The Happy Days Of The Tattoo Lover :)

Just received my temporary tattoo inks -yay! As usual, poor Fernando is the first victim LOL…

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New Listings: Henna Powder, Gulal Powder And Bindi Gum

Henna Powder
50 grams/1,7 ounces of fantastic Henna powder from India, enough for 10-12 cones or more (that really depends on the size of cone you use). It is the exact same Henna I use myself – I wouldn’t sell something I would not use!

If you are new to Henna and have never tried it, we have a 3-page article on Henna on our first Newsletter issue, which includes recipes for the paste, application instructions and after care – and three free designs of my own design book so you can start right away :). The Newsletter is completely free – you can download it at: http://grisgrisnewsletter.wordpress.com/

Gulal Powder
5 grams of Gulal powders imported from India – I bought a good amount to decorate my customer’s henna tattoos and for my own ritual use, and I’m sharing the overstock! Gulal powder is used to make the red bindis worn on the forehead and other parts of the body by women in India. It is believed to enhance psychic abilities as it is placed over the sixth chakra; it is a magickal sign of protection, devotion and spiritualtity. It is also one of the many coloured powders used in the Diwali and Holi festivals in India. You can simply dab your fingertip on it and paint a dot on your forehead, or mix it with a gum (spirit gum, white glue, gum tragacanth) to make a soft paste and then apply it. Since the powder is imported from India, it is completely vegan safe and skin safe.

Bindi Gum
Around 10 ml. of Bindi Gum imported from India, completely skin safe. I use this glue myself, and if it works in the heat of subtropical islands, imagine the performance they would make on colder climates! Perfect for bindis, eyelashes, body jewelry and any kind of ornamentation for your glorious self. The listing is for ONE jar – with each bottle, you will receive one random bindi, handmade by me with vintage sequins, microbeads and svarovski crystals, so you can try it right away! Here’s a picture of the free bindis:

Find all these items at The Hoodoo Shop – more to come soon!

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Coming Soon…

… handpainted faux nail sets for belly dancers, burlesque princesses, drag queens and all the lovely creatures that shine under the lights of performance! Coming from a family of seamstresses and Carnival lovers, and growing among drag artists as my teenage friends, costuming is a form of art/craft that I love with a passion, and Velvet Soul Jewelry wants to reflect that love for all things shiny and creative! I am working on several faux nail sets and very soon I will be listing them.

I would also like to thank everyone who has sent birthday wishes – THANKS SO MUCH! Your love is very much appreciated! I had a wonderful day with friends who are like family, and family who are like friends; I got some very lovely gifts and, more important, filled my batteries with love and laughter. It was a perfect day – I even sold a good amount of my new jewelry! Several of the pieces I sold were not even listed so today I am working on re-making and listing some of it.

This week seems that will be really busy too – more jewery appointments, a friend coming over the weekend to stay for ten days and my summer photoshoot with my dearest friend Doris LaMuerte, also called “my witchy friend” on this blog. She will only be here for a couple of weeks and every year I dress her, do her make up and hair and cover her in jewelry for a good promo shoot. Here are some pics from last year:



It is always an awesome experience – and a wonderful way to break routine at all levels, since it is a one-time-a-year chance as my friend lives in Madrid and only comes for short vacation periods. We transform our craft studio into a photo studio for one day and fill it with fabrics, flowers, props of all kinds and of course lots and lots of coffee! Another thing that I really enjoy is taking photographs of something alive, since 99% of my photography work is taking pics of the shops’ products, something that can become quite a routine after you have done it hundreds of times. In all, it is a growing experience for any artist; I truly recommend all you jewelry makers to look for a (very patient) friend and give it a try!

(When she takes off her costume and make up, she always says: “Oh s**t, I am a normal person again…”)

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Henna Season

Freehand henna practise on myself, a few days ago.

These past days I have been gathering, organizing and purchasing supplies for our henna tattoos season – every summer we get plenty of customers since I have been doing this for quite a few years already – and our weather assures lots of skin exposure :). Also, I have been remaking my design book because, honestly, I am tired to death of making the same tattoos over and over again LOL… most people come to us without a clear idea of what they want and (very sadly) a complete ignorance of the heritage and meaning of henna tattoos – they only want a pretty, non-permanent adornment, and care very little for its symbolic and magickal meaning.

