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Henna paste sometimes referred to as mehndi, is a symbol of luck and good vibes. The night before the wedding, a mehndi ceremony is traditionally done in weddings to wish the bride good health and wealth on her journey to marriage.
The bride's family plans the Mehndi Ceremony, which unites the female members of each side. The primary purpose of applying mehndi is to benefit from its natural herbal medicines for healing, cooling the body, and easing tension in the bride before her wedding. Henna is applied to both hands and feet before the big day to cool the body's nerve endings and keep them from tensing up.
Mehndi Designs
The bride's family invites a family member or a mehndi/henna artist to apply designs to the bride and her guests. There is a tradition to apply henna up to the elbow and to hide the name of the groom too. Grooms nowadays are also applying henna as a symbol of weddings. The mehendi application is a fun part of a wedding. A bridal henna attracts the eye of every wedding guest.
While the bride used to have traditional mehndi designs put on her hands and feet, nowadays, Indo-Arabic and Arabic patterns are in trend too. Some painters may include nature's elements, animals, or even the bride and groom as names or figures.
The Bride must wait for the Henna to stain her hands and feet after applying the Mehendi to make permanent designs. Every bride expects to get a darker tint on her hands and feet from the henna. According to popular folk belief and tradition, the more mehndi a bride has, the more her husband will adore her.
Here are some tips to make your bridal mehndi darker and more durable:
- Before applying mehndi on your hands and feet, always wash them properly so that there is no chemical-based product or lotion. The mehndi paste will be able to give the proper tint after application once all the dust and dirt have been cleaned away.
- Continue wearing the mehndi for a few hours. A stay of 10 to 12 hours can make the colour darker. You can sleep with the mehndi on and wash it off the next morning if your wedding ceremony is at night.
- After your mehndi design has dried, apply a mixture of sugar and lemon water. Add a few drops of lemon juice and sugar to boiling water. Don't go overboard with this step, as too much of this mixture can distort the pattern.
- You can also try another method using cloves. Heat a few cloves in a pan; moving your hands through the smoke may help to darken the colour. On your palms, use the lemon mixture to perform this feat.
- Avoid using soap to remove the design since it will cause the mehndi to fade. Use a butter knife or spoon to extract it instead. Don't rub your hands together because that will ruin the design. For a couple of hours, stay away from the water.
- Using natural methods is the best way to dry the mehndi. Avoid using a blow dryer or heater to dry the design.
- Mehndi can be applied 1-2 days before the major event because that's when the colour starts to get deeper.
Waxing, manicures, and pedicures shouldn't be done afterwards if you want your Mehendi to last longer. All these might fade and remove the colour from your hands and feet.