Tattoo

Henna tattoos – natural skin beautification or health hazard?

Henna tattoos – natural skin beautification or health hazard? How to make a temporary tattoo on your hands and which henna is safe?

From the material you will learn everything about the features of applying henna drawings on the body, get advice and learn about the rules, you can see photo examples of ready-made henna drawings.

Henna tattoos – natural skin beautification or health hazard?

Henna tattoo is a festive body decoration made by applying bizarre patterns to the skin with vegetable dye. The custom of making such temporary tattoos on the arms and legs, called mehendi, was popular in Africa and Asia in ancient times, when a paste made from the dried herb of defenseless lawsonia was used for this purpose. However, it is worth knowing that currently used henna tattoo mixes can cause very severe allergic reactions. So, what is worth knowing so that such a cosmetic procedure is safe?

What are henna tattoos?

The tradition of performing temporary henna tattoos, called mehendi, is still alive in many parts of the world, where it has been practiced for centuries. It is from the leaves of henna (Lawsonia inermis) that a specific color is prepared.

The pattern, which is obtained when a natural paste of dried henna and water is applied to the surface of the skin, can have a color from orange to dark brown.

The henna thus stains the skin, while the paste used for this purpose remains on the skin and forms a convex structure. This practice has nothing to do with the process of creating a real tattoo, which consists in the constant application of the appropriate dye under the skin..

Are henna tattoos safe??

Henna tattoos are generally safe for the skin, but like all herbal products, if hypersensitive they can cause an allergic reaction. When making a tattoo outside the home, it is worth checking the composition of the coloring agent used..

Henna for a tattoo should never be black. Such a product is a mixture containing synthetic dyes, usually not related to herbs..

This type of substance has a specific chemical smell, in contrast to the highly aromatic herbal henna. How is it that synthetic colors are sold under a misleading brand name? This is due to the lack of relevant legal regulations related to the import of cosmetics of oriental origin, where there is no law requiring information on the composition of the product on its packaging..

The aggressiveness of black henna is evidenced by the time of its application, which is only a few minutes. Meanwhile, staining the skin with natural henna can take up to 12 hours..

Henna for tattoos should not be confused with eyelash and eyebrow coloring products, also called henna. Their composition is based on strong synthetic dyes. When applied to large areas of the skin, they can cause a dangerous reaction in the body, even lead to death from anaphylactic shock..

Although natural henna can also cause allergic reactions, they are never as severe as when using products containing PPD (p-phenylenediamine is a black dye used, among other things, in the production of hair dyes, fabric dyes, printing inks) and other synthetic dyes.

Temporary henna tattoo – how to do it at home?

It is worth choosing a henna tattoo only when you are using dried herb of Lawsonia marked BAQ – a quality of body art that is suitable for coloring the body. The easiest way to buy them is online..

You can do it yourself at home with henna tattoo. The herb powder is mixed with water to form a thick paste. If desired, sugar can be included in the mixture, which will make the mixture more viscous, as well as essential oil. A contraindication to its use is a tendency to skin irritation and allergies..

The basic recipe for tattoo henna is 50 g of natural herbal henna combined with 1 glass of water (250 ml) and 2 tablespoons of sugar or 10 drops of lavender oil.

Henna painting takes some practice. The home method for henna tattoos is to wrap the paste in a cellophane cone, which is then used as a felt-tip pen, and draw the pattern with its curled tip. Individual practice allows, over time, to determine the ideal consistency of the paste, according to which it is easy to draw up sketches.

Due to the possibility of an allergic reaction, an allergy test should be performed 24 hours before tattooing by applying a drop of paste to the skin and leaving it there for at least a few hours. Then the paste is washed off or scraped off and the site is examined. If nothing terrible happens in a day, then you can get a temporary henna tattoo. The natural color mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week..

How long does a henna tattoo last and how to care for it after it is done?

A drawing made with natural henna paste must be protected from sunlight and spreading for several hours – for this, after the formation of a dried crust over the paste, the tattoo is wrapped with cling film or masking tape. Over the next few hours, the natural dye in the grass gradually penetrates the epidermis, creating a semi-permanent pattern. Then the dried paste is removed with water.

Real henna tattoos darken over time, oxidizing. The most intense color will come in 12 hours after applying the paste, and the durability is about a month.

The duration of a temporary henna tattoo depends on many factors, including how often you shower and how long you spend in the sun..

In the case of temporary tattoos made using synthetic dyes, the pattern is fixed after a few minutes and immediately takes on an intense black color, which lasts about 6 weeks.

How to remove a henna tattoo?

Removal of temporary tattoos, made with both henna and henna-like substances, is not possible with water, soap or other substances, because this involves removing a large layer of epidermis into which the dye has penetrated.

Scrubbing and rubbing skin that is damaging to the skin in order to get rid of tattoos is strongly discouraged. This action can only increase irritation and lead to the development of inflammation. Since these tattoos are temporary, all you have to do is wait a few weeks for the dye to be removed along with the epidermis as a result of the natural exfoliation process..

Henna tattoos are not for everyone and certainly not for children.

Henna tattoos are not recommended for people with eczema and atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, or any skin condition. Henna tattoos are also not suitable for kids and the question of this is a relatively popular question on the internet..

Among those for whom such jewelry can be associated with serious health consequences, there are people with particularly sensitive and fair skin, as well as pregnant women. However, if the dye used is completely natural and the pregnant woman does not have skin changes or hypersensitivity, there is no need to give up the natural henna tattoo. However, it is worth making sure that the paste does not contain essential oils..

Even if natural ingredients are used for the temporary tattoo, an allergy test must be completed 24 hours before applying the ink to the skin.

And of course, a huge number of photos of examples of henna tattoo drawings and a huge amount of thematic, useful information in the section – henna tattoos on our website .

Photo examples of henna drawings on the body from 11/13/2020 (590 photos)