Designs we LOVE to LOVE!

Love is in the air... And just like everybody else, February makes us all twitterpated. But you don't need to put little love hearts in your henna designs to make them "romantic". Henna is a beautiful art that evokes romance in its own right. Femininity and sensuality are natural aspects of henna, regardless of what type of design elements you are using.

Here's just a few of our inspirations this month, from some of our favorite global artists!



This is a design by @anoushka_irukandji, one of our favorite antipodean artists. She creates structured and symmetrical pieces that recreate motifs found in nature as well as recalling ancient bronze metalworks. Her Australian roots show, too, in the patters and fills she uses.

This amazing design is by Fatima Oulad Thami, and you can follow her work at @hand.of.fatima She is an incredible Moroccan artist who lives in the Netherlands. She uses glass syringes to make these awesome geometric pieces. And just check out her stain! We love how red this design looks and how sweetly it plays with the hand. 

This collaboration was by Veronica Lilu and Levgeniia Fyokla out in Ukraine! We absolutely love these open and light styles. They are so romantic and simple, and can make your hand look so beautiful. Thanks for the fantastic share! You can find more  at @fyoklamehndi

Know any artists we should check out? We love seeing the work of henna artists, and seeing women connecting all over the world. Its incredible how henna brings so many people together in celebration and love. Let us know your favorites so they can be our favorites too!

How did the Henna Caravan girls get started, anyway?

Jessica and Carissa, Festival ~2006

People are always asking us "How did you get started in henna?" My answer: "My sister made me!" It's true, but not many people know how Jessica McQueen first came to henna, and how we started Henna Caravan as a family project.

I've known Jessica my whole life, after all she is my big sister. When I was born, she couldn't wait to play with my hair, share shoes, and go on tons of adventures. Wouldn't you know I always hated people doing my hair and I have weird tiny feet? So options 1 and 2 were right out. But option 3? We have had many adventures together, and Henna Caravan is just one of them.

When I began working with Jessica, I was only 12. My mom, Flavia, told me I had to go help. There wasn't even an "or else", I just had to. I was doing the sisterly duty, keeping her company at weekend festivals, whining when I got bored, and basically being a nuisance. She didn't mind, though. She was discovering how to turn her passion and talent into a business. She was making her living as an artist!

Jessica at Cajun Festival, 2010

Jessica studied painting at the prestigious California College of Arts in Oakland, Ca. She immersed herself in the vibrant cross-cultural melting pot that is the Bay Area, and through her studies learned about myriad forms of beauty and traditional arts. Henna was one of these arts. At the time, information on henna in the western world was very limited. The internet was shiny and new and slow. The books on henna were nonexistent. The only way to learn was to talk face to face with the people who knew.

Jessica McQueen, 1999

And so my big sister started her quest to find out everything about henna. She would talk to shop owners in Little India, who shared their henna powder, much of it sifted for hair use. Pakistani immigrants would clasp her hand and say how she reminded them of their family members who were still back in the old country. North African women would nod and drop a bit of family knowledge - "You use lemon sugar on top, right?".

Jessica McQueen, 1999

With all these different people, learning about henna was like a treasure hunt. Recipes back then were like Grandma's secret marinara sauce; you never quite got the whole picture. But it was fun to piece all the puzzles together, and Jessica soon became nearly obsessed with henna as an art, a women's craft, and a beauty practice.

Ask her now and she'll gladly say how ugly and messy her first designs were. I only wish I had a picture to show you all of those very first attempts. We could all smile together and remember our early goes at swirls and humps and fills, all a bit sideways and wibbly, but filled with joy. In my opinion, Jessica always made something beautiful and elegant, right from the very start.

Henna was just starting to make headway into western consciousness at this time- mid/late 90s. Those early festivals, Jessica would take a book and a chair and sit all day, giving henna to 5 or 10 customers, answering questions for a lot more. Then Madonna and Gwen Stefani and a half dozen other pop stars were sporting hennaed hands and anklets, and suddenly every teenage girl worth her crop top and platform flip flops needed henna!

