Obsession...With Stain Progression (and a few tips)

Lately I've been finding myself becoming more and more obsessed with the way mehndi stains (sometimes I go a bit too far with the waiting period and regret it, because I want a fresh new canvas to work with after about a week!) Apart from that, I've been taking the time to improve on my craftsmanship, my control; and overall, my designs. Not forgetting setting time apart for studies; that takes first preference.

On that note, here we go!

Stain progression using...a sock?

Yes, that's right...A sock! What I did was wait for the henna to dry, and then put the sock over it and went to sleep...This would work, except the design actually smudges due to fast build-up of heat and moisture (I thought the moisture would be absorbed by the sock). Besides, the crumbling bits actually continue to stain - even after it flakes off and lands on another section of your hand. Not really a good idea.

Tip #1: Don't use a sock on its own while waiting for the stain to darken! If you must, wrap some tissue around the (dry) design, secure it in place comfortably with some sellotape, and then put the sock over. And sleep comfortably.

Still drying.

This was a spontaneous design, but using the larger floral element from a previous design of mine. I started with the large flower and let my mind work from there.

Tip #2: Once design is completely dry (but not flaking so much yet), wrap comfortably with tissue paper, secure with sellotape (just like the above method), but wrap over this with cling wrap.

This method will absorb excess moisture (while allowing for a bit of breathability); also the little details are preserved like a charm. No smudging, and I left this on the whole night.

Still darkening.

Let me know what your thoughts are! You're welcome to post a comment here, or on my Facebook group, "Lydi's Mehndi Designs"!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/lydi.mehndi.designs/

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