I absolutely love doing henna body art tattoos. I think it’s such an exciting job, super fun, and everyone I meet is amazing. It’s definitely a job worth being jealous of. Don’t worry, I still love you!

BUT there is always a but. There are some events I just don’t do. I’m about that positive energy, happy people, natural organic lifestyle, and people who respect me for who I am.

When I know my energy is going be rocked downwards I tend to stay away. I believe it also took me at least 3-4 years to be a descent henna artist, and another 3-4 years to become a wonderful henna artist. Meaning that I always enjoyed doing henna but in my early years I was kind of impatient. Now as I’ve grown I’ve learned more about myself and what about henna that makes me happy. My happiness radiates to others, and this makes me even more happy.

I take more pictures, share on social media, and make sure my henna is perfect.

Do You Have Black Henna?

No. We absolutely do not apply or use black henna nor chemically based henna. We also won’t use the henna you have either. This is one of my major turnoffs. The straw that breaks this camels back is when the event organizers allow this, and it doesn’t seem to bother them. I’m sure to always ask ahead of time if there will be black henna at the venue.

The attendees think that one henna is red and the other is black. Red henna is actually real, natural henna in it’s true form. Henna does not stain the skin nor hair varying colors. A plant like henna is, can only naturally produce one color outcome. Handmade organic henna paste is your best choice. Black henna is when henna is mixed with hair dye and other chemicals. Pre-made cones from India or overseas (that are not handmade) are also filled with chemical and potentially harmful ingredients.

True Story: Once at a highly attended event with my sisters, I was doing henna in a room (the henna room) with other henna artists. There was a client who inquired about the henna we were doing. I mentioned that I was doing natural henna. They made smart remarks about me calling the red henna “natural henna” like I was trying to be self-promoting and that perhaps I was better then everyone else. I was extremely offended and as you can see to this day, still on my mind. It was at that moment that I told myself that I wouldn’t be doing any events that had black henna, or that allowed harmful products to be applied onto attendees.

With regards to black henna and harmful henna products I just try to be the best educator in the use of organic natural henna. We all need to seriously question and read all the ingredients of the products we put in and onto our bodies. We only have one and it’s our obligation to take care of our bodies properly, and carefully.

Outdoor Events

Lazy. Yes. That’s mainly what it is. I’m just plain lazy. I don’t want to set up outdoors. Mind you, I do have everything needed to set up outdoors…but I’d rather pay for a tent to be nice and ready for me. I don’t want to deal with my tent possibly blowing away, wet or dirty ground, and melting products because it’s so hot.

When I do an outdoor event majority of the time I’m working as a henna artist for another company. Hiring us to do henna at your event and booth, will draw people to your company’s booth like bees to pollen. We are going to make that honey!

True Story: I don’t have any horror stories about setting up outdoors except for things blowing away, and falling to the floor breaking. In the past I just haven’t experienced being able to draw in a good income compared to the amount of work it takes to do outdoor events. This is a good time to point out that every artist finds their niche eventually and once you do, you just work that niche. Mine happens to be natural hair events INDOORS 🙂
I would like to say that we recently did the Wanderlust Yoga Event in DC, and that was a TON of fun! So I might have to eventually change my position on this.

Value My Work

Pricing. I have set prices that I charge based on my level of experience, and expertise. Respect my rates. Should my prices not be within your budget, then that’s fine. Just let me know and I’d be more then happy to refer you to another henna artist who fits your budget better.

True Story: I went to an event where it was a charge per design rate. I make sure rates are clear, usually starting at $10 and up per design. I give that responsibility to the host to let her guests know. Unfortunately some wanted to squeeze in more henna at the same price (without the increase charges for more work) or compare the rates to other artists. Sometimes then people back out of getting henna done as they expect henna to be as low as $5. I find this mainly from clients who are used to overseas (foreign) pricing. It does boggle my mind as we are all full aware that even the price for a cup of coffee varies in every country. This is the same for henna body art tattoo services. Value the art and the artist. Many work full time doing henna.

Overbooking Vendors in the Same Industry

Competition is healthy but sometimes too much is just too much. I always ask how many other henna artists if any, will be at the event. Should there be 10,000+ people in attendance then having more then one vendor in the same industry can be ok. Should the event only have a few hundred or even a thousand, having more then one vendor can hurt those vendors. Personally I like being the only henna vendor in general. I have a unique situation where we can have additional henna artists for your event and we’ll make it happen. Henna Sooq will take care of your event, and attendees. I will go out of my way to do so.

True Story: At an event that might have drawn in a couple of hundred, maybe a thousand attendees, we were not the only henna vendor. The exception was that the other henna artist was doing henna for free. I was really nervous about that. BUT due to my past experiences is that people don’t really value free. I’ve seen other vendors offer free henna with the purchase of products. I’ve even seen a vendor be really sneaky and buy the henna from us to do henna at their own booth during the same event! All in all, in the end, the clients coming to us were endless. We had such a good time, and all the famous bloggers came to get their henna done by me. I was so happy and what a great event that was. One of my all time favorites! In the end everything that was meant for you is meant for you. No one can ever take away from what has already been destined to be yours. Believe in that.

Negative Energy

This one can be hard to tell ahead of time, but sometimes you can grab a sneak peak into this when the organizer shows their true colors. Better yet, your clients will come back and tell you all about the event, how it was and how it went. Trust your clients. They are going to let you in on the inside scoop. Business owners need to think like the client.

True Story: I had a client come to pick up products and they proceeded to share with me all the happenings of a certain event, and how the organizers treated them. It hurt me to hear how they were spoken to, and all the negativity that ensued. It made me reflect on the event as a whole, and I came to the conclusion that it was in our best interest to not take part in events planned by this organization any longer. Events that you choose to work at are a reflection of your business. I’m a true believer in that. Choose wisely.

What has been some of your own personal experiences? Please share in the comments. One lucky comment will win a free box of Red Raj. Chosen at random on November 5, 2015.