Filming "David Tutera" ~ 2011 

This was where my mom and I came in. The festivals went from slow, to steady, to frenetic. People waited in line for an hour for a little anklet or an arm band. My mom and I would talk to customers. We'd explain to anybody who would listen what henna is. We would show them designs and help put on lemon-sugar sealant. One day,  the line was particularly long, so my sister threw me a bottle and said "Get to work sister!"

And that, more or less, is the story of how Henna Caravan got started. Mom, Jess, and me! There's nothing better than getting to spend every day hanging out with your best friends, sharing art around the world, and playing in glitter. We're very lucky ladies.

Mixing henna during Winter

This past month has been unbearably cold in the Henna Caravan office. We have radiators going all day to keep our toes and noses warm. How cold is it, you ask? We won't tell you. Our midwest and east coast friends will make fun of us for being wimps. Suffice it to say that the adhesive has come home for a sleepover until the warm weather returns.

You may not know this, but adhesive isn't the only thing here that dislikes the cold. Henna is not a fan either, and mixing paste when the weather gets chilly can be frustrating and confounding if you don't account for the few degree difference.


Why does heat this matter? Here's a quick visual of what henna molecules do in different temperatures. (totally scientific examples, we swear!)

When henna is warm, its Joan dancing at the holiday party!

When henna is cold, it has this face.

So, what is the best way to mix henna when the birds fly south for the winter? Our advice is pretty simple- keep it cozy.

You need:

incandescent light source
digital thermometer


When its in the 20s and 30s outside, your home temperatures are a little less predictable. You may keep your heat or radiator on low overnight but blast it in the morning and evening. You may like it to be a bit more roasty toasty with the temperature set up near 75, but there's a draft through that old door. Its important that your henna have a steady, warm temperature to sit at.

Here's a few tricks to help find a nice place for your henna bowl to sit no matter what the weather is doing outside.

1. Stove Light - we make a tower of bowls and canned goods to make sure our henna has a steady temp during chilly nights. 
2. Oven Light - a cool oven with the light on will make just enough warmth for your henna to process consistently even if your house is very cold. 
3. Gooseneck Lamp - this kind of lamp can be positioned easily, and as long as you have an incandescent bulb it will provide a steady source of heat to keep your henna from becoming too cold.
4. Next to your electronics or appliances - many people have a cozy spot on top of or near their refrigerator or other appliances that stay on all the time. 

These places all give off a bit of steady heat. That will ensure the molecules in your henna are doing their business, and not just sitting around.


Places that are NOT good to warm your henna, even though they seem like a good idea the first time your try.

1. Oven on "warm"- that's about 200 degrees and will cook your henna!
2. Microwave- don't nuke your henna!
3. In a double boiler- it will cook your henna!
4. By a window- the window will by much cooler than any other part of your house, and the temperature will fluctuate more as the sun comes and goes.
5. Your Car - in the summer your car gets way too hot, in the winter it gets way too cold. brrrr!

So, snow bunnies, what other challenges can winter weather bring? 

Pure henna over salt'n'pepper grey

Last year when I posted our Henna over Grey tutorial, I completely forgot to include pictures. I was scrolling through some photos and came across these three from a dear friend in Australia. She dyed her hair using only pure henna, and documented the result. If pure henna is too "bright" for you, try adding a bit of indigo, or doing a 2-step process to get darker color. I love this color on her, though, and love the natural highlights her grey streaks create!

Elizabeth's Before:

Immediately after application:

And 48 Hours after application!

Henna permanently dyes the hair follicle, so after you reach your desired depth of color, you can do easy keep up with your roots! Tone down the reds with amla, mix with cassia for more strawberry hues, or use indigo to get a range of browns and even black.


To see some of Elizabeth's henna work, visit her facebook page Henna Oasis. She is located on the Gold Coast.

For video tutorials of how to apply henna to hair, visit HennaCaravanTV  or click the links in the side bar.

Keep up your skills!

We all "know" how important it is to practice, but do we really *know*? When you've been doing something as long as the HC team has been doing henna, you can get comfortable and forget that your basics still need constant training. Just like an athlete trains everyday, we as Henna Artists have to train every day to keep our skills up.

