Having Fun with Henna!

Last Fall I went to a henna workshop at the ENC in Newport Beach.  I was interested in learning more about henna and excited to create henna designs myself!  The workshop was so much fun!  Since I went to the beginners workshop last year, I've taken off with creating henna designs and doing henna on friends and family.  I also went to the advanced henna workshop in March.

I highly recommend going to the workshop if you're interested in henna.  Sama Wareh who teaches the class is an amazing henna artist and you will leave with knowledge you didn't previous possess about henna, your own henna cone, a henna tattoo book and beautiful henna on your hand. :)

Maybe you're wondering, what is henna though?  Henna is temporary dye paste made of a plant called Lawsonia Alba which is native to the Middle East and has spread to many parts of the world.  It is a very important plant in the Mediterranean region.  Henna is made by grinding up the plant (leaves specifically) and mixing it with tea and essential oils such as lavender, eucalyptus and tea tree oil.  When applied to the skin it circulates the blood and it also helps with Arthritis and helps battle pimples and acne as well.  Also don't forget, the tea itself is packed with Antioxidants!  It smells divine too.

This Sunday from 9-1pm at the Art & Craft Fair at the Long Beach Marina, I'll be doing henna and selling my DoodleHead cards.  Stop by and mention this blog post and I'll give you $2 off a hand of henna!

Here are some hennas I've done!

My aunt's baby belly!

*post by Carly

Another Earthroots Adventure!

"Friends! Gather 'round. Today we will embark on a journey to the geothermal San Juan hot springs of Casper's Wilderness Park!"  Last week we took the hour car ride to Casper's Wilderness Park in South OC. We had two great nature enthusiasts who led the tour. We went up hills and down hills, stopping frequently to point out "scat" or interesting animal prints in the dirt and long grass. We saw many different colorful wildflowers, including a few rare species that even our guides couldn't name. Plenty of red ants and beetles scurried around the area we hiked in; we were told that rattle snakes liked to sunbathe close by but we never encountered any. We crossed a stream, which many splashed in after the long hike, and continued up a steep slope which lead to a small creek where Allie spotted three tiny mice nesting in between a little crack in a tree. At the end of our adventure we came back to the picnic tables by the parking lot and shared our favorite part of the day.

Here is a tall candle-like plant which is sometimes called a "Jesus Candle".

Allie, holding a Jesus Candle flower.

We've reached the hot springs!

–> There I am :) –>

While we sat there, one of our tour guides (named Meg) told us a story similar to The Frog Prince.

Allie made an anklet out of a reed of grass.

There are the mice in the tree! It is kind of hard to see but if you look at it sideways you can see and eye

One of the boys there was an experienced young photographer!

The last leg of the journey! Walking through the stream to the parking lot!

~March 2012~

Photographs and posting by Micayla

*For more information on Earthroots adventures, contact Jodi Levine at Earthroots Field School.