Using Watercolor Pencils
I always work freehand, but sometimes it makes sense to sketch stuff out ahead of time. It helps with placement, when you want to get both sides of a design even, when a body part is not in the position it will be in when seen most often, or for interlaced or knotwork designs. With the design sketched out somewhat, you can apply the henna much faster, too, which in a professional setting is crucial.
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| Gather your henna stuff ahead of time. I use cones for the best precision. You will want your pencils to be sharpish but not pointy. If it's too sharp, you won't get a good line. I like to use a couple different colors to make sure I can write on any skin tone, and for clarity in knotwork. You will also need a water container to dip your pencil in. I like to use a bottle cap from whatever I'm drinking that day. You won't need much. Not pictured but also useful is a Q-tip type cotton on a stick. | I'm going to do knotwork on my husband's arm. When people stand, their arm is mostly straight up and down, but when they sit, it's more comfortable for the arm to rest forward on the leg. I had my husband hang his arm straight down and I drew a centerline... | and then he could move his arm wherever was comfortable and I would still give him an even design. For the rest of these, I tilted the camera so the design looked square to the camera, but he's still comfortably seated, arm in front of him. |
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| Much knotwork is based on geometric divisions. I marked these out first to get the spacing right. | I drew out the basic design, then I went back with a darker pencil color and marked the over-and-under weave. I got it wrong in a couple of places. Had I gotten it wrong in henna, I probably would have left a stain in the wrong place while I cleaned up the error. In this case, I took a Q-tip, wet the cotton, and used it as an eraser, then corrected the lines. | After it's marked out, you can put on the henna in one easy swoop. At this point, I can further embellish the design, thicken lines, or whatever I want. The watercolor will rinse off the next time you're in water, and the henna goes right through it. Easy! |
Using Hectograph or Transfer Pencils
With Hectograph pencils, you can make perfect transfers to copy. This is great for when you want to focus on learning to apply the henna instead of creating designs, or if you're doing a logo or something where you need to do something over and over exactly the same. You will need a hectograph pencil, some tracing paper (this can be bought anywhere), and some water.
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| First, pick a design that's the size you want. You can draw your own, and it doesn't matter what media you use, so long as you can put some pressure on it without disturbing it. The finished design will come out reversed so keep that in mind if you want to copy words. | Cut a piece of the tracing paper just alregr than the design. Put it down on top of the design and start tracing the image. | This is what the transfers will look like. Only draw the outline of the design, even if the finished piece will be filled in. |
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| Wet the skin you'll be applying the design to and put the transfer on it, pencil side down. Carefully and gently rub or pat the paper to make sure that the whole design comes in contact with the skin. Be careful not to smudge it, though. | Peel off the paper, again being careful not to smudge. | Ta-Da! A perfect transfer! You can usually reuse the same paper at least six or seven times. |
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| Copy over the design with your henna. I recommend drawing the outline of any filled areas, then going back and filling them, rather than trying to build up a filled area from nothing. | The final product! Reversed, but otherwise the same as the original |