Last fall, we waived goodbye to the youngest McQueen sister as she jetted off to London to start a Master of Arts in Children's Literature. She's been an important team member since Henna Caravan was founded and worked full time in the warehouse from 2010 to 2012. She is infamous among our professional friends for never wanting to wear henna herself, but has a gorgeous style in her work and loves to create new designs. You may have seen her Sudanese or Art Deco-inspired design books. However, after not touching a cone for over 6 months, she was surprised to find out her muscles just did NOT remember how to do the work!

Take a look at some of her designs from the last year, and her latest attempts after an extended break from the medium.

New Orleans Jazz Fest 2012 ©CMcQueen

Spring 2012 ©CMcQueen

Custom Design, ©CMcQueen

Art Nouveau Thistle Design ©CMcQueen 2012

One year later, and after a full 7 months of NO henna at all:

Mandala, April 2013 ©CMcQueen
    

Lines and balance are off and Carissa struggled to do even this small simple design. We forgive her, though, as she has dedicated the fall and winter to her education and fabulous life in London, England.

We know a lot of you like to take the winter slow, and may not be ready for the henna season. So, here's a little 4 day bootcamp for all of you getting back into the swing of things this May!

Day 1) Basic Shapes

Dots, s-swirls, small leaves/sprouts, spirals and basic M-shaped petals. Do 50 of each of the basic 5 shapes by themselves. Then do 10 one-minute designs that combine two elements.

Day 2)

Start with doing 10 each of the basic 5 shapes. Then do 10 one-minute designs that combine 2 elements. Finally, do 10 three-minute designs that use 3-5 of the basic shapes.



Day 3)

Start again with 10 each of the basic 5 shapes as warm up. Do 5 one-minute designs using 3 elements. Now that you're warmed up, it is time to go over the larger foundational shapes.

Paisley, Mandala, Hearts, 5-Petal Flower and basic Arabesque. Practice one page of each of these 5 foundational elements.


Day 4)

Warm up with your 5 basic shapes. Then start with your foundational elements (Paisley, etc) and spend 5 minutes with each reviewing their shape ad formation. Last, choose 3 elements and create 3 less-than-five-minute designs with them.


This should take less than an hour each day, and will jumpstart your muscle memory and your creativity. By limiting your shapes and elements, you'll become a more resourceful artist. By working on the VERY basics, you'll remind your muscles how to work with the medium and you will gain speed and confidence. Pick up these exercises anytime you think you're getting rusty, or just want a little direction in your henna journey.

Henna weather is here, so let's get the season started off right!


UPDATE: After we posted this, we thought "Why not create a tutorial for you  all to download?" Well, here it is. Scroll down to Boot Camp Basics for your free PDF and get your henna on!

Dying your gray hair naturally

While we found henna as a body art first, and learned about the hair applications later, we find that hair applications are becoming more popular and personally interesting as well. Our family has a history of going gray early. Really early. As in, I'm 26 and I'm surprised I don't have any yet (fingers crossed!). I don't remember a time when my mom wasn't dying her hair. But over the years, that kind of chemical interaction can really harm you. You can become sensitized to the dye which leads to skin reactions, rashes, tenderness and worse. Many hairstylists have to give up coloring because they can't work with the chemical dyes any longer.

Thankfully, Henna is a fantastic hair dye. It has been used since ancient times, in conjunction with other natural dyes like indigo and amla, to dye hair a range of colors. And it has a very very low allergic reaction rate- about .01% of the population may experience a mild reaction- think itchy wool gloves. This is in contrast to PPD sensitization which can cause severe contact dermatitis, chemical burns, and internal organ damage. When given the coice between PPD chemical hair dyes and good old fashioned natural henna, henna is the way to go.

