Mehendi decoration is a ceremonial art form which is a common part of a woman’s look in the South Asian (Indian) subcontinent. These intricate designs using swirls and circles are usually drawn on hands and legs are symbolic of auspiciousness and are mostly part of religious or cultural events. Traditionally, women of the household or neighborhood used to get together to decorate each other’s hands and feet. However, now with the tradition turning into a style statement, many mehendi artistes have gone professional and offer their services to not only the local women, but celebrities and foreigners alike.
Mehendi is obtained naturally from the leaves and stems of the henna tree. Apart from being used to draw on our body, henna is also used as a natural dye for the hair and gives it an orangish hue. The usual way to apply mehendi is to draw it on your skin and leave it for some hours to dry. Once the design starts crumblish, wipe it off with oil or water. The colour developed usually depends on the quality of the dye, the amount of time the henna has been allowed to remain on your skin and how much you wash your hands immediately after. People suggest that in order to get a darker shade, one must apply a layer of lemon and sugar solution over the design, or bask it in the heat of roasting ‘sarson’ seeds. While there are lot of tips on how to enhance the colour of your henna, the most common myth is that the colour of the mehendi reflects the love your significant other feels for you. So the more your husband loves you, the darker you mehendi is supposed to be.
The best thing about henna tattoos is that the dye is not permanent and comes off in a week or so, making it a great substitute for a permanent tattoo.
Demands for mehendi work is no longer limited to wedding seasons and cultural events, rather women fancy the adornment all year round, although the business may not be brisk all the time. What was traditionally a custom in only few cultures, has moved out and beyond national boundaries as women flock to mehendi artists to get the recent designs in vogue painted on their hands and feet.
There are many mehendi artists out in the market who have their own wonderful designs which may range from intricate to simplistic. While it is not easy to pick the top 20 designs, we have tried our best to scourge the internet to choose an assortment of interesting designs that might please you.
