WHAT IS HENNA MADE OF?
Natural henna is derived from the ground dried leaves of lawsonia inermis, a shrub that grows in the tropical and semi-arid areas of Asia, Middle East and north Africa. Syra, who sources her henna leaves from Rajasthan, said that hotter and drier regions tended to yield the coveted darker-staining henna.
Interestingly, mothers-in-law used to inspect a new bride’s henna on her wedding day to assess the deepness of the stain, said Syra. The darker the henna, the more patient the new wife.
To make the paste as smooth as possible, which makes for easier drawing, the dried leaves are ground into powder and sieved several times before it’s mixed with water, lemon juice and sugar. “The lemon juice acts as a natural preservative, while the sugar helps to make the paste stringy when you squeeze it out.”
When henna was first sold in Singapore in the early 90s, said Syra, it was neither locally made nor did they smell nice. “There were some from Middle Eastern countries that even smelled like a gas station probably because they used kerosene instead of plant oils.”
Other toxic additives that could be used included lighter fluid, paint thinner, benzene and p-phenylenediamine (PPD), according to Syra. PPD is commonly used in hair dyes in concentrations of less than 3 per cent; in imitation henna, it can contain as much as 10 per cent to 40 per cent, she said.
Syra makes her henna with cajeput, tea tree, lavender, rose and geranium oils as well as alcohol-free rose water from India.