At Henna Caravan, we get a lot of questions about dying hair different shades and especially covering gray hair. Grays are notoriously tricky to cover, and tend to fade very quickly. With henna, indigo, cassia, and amla, however, you can customize your dye to accentuate your natural coloring and cover those stubborn gray hairs! If you want to keep your hair light, stick with cassia. If you want to darken it up, get the other three dyes involved. A double application of henna is the best way to permanently, naturally, and safely cover your grays. Here's our favorite recipe for a deep burgundy hairstyle (assuming your roots are the only grays visible):


Application 1:
4 ounces of natural henna paste (about 20-30 grams of powder, mix 1 day in advance)

Application 2:
4 ounces natural henna paste (20-30 g) (mix 1 day in advance)
4 ounces natural Indigo paste (20-30 g) (mix immediately before use)


Step 1!
Mix about 50 grams of henna powder with lemon juice the day before you plan on dying your hair. The activation time for lawsone (henna) can be quite long and you will achieve better results if you let your paste rest for at least 12 hours before use. Divide this paste in half (2 oz for Application 1, 2 oz for Application 2)

Apply to roots:
Use Henna Caravan aftercare balm or A&D ointment to create a barrier around your hairline. Put on gloves to make sure you don't stain your fingers while applying the henna. Use half of your pure henna mixture (about 2 ounces). You can apply henna to your roots using a small ziploc bag or Henna Caravan storage bag. Try to thoroughly cover every inch of gray. Leave on 1-2 hours then shampoo out. Quickly towel or blow dry your hair and get ready for step 2!

Step 2!
Mixing your Indigo powder:

Mix 20-30 grams of indigo powder with water or room temperature chamomile tea. Start with 1/4 to 1/2 cup to reach your desired consistency. Let the paste sit for 15-20 minutes. At this point, there should be a shiny blue sheen on the top of the paste. Add your remaining henna paste to this indigo mixture and stir thoroughly. VERY thoroughly. Once the pastes are completely incorporated you are ready to apply your dye to your full head of hair.

Check out the hair application videos to the right to see the super simple beehive method of application. Put on a showercap and let the dye soak in. Leave the paste on 35 minutes under a salon heater, or 1.5 - 2 hours at home. Rinse thoroughly. Then rinse again. Then rinse again. Natural dyes may be a bit tricky to rinse out, but the results are fantastic! Avoid shampooing your hair for about 48 hours. You can use a light conditioner to help with tangles.


Naturally dyed hair is healthier than chemically treated hair and you will notice more shine, less breakage, and all around happier scalp with a natural hair dye regimin. Natural dyes like pure henna and indigo are safe to use during pregnancy, and are perfectly fine to use over chemically treated hair. Old-fashioned henna dyes (in the 60s and 70s) may have had additional chemicals that interacted poorly with PPD dyes, but pure natural henna has none of these. As always, do a strand test first to test for color and suitability. Natural dyes may take a bit of extra time, but they are definitely worth it in the end!

The Great Henna Swap!

With all the stress of impending festival season (for us, it starts this weekend!), grad nights, after prom lock ins, and the general hubbub of spring, its easy to forget what brings us back to the office every day. The hours grow longer, the paste slings faster, and we hardly have a moment to stop and breathe. This April isn't any different. But a funny thing is happening over the next few weeks that we have termed "The Great Henna Swap".

"What is this amazing event?" you may ask! "How do I become a part of it?" Well, its pretty easy since it has happened completely by accident! Check it out.

Wendy is in Ohio to visit Catherine for a project. Flavia is on her way to Hawaii for vacation, and is making a local delivery while out there. Joey is coming out to California to help Henna Caravan while we're down a man (then 2!). Carissa is flying out to New Orleans to meet with Wendy to henna the heck out of Jazz Fest. Then, to top it all off, Chris is coming to California to lend a hand at Strawberry.

And thus! The Great Henna Swap is born. Join us!

Maybe one of your henna friends needs help at an upcoming festival or just a baby sitter for the weekend of their sister's wedding. Whatever it is, we are part of such an amazingly tight knit community, there are dozens of people able and willing to help. You don't have to fly cross country to lend a hand. Have a mini get together with artists in your area. Find an event that you'd normally be overwhelmed by and make a go of it with your new found team. Set up a Google+ party and video chat over tea, showing off your latest henna crafts!

The point is, its easy to let the frustrations of the busy season mount until all you can think about is "Why oh why do I even bother with henna?" Then you see something like this- friends jetsetting around to help friends- and you remember that the community makes it worth it. YOU make it worth it. At the end of the day that is what matters most. Working together for mutual success, because we're all a team, all one big crazy henna family.

The Great Henna Swap may not be all that exciting, but it is pretty cool. Or at least, that's what we think.

Cheers!