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Interview with Heather of "Henna by Heather"

Topic:
Interview & Artist Spotlight
Article By:

Sherri
Photo:
Heather Caunt-Nulton

Henna by Heather

"Wherever henna is needed, I am there!"

Please tell us a little about yourself.
Heather: I've been doing henna for my entire adult life. At first it was a hobby, then a nice side job, then a wonderful source of income to put myself through grad school with.

I was lucky enough to do henna full time starting in 2009. Before that, I was primarily a linguistics graduate student and an English as a Second Language and Spanish teacher. I am also a bit of a geek, and spend a fair amount of time working on various computer based projects.

For those who may not already know, can you explain the difference between a Henna tattoo and an actual tattoo?
Heather: Henna tattoos are painted onto the surface of the skin, and the dye only reaches the epidermis. For this reason, they are temporary; they last until the skin exfoliates and renews itself. Tattoos, on the other hand, use needles to put dye into the skin subcutaneously, so the dye is below the skin that regularly renews itself, and thus the designs are permanent. Tattoos are wonderful for things that one wishes to make permanent, and henna is perfect for things that are more likely to change, or that one hasn't quite made their mind up about yet.

How long have you been a Henna artist? And what drew you to the art?
Heather: I have been a Henna artist for twelve years. I have always been drawn to learn as much as possible about the different people and cultures of the world, and henna was one of the many things I encountered as a cultural anthropology major in college. I have always drawn designs that look a lot like traditional henna designs, so I took to it right away. Once I started doing henna, I found that there is something very therapeutic and meditative about sitting and drawing a henna design, so as someone who used to have a lot of stress in my life, doing henna has always been a great break from that.

The name, Henna by Heather... was it as easy to come up with as it might seem!?
Heather: In short, yes! The name is what the manager of the shop I first started doing henna at put on the sign out front when I was working there on weekends. It was short and to the point, and I think it stuck because of the alliteration. I do like that people automatically know my name when they meet me!

"Henna is very often used in times of celebration and transition - especially when the two coincide."

I think for most of us when we think of “Henna tattoos” we think of the traditional henna art that's used for weddings and pregnancies. What are some other popular uses or reasons for getting a Henna tattoo?
Heather: Henna is very often used in times of celebration and transition - especially when the two coincide. So you can see how weddings and pregnancies fit into that. It is also popular for sweet sixteens, quinceañeras, bat mitzvah celebrations, and bachelorette parties, which are all rites of passage in their own ways. So that's the number one reason for getting henna - celebrating change.

But there are others, too. Another popular time to get a henna tattoo is when you are planning a permanent tattoo and want to test it out. Also, people get them just for fun; it is something different and they enjoy bringing a little more beauty into their lives. Any time when someone really wants to make a strong and unique visual statement, but on a temporary basis, is also popular. I've done henna for many performers for their big concerts and dance recitals, and I also do a lot of henna around prom time.

What do you enjoy doing more... traditional Henna, or tattoo style body art?
Heather: I like both, really. I started by doing more traditional Henna, and there is a real satisfaction in learning more about cultures who do henna traditionally by closely studying their designs. There is also a visual logic that goes into each culture's traditional henna designs; it's kind of a visual language that one can learn and combine in new ways. Also, the traditional henna designs take the medium of the plant based henna paste into consideration, and make great use of the medium's tendencies.

On the other hand, tattoo style body art has a really endless range of possibilities. People can, and do, tattoo just about anything and everything. So certainly there is a lot more one can do with non-traditional henna. Nontraditional henna is what I like to do to challenge myself - by, say, trying to do an amazing Japanese dragon in henna, or seeing how pop culture symbols and characters look when done in henna.

The Henna Gathering has become the largest henna conference in the country!

How did you get involved with the Northeast Henna Gathering? Could you tell us a little about that?
Heather: I started the Northeast Henna Gathering in 2007, when I was sad to be unable to attend what was formerly the largest henna conference in Las Vegas because every year it was the same time as final exams. As someone who was a college student, then a graduate student, and then briefly a college instructor, this meant I could never, ever go. It depressed me. So I decided to take matters into my own hands and see who lived nearby and would be able to meet up with me and trade henna on a more casual basis.

The first Northeast Henna Gathering was just a meeting of four artists in my living room. The second, we moved to a more public space and a lot more people came. The third and fourth years the event really came into its own.

As of 2011, we are calling the event simply the Henna Gathering, since it has become the largest henna conference in the country. It sure has grown!

Where are you located? Since you also offer the wonderful convenience of traveling to your customer's location, how far will/do you travel? And do you travel for events only?
Heather: I live on the Massachusetts / Rhode Island border, and typically take appointments throughout New England. The places I work most frequently are Boston and Providence and the areas around them. The bigger the appointment, the further I am willing to travel. If someone wants to just book an hour appointment (even just for themselves as an individual), I'll travel for that. Wherever henna is needed, I am there! I have a bride who is having me come to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to do henna for her destination wedding; that's the furthest henna has taken me thus far. Basically - I'll go anywhere!

