Re: pre-made paste.
Posted by lisa on May 09, 2000 at 10:33:48:
In Reply to: pre-made paste. posted by Kurt on May 08, 2000 at 21:39:27:
The problem with the pre-mix is that it might be old. I can offer
you two alternatives : you can buy henna powder from Castle Art
(Amy, the proprietor, is getting a new shipment in this Sat. So the
powder will be *very* fresh.) or you can buy 2oz of some excellent
premix called Mehendi Mud.
Castle Art powder stains very deeply and darkly if you follow
Catherine's directions. (BTW, there are some more directions if you
follow the How link at the top of this forum) It's economical, you
get the peace of mind of knowing exactly what ingredients go into it
(too many pre-mixes have "mystery meat" ingredients), and you can make
small batches of henna paste (if you don't freeze it, henna paste
starts losing its ability to stain in a couple of days.) However, you
do have to sift the powder, but Amy sells a really good henna sifter,
too.
Mehendi Mud is a really good premix. It stains quite fast and fairly
dark without too much effort. It comes with an applicator, and you
can just pop off the seal and start in on a design. There's
also a natural preservative in the paste which helps it keep
for about 6 months in the fridge. And as far as I can tell,
there's nothing in the paste which would set off allergic
reactions (I have very sensitive skin, so I would react if
there was anything funny in the Mud) However, it is a bit expensive
($14.95 for 2 oz.), and you will want to leave it on longer than the
designated hour, otherwise you'll get a dark, but not deep stain. (It
fades fairly quickly)
The only other problem I've had with Mud is that the applicator tip
has way too thick a line, and when I use a finer tip, I've had
problems with clogging when the paste gets to be about 2 months old or
so.
In my opinion, making your own really isn't that hard, the only thing
you have to be careful of is to make sure that you don't make your
paste too thin.
Castle Art powder can be found at http://www.castleart.com. If you
want to buy some Mud, follow this link : http://www.hunza.com
