sense, i really appreciate you sharing that, i love learning new things :)

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