Weddings come with a variety of preparations. As some brides look for accessories to complement their hands on the D-day, Muslim brides lookout for which henna art will look better on them.
In many Muslim and Hindu weddings, it is tradition to have a henna party before the wedding. During a henna party, artists use a paste made from dried henna leaves to paint intricate patterns on the hands of the bridal party.
The pigment of henna is quite dark and stains the skin easily, leaving little room for error or mistakes as it cannot be washed off quickly.
Due to the intricate patterns of the designs and the unforgiving nature of the henna paste, it is imperative f
or the person who is getting painted to remain still during the application process.
The henna begins as a paste which is applied by the artist using a paper cone with a fine tip at the end. As the paste dries, it becomes hard and flakes off, which leaves the skin beneath it stained with the intricate designs the artist created. The longer the paste stays on the skin, the darker the stain will become before ultimately fading away.
The bride traditionally gets the most intricate patterns to set her apart from her bridesmaids and the process can take three to six hours to complete.
It is suggested that the henna is applied two to three days prior to the wedding so that the paste has ample time to stain the skin; approximately 32 to 48 hours is optimal. In India, the henna painting ceremony is called a Mehndi party, and it is a joyful occasion.
Because the bride has to sit still for several hours, her friends might dance and sing songs to enterta
in her or bring her treats. They must try to keep from being too distracting to the bride or to the artist, due to the precision needed to complete intricate designs.
Mehndi sessions are a tradition from ancient cultures dating back over five thousand years, where the bride-to-be is given all the secrets of a happy and fruitful marriage as told by her closest female family members and friends.
Henna parties also happen throughout the eastern Mediterranean, in Morocco, in the Gulf states, and in many expatriate communities throughout the world.
It is believed that henna gives blessings, luck, and joy, although it is also seen as a beauty enhancer. Some brides get their future spouse’s initials hidden into their mehndi design. There may also be symbolic designs representing joy, luck, success, beauty, and other positive qualities.
When henna is placed on the palms of the hand it is meant to signify that the person is open to receive and offer blessings. When the henna is placed on top of the hands it is meant to signify the protection of the person.
The designs themselves can vary from symbols of animals or objects to delicate lace patterns or swirling paisley. For weddings, often the artist will incorporate the groom’s name into the artwork for a personal touch. Certain styles of henna design are meant to symbolize fertility.
“Henna was one thing I looked up to on my wedding day, I always admired brides with Henna because it enhanced the beauty on their hands. On my day, I used less jewelry on my hands because the art said it all” says Aisha Kahunde a businesswoman.
Henna is a trend for Muslim brides partly because religion encourages women to beautify themselves and look good. In the time of Prophet Muhammad, women used it on nails and palms but as time went on, people started using it as decorative art.
Henna is a beautiful art that any bride can use to look good and be unique however, in Uganda, it has greatly been embraced by the Muslim community. Habiba Nasur, a henna designer notes that Christians can use it as well.
Henna can’t be applied by anyone especially if you want the art to come out well. It needs someone with talent, art, and expertise to doodle the different designs.
Habibah notes that the henna application is not limited to one’s wedding day. It can be applied at any time depending on one’s mood. Some will have it on every Friday, special days like Iddi, and other functions.
The patterns, however, can reflect the type of function.
“The patterns applied to depend on the day. Weddings require heavy application while other days need light patterns. You can’t have the entire hand covered on Friday, but it would be okay on your wedding day,” she says.
Kahunde says that since she got addicted to having the henna, she always has simple designs done on Fridays, during friends’ baby showers, Iddi, and other special days. She says her hands feel empty and boring without it.
Amina Rasheed a henna dealer notes that henna comes in only two colors, red and black- red being the original color. Light skinned brides look good with red henna while the dark-skinned ones with black.
Currently, there is white henna although Muslims are discouraged from using. Henna can be found in most shops selling Muslim items around Kampala.
Habibah doesn’t have a particular design book where she gets those patterns saying this limits her creativity to a particular design. She keeps an open mind and has a different design for everyone that comes depending on their skin color, interest among other reasons.
“I create the design with the client and when they feel it’s good, we have it done. Sometimes, a client comes with their own design,” she adds
However, there are different design books that some artists use as a guide to applying Henna, Rasheed adds that these can be got in places selling Henna or Muslim products around Kampala. One should be keen as there is a lot of fake henna paste on the market.
Heavy designs may make the hand monotonous hence lose meaning beauty ways, though there are some designs that bring beauty if well applied. Rasheed believes that simple designs would create more beauty as too much of a thing is bad.
Having heavy henna and as well as jewelry would create a boring feel, you need to balance the two to get good results.
Henna can be applied on the eve of the d day for it to be fresh and defined (as it fades away with time), applying it on the exact day would be dangerous because people are always busy and on pressure so it may not come out well.
Habibah notes that just like art, some patterns have meanings depending on what it is, some depict love, happiness, joy, nature among others. However, others are just designs emphasizing beauty.
Henna is in most cases applied on the hands and legs through some brides prefer having it as tattoos on their shoulders and backs to complement the beauty of their wedding gowns.
Zaitun Sulaiman, a Shekat notes that Henna is used for beauty and allowed in Islam, however, it’s not a must-have on the wedding, the bride can choose whether to have it on or not.
