Henna Healing

One of the unique things I offer as a henna lady/ reiki practitioner is 'Henna Healing'. Over the years I've offered reiki sessions to those who have asked (it's not something I've done out of an office or anything) and I love to be able to offer this gentle form of energy work. Several years ago I gave reiki and henna to a friend who was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer and she asked me to come henna her head after she lost her hair from the chemo. When I showed up at the hospital, henna cone in hand, she was quite opposed to the idea, yelled for a little bit, and then promptly fell asleep. I gave her reiki and then left - I figured she'd be really mad if she woke up with a henna crown. : ) Since then I have been blessed to be able to do henna for people going through all kinds of transformations - from coverage of surgery scars for stomach surgery and mastectomy, to personal rituals for change and growth. I've also done henna for people at the Virginia Home for Adults and Glenburnie Rehabilitation who otherwise wouldn't be able to receive henna. And when our kitty got spayed, the kids talked me into giving her a small 'penna' design : )

Being able to provide designs for people who have suffered a loss or are facing a tremendous illness/surgery has been very emotionally moving for me. I feel so humbled and blessed to be able to offer a small comfort and a healing touch. I am constantly reminded of how amazing it is to have been given this gift of mehndi, and to be able to share it with those who need it most has been so tremendously fulfilling.

Getting ready for Spring!

Winter is generally slow for mehndi artists, so it gives us time to explore new patterns, tidy up the pattern books and work on our booths. Last year I focused on the big details of the tent - new curtains, tablecloths and rugs. This winter it's all about the small details. I've updated some signs for the table - as well a business card holder and other details for the tables. The biggest project was making a sandwich board for out front. This will be nice for events when I'm working inside of a shop for the sidewalk. The back side is painted with magnetic paint so I can change out the sign in the middle as needed. I'm very happy with the way it turned out - despite all the wrinkles in it. They aren't that noticeable, and now I know how to do it the correct way for next time! The top is open to hold an arrow sign, or I can attach balloons to it, and my pink and orange wedding garlands look really nice hanging from either side.

As of now, my first outdoor event is March 2nd for First Fridays Artwalk in Richmond. Let's hope the weather warms up a bit... yesterday we got snow!

Celebrity henna!

One thing that working henna artists do in the slower months of winter, besides updating the booth, is look at pictures. THOUSANDS of pictures. When I first heard about henna back in 1996, I could only find a handful of pictures on the internet of mehndi designs. Now you can find so many - especially on Flickr, where working artists often have portfolios, and places like Tumblr, weheartit, and numerous blogs devoted to henna designs.

When Madonna first wore henna onstage back in the late 90s, it sparked an interest in the West for henna body art. More recently, younger celebs such as Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez and Kendall and Kylie Jenner have posted pictures of their henna designs on Twitter, and a whole new generation of Americans are now aware of this ancient body art. Katy Perry and Russel Brand even had a mehndi celebration before their wedding (which didn't seem to bring their marriage good luck!) and Alanis Morissette had a Blessingway where she had a henna belly done, and her guests got hand designs.

Here are pictures I've seen around the web of these celebrities - even Camilla Parker Bowles got mehndi twice while traveling in Africa. Unfortunately, she didn't know the dangers of black henna and the photo of her with Prince Charles shows a smudged black henna design. Hopefully she didn't have a bad reaction to it!

Update: Found a picture of Beyonce with mehndi today!

Diwali!

This year I had the privelege of hennaing many of the lovely ladies at Capital One's Diwali Celebration. Many thanks to Christine Wampler for inviting me, and for the pictures.

They had a record crowd and served lunch to 200 associates, and I believe I hennaed about 50 ladies! It was really well done, the musicians were amazing, and I loved seeing all the beautiful saris and salwar kameez outfits!

Enjoy the pictures!

This is me!

Rangoli!

Tabla player

South of the James

I've been wanting to do a post about a really amazing market that I've been blessed to be a part of. Although I can't vend there nearly as much as I would like to because of other parties and events, I am one of the core group of vendors that saw this market open back in 2008 under the ownership of Karen Atkinson's Market Umbrella, and grow to the wonderful success it is today. With nearly a hundred vendors of local produce, meats, cheeses, and eggs - along with artisans, prepared food vendors and local musicians, it really is something not to be missed. Cute dogs and dancing children abound. Fans of this market come for breakfast, grab up all the best produce in colorful market bags, socialize with neighbors and friends, and stay for lunch.

Most of the time I'm set up, I barely have time to get a bathroom/ handwashing break, but recently I snuck in a 5 minute photo-shoot of those closest to me.

Henna and Glitter and Moonbounces and Cake

So I'm at the end of a very long couple of weeks that included visits from our out of town BFFs AND my parents, traveling to an out of town bridal mehndi, a late night club event and both of my kids birthday parties!! It was a fun time, for sure... Lots of UV body painting and happy kids, and some amazing bridal designs for a Nepali Bride. I survived, but have the remains of a nasty cough and I'm ready to spend the next two days in bed. Whenever I'm feeling down I like to pamper myself with some henna, but this time I chose a jewel toned glitter tattoo.

My work was featured...

In a blogpost by the talented Emily Hudspeth! She did hair and makeup for a bridal client of mine, the lovely Jaya R. Take a look! The photos are really stunning!

http://emilyhudspeth.blogspot.com/2011/07/beautiful-wedding-jaya-and-jeff.html