The best recipe for your henna paste does not need to be the most complicated one! I use a very simple recipe - and get fabulous results every time!
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons (about 25g) of fresh, finely sifted Henna powder
- 1 teaspoon of Sugar
- 1 - 1.5 teaspoons of essential oils (see note below)
- Lemon juice
- Mix: Mix the Henna powder and sugar well in a small bowl, and add slightly warmed lemon juice until you reach the consistency of play dough
- Set Aside: Cover the mixture with plastic wrap, and let it sit for 12 hours.
- Essential Oils: After 12 hours, add the essential oils to your mixture. Stir well. Cover again and let it sit for another 12 hours.
- Consistency: Adjust the consistency of the paste using lemon juice (not warmed) until it is like thick, stirred yogurt. Add small quantities (e.g. half a teaspoon) of lemon juice and stir well. Check the consistency before adding more lemon juice.
- Fill applicators: Using a spoon, fill a ziploc bag or a "carrot bag" with your henna paste. Snip the tip of the bag, and use this to fill your cone/bottle applicators!
Notes:
- Make sure that your henna is fresh and very finely sifted. For added smoothness, you can strain your henna paste through an old stocking before filling your applicators.
- The "sitting" time is different for different henna powders. I use Jamila Henna Powder (on its own, or mixed with Rajasthani Henna). The 24 (12+12) hours in the recipe is advisable for Jamila Henna. If you are not sure about the time, ask your henna supplier, or send me an email!
- This recipe assumes a room temperature of about 80 degrees Farenheit. I live in Toronto, and since my house is almost never that warm, I usually leave my covered paste in our oven, with just the light turned on.
- You can substitute lemon juice in the recipe with water or tea.
- Essential Oils are only optional. You can mix henna without these, and you will get stains from your paste. But, the darkest and deepest stains come from using essential oils in the paste. Use only 100% Essential Oil (i.e. no carrier oils). The oils that are useful for henna are high in monoterpene alcohols. Examples are Tea Tree Oil, Cajeput Oil and Lavender Oil. Most artists who sell Henna powder also sell these essential oils.
Try it out, and let me know how this recipe worked for you!
Sowmya
