Re: mixing henna
Posted by Catherine Cartwright Jones on August 01, 1999 at 02:42:01:
In Reply to: mixing henna posted by Robert on August 01, 1999 at 00:39:35:
As far as I have been able to tell from old texts.....the recipes that
call for just water fail to mention that rain water (acidic!) is being
used and the temperature in the household is HOT in India. If your
mix is really, really warm (like on the dashboard of your closed car
in the summer).... rainwater dye release is ok. At suburban American
room temperature henna will release a little dye with just water (7
brown dots in a 50X microscope field in 4 hours) but an acidic paste
mix is far more efficient (30+ brown dots and a general color change
in 4 hours)
24 hours and an acid paste mix is about perfect for dye release at 60F
(or in a fridge). 12 hours and acid paste mix gives a good dye
release at 75F. 6 hours and acid mix is good for 85F...but 95F and
up, in 3 hours your acid mix releases dye , and it may punk out by 6
hours!
I was bewildered for years at the instructions on packages from
India....always getting wretched results.....until it occurred to me
that great heat and sourish rainwater (not American tapwater) were
what gave them good results (that and the fact that those boxes of
henna powder lose a lot of henna noogies as they languish about on
loading docks and in customs! )
Though this last month's infernal midwestern heat wave has been
wonderful for henna....it can quit any time now! 95F and soupy
humidity has made henna go burgundy-chocolaty-black on over half the
people I hennaed in the last 2 weeks
...but...hoooooowaaaaaaa....waaaaay too hot!