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| Freshly applied traditional henna paste. The vestiges of instant henna can be seen at the top left. |
"You must really like henna," the henna artist Wendy of Wendypeaches Henna said to me when I told her it was depressing to see the henna art fade over time. Some of my henna art barely lasted a week, tending to disappear first at the fingertips, where the skin sees the most wear and tear.
I always think of henna as designed for ladies of leisure, or perhaps for times of leisure, as it is traditionally applied in Oman before Eid, before weddings, and before travel. It is just so challenging to do anything at all while waiting for the freshly-applied henna paste to dry, and thereafter to maintain the art for the few days it lasts. Simple household chores like washing the dishes and doing the laundry can easily affect a tattoo, and I've heard that ladies resort to gloves to wash their hair.
I've grown used to the extra effort taken to keep the tattoo looking perfect for a day or two - long enough to be admired - and then for the inevitable fading that takes place soon after. 'Instant' henna is darker but makes coarser lines, and fades more quickly; natural henna gives more intricate designs in a lighter shade, and leaves an echo of itself over a longer time.
Wendy got to like henna art a year or so ago and has been offering hand-drawn tattoos of her own design at flea markets ever since. She has a fresh take on traditional designs and has an eye for complementary work, easily creating mirroring motifs on my hands so the different designs 'match'.
The henna Wendy uses is her own mix, organic and mixed with essential oils for better effect. She says it will give a darker stain, and so far that has been the case especially for the fingertips. I've been to henna artists who have helped me wash the paste off after about half an hour if it's instant henna, or told me to leave it on for an hour before washing it off in the case of traditional henna. Wendy advises that the paste should be kept on the skin for as long as possible, with one ex-colleague telling me that when she got married, she slept with it overnight so that the stain would be at its darkest.
I've never managed to have the paste stay on very long. It tends to flake off after it dries, and at some point in the day, I have to wash my hands, which just removes even more of the paste. The art is orange immediately after the paste is removed, then slowly cures over the next day into a darker brown. Henna tattoos last about a week, with instant henna beginning to flake off within a few days.
However long it lasts, remember it can be good for you*. Henna in various forms - mixed with alcohol, mixed with oil, taken orally, or applied to the skin - has been found to work as an antibacterial in Iraq (2008) and in Oman (2011), and/or against skin cancer (2013).
Interested?
Follow Wendy on Instagram at @wendypeacheshenna
Wendy also sells the henna cones, and flash tattoos, sheets of metallic or white tattoos that can be applied onto the skin with water. Similar flash tattoos are also on sale at Lovisa, but Wendy's are more affordable.
*Henna should not be used by people who have glucose-6-phosphate-dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. It destroys red blood cells for people with G6PD and has been known to kill babies and young children. Read the case studies of hospitalised babies who had henna applied on the skin and of a teenager who drank an infusion containing henna.