How long does a Henna tattoo take to do (say compared to an actual tattoo)?
Heather: Much, much less time. A very small 2x2" design seems to take most permanent tattoo artists I've seen at work about 20 minutes to do. It takes about two minutes to do the same design in henna. I can do a design that covers the whole back in about an hour - maybe two if it is a particularly detailed design. That type of work would take many many multi-hour sessions to make permanent.

Could you explain the process a little bit?
Heather: To start from the beginning, the henna plant leaves are powdered. The powder is then mixed with liquids to form a paste (like tea, lemon juice, essential oils, coffee, etc; every artist has their own recipe). The paste must sit at room temperature for two days before it is ready to use, so that the dye can mature.

The paste is then applied, typically with a cone that is like a mini pastry bag, on the surface of the skin. You have to be careful to let the paste sit undisturbed for at least 30 minutes while the paste dries, and then you keep the dry paste on your skin for as long as possible so that the dye is in longer contact with your skin, yielding a longer lasting design. The paste eventually comes off (after at least 1 hour, but maybe as long as overnight if you are patient and careful), and leaves behind a light stain. This then darkens over the next 48 hours to a beautiful color in the burnt umber to mahogany to coffee range.

How much can we expect to pay? And, how long should we expect a Henna by Heather tattoo to last?
Heather: Most henna artists charge hourly rates similar to permanent tattoo artists. Except, like we said, you certainly get a lot more artwork for your money. On the other hand, it will only last one to three weeks; the average time for a henna tattoo to last is ten days.

Something that I personally didn't know about ahead of time when I got mine done was the paste... how it has to sit on your skin for an hour or so, and then the process of wiping it off, as well as the fact that it can take up to a couple of days for the color to come in completely. ...If someone were getting a tattoo done for an event such as a wedding, how far in advance would you recommend they have it done?
Heather: I recommend that people have henna done two days before their special event if possible; one or three days is okay in a pinch. As you said, henna takes a couple of days to fully darken to its peak color.

Where can our readers go to find out more about you, your services, or the Northeast Henna Gathering?
Heather: I have three different henna websites. The first is HennaByHeather.com, where you can view my work, get general information, and book an appointment. The second is HennaGathering.org, where you can read about and register for the Henna Gathering (which is March 25-27, 2011). The third is ArtisticAdornment.com, where I offer professional henna supplies and design books. Your best bet to find out what is new at all of these sites is to find Henna By Heather on Facebook and "like" my page.

Is there anything more that our readers should know, that we may not have asked?
Heather: Yes, actually. I would like to mention that while the henna that I offer is safe and natural, there is another imposter product on the market that often goes by the name "black henna". "Black henna" is most often a chemical called PPD, a chemical hair dye that people use in a highly concentrated form to draw on the skin. PPD can leave horrible chemical burns. Sometimes people mix this PPD with real natural henna plant leaves, and sometimes they just use it on its own. Please, be very sure that any henna you may get is always natural henna; your henna artist should be more than happy to fully disclose the ingredients in the paste they are using on your skin.

A Couple of Questions From Our Readers:

"People make and remake traditions all the time."

As far as the traditional henna art... do certain symbols have special meanings depending on the occasion they are used for (such as for weddings or pregnancies, etc)?
Heather: Yes! In traditional Indian henna designs, peacocks represent marriage and lifelong love because peacocks are mates for life. Paisleys (mangos) are symbols of fertility. Vines are symbols of fidelity. All of these are commonly found in bridal henna designs.

Just about any symbol can be done in henna, whether it is traditional or not. People make and remake traditions all the time. Pregnancy henna is one such example. Americans have taken such a liking to doing henna on pregnant bellies that it is believed to be a traditional use of henna, when really it is a fairly recent innovation. However, since it is an innovation that is probably ten to fifteen years old, and coincided with the increasing popularity of henna body art worldwide, it gives the impression of being part of the longstanding tradition. It also fits in very well with the traditional uses of henna, namely celebration and change and beauty - there aren't many things that embody that more than celebrating the beautiful, changing body of a mother about to bring a new baby into the world!

This said... in Morocco, pregnant women traditionally do henna on the hands and feet. This is because these are the parts of the body that most frequently interact with the outside world, and thus are deemed to need the most protection from any potential harmful influences on the baby on the way. I think that this practice is what got other people thinking about pregnancy henna in general and creating the new innovation of hennaing the belly itself.

Can Henna be used on leather? Without it fading?
Heather: Yes. The henna actually continues to get darker over time on leather. Since leather is basically just skin, henna dyes it the same way as it dyes your living skin. Except since the leather is no longer alive, it does not exfoliate and renew itself; instead the dye just continues to sit on the same skin and continue to darken.

I do henna on drum heads to take advantage of this fact. Any untreated leather will work fine, but untreated leather tends to be very hard to find. It needs to not have any coating on it, or have been treated with any other chemicals that might impede the dying process. I have found a great source for untreated leather (goat skin) tambourines, and frequently accept commissions for henna decorated tambourines.