Body Art (Henna tattoos)

Transcription

1 90 Body Art (Henna tattoos) Henna (or Mehndi) has been used for around 5,000 years as a hair coloring agent and as a medium for temporary tattoos. Henna is the product of grinding up the leaf of the Mehndi plant into a fine powder. Various ways of mixing the henna produce lawsone, a red-orange dye that bonds well with protein and has been used for body decoration, dying leather coloring hair and other uses. Origins In the 12th century, henna was introduced to the country of India. It was popular among the Rajputs of Mewar (kings of a certain province of India). Primarily, women of India used henna to decorate their hands and feet to symbolize and create beauty. This was a common practice that eventually became a tradition, especially for weddings where women would adorn their hands and feet with henna in preparation to greet their husbands. How it works Your skin is your body's largest organ. It keeps your body's moisture inside your body so you don't die of dehydration. The stratum corneum is the outermost membrane of your skin. Your skin also crud and stuff" outside the body where it can t hurt you. If your stratum corneum is removed your underlying living tissue has a miserable time of it, getting infections and scabbing over. Henna has a tannin dye molecule called lawsone that is small enough to penetrate a skin cell. If you put henna paste on skin, the dye molecules will penetrate down the columns of skin cells. The darkest stain is on the top layers of skin cells with lighter stains on lower layers. This causes the tattoo to fade away as your skin exfoliates (sheds away).

2 91 Steps in making henna tattoos Read every step before beginning Begin by sketching out the design that you want to use on the templates provided. Traditional designs can be found at the end of this lesson plan. Use a pencil and figure out exactly what you want tattooed. Designs may only be applied to the hands and wrists or the feet and ankles. Nothing else is permissible. Choose a partner to work with. I am not allowed to tattoo you so be sure to work in a group if there are an odd number of students and to choose someone who you think will do a good job. Mix the henna paste (recipe provided at the end of this lesson) the day before you intend to use it. Spoon the henna into a plastic bag being careful not to get it onto the sides. Gently squeeze the henna paste into the lower corner of the bag. Cut the tip off of the bag. More detail can be achieved with a small cut and a fine line so be careful not to cut too much off. You can use a pin or an x-acto knife to make the hole as well. Twist the top of the bag and force the henna paste down and out through the tip of the bag. Draw the designs on your partner. When the paste dries, and before it cracks, (it will look flat at this point) use a mixture of lemon juice and sugar to hold the design in place. Alternately you can also use hairspray to help hold it in place. Keep the design on for 4-6 hours at least. If you keep it on over night cover the design with tissue paper and plastic wrap. Henna sinks into the skin so the warmer your skin is, the more your pores will open and the darker and longer your tattoo will last. Peel the henna off and avoid getting the area wet for a couple of hours. The more you wash the area or use a moisturizer the faster the tattoos will fade.

3 92 Define the following: Mehndi Body Art Worksheet Turn this into me before beginning the project Lawsone Stratum corneum When did henna first become popular in India? What areas are you allowed to tattoo on your partner? How does henna stain the skin? How long should you keep henna on your skin? What is henna traditionally used for? Bonus: What was the province of India that the Rajputs ruled?

4 93 Self assessment Turn this into me at the end of the project Name: Project: Body Art Check all that apply. Design: The designs are applied well are crisp and clean. Henna paste: The tattoo stain is very dark. The designs are applied well but the lines kind of blur together into a mass of color. The tattoo stain is light orange and fades after a day. The designs are not applied well or are unrecognizable. The stain does not take at all. Staying on task: Worked every day for the entire period Your grade: My grade: Final grade: Worked a few days a week at most Hardly worked at all Wasted my time and yours Describe one thing you like about this project and why you like it: Describe one thing that you would do differently and why: What were you trying to accomplish or say with this project?

5 94 Henna paste recipe 1 cup of water 2 tablespoons of black tea 3 teaspoons of henna powder 1 teaspoon of eucalyptus oil Boil the water and brew the tea. Let the tea steep for as long as possible, though if you are trying this at home you should let the tea steep for at least three hours. Put the sifted henna powder into a bowl and add the eucalyptus oil but do not stir. Add about three tablespoons of tea to the powder and mix, grinding the mixture into the sides of the bowl if necessary to get the grittiness out of the paste. The henna should be the consistency of tooth paste. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a lid to keep the air out and let it sit in a dark, warm, place overnight. Check the consistency of the paste the next day and add tea if it is too thick or powder if it is too runny. Poor man s henna paste recipe 3 teaspoons of sifted henna powder 2 teaspoons of sugar 2 tablespoons of lemon juice This recipe can be used if you are allergic to eucalyptus oil and will provide a decent stain. It does not last as long or get as dark as the other recipe though. Follow the same directions as above to make the paste and apply it.

6 95 Design Ideas