It appears that mono-terpenes of the alcohol and possibly oxide variety work together to provide the best action on henna. That said, the oils one decides to use for this effect all have various dependencies for making the best effort.
Time, age, and origin play a huge role in this. As we all know, the best way to get a nice dark henna stain is with fresh, pure henna and a reasonable amount of lime or lemon juice i.
We've played with the chemistry sets long enough to have determined that you can also add a 'helper' of a small amount of an essential oil. It seems, at this point, that alcohol not the drinking kind, either! The fun part about this relates to the kitchen witch theme. Everyone can have their own special secret blend. These can be added to impart a lovely fragrance to your henna mix and they will help quickly push the stain to something really dramatic.
Everyone adds something a little different. The oils that appear to have the most effect are Tea Tree and Franincense. Oils like Rosemary, Geranium and Lavender have lesser effect, but also help make the fragrance really enjoyable. The thing to remember is that these oils are chemicals. Just because they are natural does not mean they will be safe for everyone in general. It is still a good idea to grill people on their allergies and sensitivites and raise awareness to what is in your mix in general.
Very few essential oils meet the sensitivity requirements that allow them to be applied 'neat', that is, undiluted. Therefore, use amounts that follow general dilution rules in your henna mix to maintain safety and always question clients and friends and family too! Something important to know about oils is how and where to store them.
Your essential oils should come from quality suppliers that properly label and store their oils. When you find a new supplier, whether online or in person, find out what they know in addition to finding out prices. Are there oils stored properly?
Are they labeled properly? Do they list the United States as origin? All of these can be red flags. Anything else is suspicious. Smell it. Essential oils are strong, potent and fascinatingly real smelling.
If you are smelling something that smells like soap or shampoo- there is a reason the price is so low. Oils should be stored in dark glass bottles. If it is in plastic, leave it alone, please. If it is a clear bottle, leave it alone. The most effective, nontoxic, non-iritating monoterpene alcohols are terpineol, geraniol, cineol, cedrol, linalool. Lavender essential oils have high levels of linolool.
Tea tree has cineol. Cajeput and Niaouli both have high levels of cineol and terpineol. Geranium has geraniol and linalol. Clove has high levels of eugenol. You may be asking how one knows this stuff! Well, if you want to experiment rather than relying on the wisdom of those that came before you, I absolutely respect that!
They will give you a good idea of the constituents that are most present in an essential oil, usually listing them from the largest percentage to the least. Between home remedies, soap making, and henna research I use this book every day. It was an excellent investment. Having a good essential oil guide will help, but there are a few other things to know that will help you shop for oils intelligently and even to experiment with different oils in your paste.
Camphor, for example, is full of cineol and terpineol, BUT its also toxic because of other chemicals naturally present in the oil. Also, plants with similar names are NOT equal.
Our Story. Henna Shop. History of Henna. Making Henna Paste. Henna After-Care. Workshops and Training. Enquiries Form. Henna artists need to use essential oils in henna that is skin safe and healthy for humans that will also dissolve the lawsone.
Of all the hundreds, and hundreds of possible chemical constituents naturally present in essential oils, monoterpene alcohols are some of the most useful. They tend to be mild, nontoxic, effective against microorganisms, and have a tonifying effect. This means that they are often used in skin care and hygiene.
As luck would have it they are also effective solvents for our purposes! Adding one to two tablespoons ml of essential oils high in monoterpene alcohols per g of henna powder will dissolve lawsone in paste and greatly increase its ability to absorb into skin and bind to proteins there.
Applying oils to the skin before applying henna designs is not effective at all. Applying essential oils after the paste is removed is also not helpful. It may be useful, however, to use olive oil or other cooking oil to help loosen paste and remove residue rather than washing with water, and it may be helpful to apply oily products like lotion, lip or body balms, or even olive oil to skin before showing or bathing to seal the skin away from water and to help discourage exfoliation.
Common monoterpene alcohols include carvacrol, linalool, citronellol, geraniol, alpha-terpinol and terpinol-4, thymol, menthol, cineol, eugenol. Some of these can be irritating to skin when the are heavily present in an essential oil though!
Of these those that are non irritating and and effective are lilalool, both terpinols, geraniol, ceneol, and cedrol. Tea tree has cineol. Cajeput and Niaouli both have high levels of cineol and terpineol. Geranium has geraniol and linalol. Clove bud has high levels of eugenol. Camphor, for example, is full of cineol and terpineol, BUT its also toxic because of other chemicals naturally present in the oil.
Also, plants with similar names are NOT equal. Clove bud makes a perfectly fine paste enhancing essential oil although can be irritating to some, so use it in small amounts but clove leaf is a strong irritant! You should also know that sometimes essential oils are improperly labeled.
Quality can be a serious issue too.
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