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Hands are the most exposed part of the body next to the face, and are almost as expressive and indicative of the owner’s mood and meaning.
But aside from a nice manicure, hands typically do not get the same attention as the face when it comes to special occasions.
Lately, though, hand makeup in the form of mehendi designs have begun to capture the attention of a wide Western audience, from little children to stylish socialites, due mainly to the influence of Hollywood fashion icons such as Madonna and Demi Moore.
Mehendi, the Indian word for henna is a typical Indian custom in which intricate designs are applied on the hands to complete a bride-to-be’s toilette, as well as that of her bride’s maids. The belief is that mehendi brings luck and beauty, and if about to be married a girl needs lots of either one or the other, but preferably both.
It is also believed that the darker the hue of the mehndi designs, the more favor the mother-in-law will bestow on the bride, which is even more necessary than luck and beauty! In fact, it is the duty of the future mother-in-law to engage the services of a mehendi artist.
Traditionally, it is confined for the use of women but for really special weddings, the groom is also given a special mehndi henna design. Traditional mehndi or henna designs are delicate and intricate, ranging from simple mehndi designs of balls to delicate flowers to messages and initials. There have even been some modern designs based on works by Picasso and van Gogh. There has also been some who favor the use of henna to tattoo wedding bands, bangles and anklets. It is pretty much anything goes with mehendi because it is non-permanent and always interesting. Of course as in any work of art, the application is the most important factor. The design is only as good as the artist who applies the henna. Mehendi is a temporary, painless tattoo that fades within a month, with no need for expensive laser treatments. It may be applied to the feet as well as other parts of the body, but it is most commonly used to enhance the loveliness of the hands of a woman. Henna, or alternately heena is the pigment used for the process, is from the henna plant that resembles a tea plant. Legend has it that Cleopatra used henna to dye her hair, to make it more lustrous and beautiful. The leaves are gathered and dried and made into a fine powder, which is then mixed with tea, coffee, lime, water and eucalyptus oil to make a thick paste. It is usually applied with the use of a cone made of rolled plastic, much like a baker’s icing tube, and it is used much in the same way. The size of the hole will determine the fineness of the lines. For best results, a mehndi design must be allowed to dry at least overnight, with frequent applications of the lemon and honey until such time as it attains a glossy coat. This signals that the henna powder has been saturated with the mixture and is ready to be scraped off. Some heat-treat the mehendi or apply tiger balm to help the pigment darken. What will remain is the unique mehendi design hand makeup of porange-brown that will last a month but will be remembered for a lifetime.
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