Henna is the powder made from the leaves of the Lawsonia Inermis plant, which is mixed with an acidic liquid to release its tannins on the skin. Though its use in India is the most known to the general public, there are many other Arabic and African countries that use henna and many different styles for its decorations and symbolism – I particularly love Moroccan style, but since I started my adventures on body art making permanent tattoos, a lot of modern art is included in my work too.

Something I have to explain over and over to our customers is that there is no such thing as black henna. Henna stains in shades from orange to burgundy, and its colour changes from a softer to a darker tone after it is exposed to the air, depending of the type of henna and each person’s skin chemistry. Black henna is very dangerous as it contains PPD (para-phenylenediamine), which can cause permanent scars and severe life-lasting allergies – even if you don’t get black henna again in your life, you will always be allergic to PPD, and there is PPD on may chemical dyes; most hair dyes contain it, as well as fabric dye, fur and leather dye, and many other products.

So, if you are considering getting henna this summer, first of all make sure that the artist knows what he/she’s doing. Do some research on your side if possible, and don’t be afraid to make as many questions as you need to the artist – if he/she is a serious professional, he/she won’t have any problem in giving you all the information you need. If made the natural way, henna is completely harmless, even for kids and pregnant women. Only kids under 6 years old should not get hennaed, to avoid any allergy related to the fact that their immune system it’s still developing.

Freehand henna on a customer, 2008

In a spiritual sense, body art is one of the oldest forms of blessing and protection, and henna is no exception. Getting a henna tattoo should always be a spiritual experience, and when done properly, it’s one of the most relaxing, inspiring experiences you can have. I’ve had customers cry out their problems, tell their deepest secrets and even fall asleep in pure bliss while getting a henna tattoo. Surrounded by the scent of our herbal incense, under the embrace of soft meditation music, our customers not only get a pice of wearable artwork, but a complete spa-like treatment so they can commune with the powerful, magickal energy of Henna.

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Djinn Doll: Work In Progress

I am working on this Djinn cloth doll – here are some pics of the first stage – underwear and shoes finished. I have not started the beading yet (I plan to do that today) and then I will go on to working on a highly detailed brocade velvet coat with an embroidered collar – when it’s finished, it will be the most complex piece I have done to date.

The cloth body was premade – I just painted the hands (one of them sporting a henna tattoo), legs and face. For the clothes, I have used antique laces and netting, hand-dyed brocade from India, hand-dyed silks… thanks to the knowledge and generosity of my dear friend Krista Raak, whom is quite an expert in finding antique fabrics, I have a small collection of precious textiles that I use only on my dolls. ALL the pieces you see here have been handsewn; I don’t like glue on my dolls unless it’s completely necessary.



Now, off to start the beading! Have a wonderful Friday *kiss* !!!

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Working With Gilding Paste

This week I am in the middle of a hundred projects – you know how that goes, lots of things halfway done and no pretty pics to show! I thought it would be a good idea to post this little how-to about gilding paste – enjoy!

Gilding paste is made to enhance henna tattoos – as I’m preparing the henna season’s materials I thought I could share how to make it, as not only is a beautiful way to decorate your tattoos, but also a great resource to make tattoos for children -kids under 6 should not get henna done- and a fun alternative for those who don’t like the smell or appearance of henna (yes that people exist, can you believe?).

Gilding paste is usually made with Lumière powders, a loose powder for professional make-up, but if you can’t afford it or find it where you live, here’s my cheap and simple recipe:

Guilding Paste Materials:
Eye Shadow – it doesn’t have to be the more expensive, but don’t use the cheapest!
Ultra-hold hair gel: the one you would choose if you were getting a good ol’ mohawk hairdo.
Glitter: optional. If you want to add it, it has to be the smallest you can find- that is, body glitter, not craft glitter! I usually use “opal” holographic glitter, which goes well with all colours.
Tools Needed:
A small container to make the mix.
Plastic henna cones / squeeze bottles: I prefer cones as they can be thrown away when used.
Adhesive Tape
A Tongue Stick split in two (I find it easier to fill the cones as the whole stick is too wide)

First, use the tongue stick to turn the eye shadow into powder – take your time to do this to avoid lumps that will clog the cone later! Once the eye shadow is powdered, add the same quantity of hair gel and mix for a while, trying to solve all remaining lumps of powder.


Add as much glitter as you like and mix again until you can’t find any more lumps.

Using the tongue stick, fill carefully the cone and close it with tape, making sure the cone is firm. You’re done!

Here are the cones I made today:

To use it, cut the smallest point you can to the cone and apply as you would do with henna. I din’t have any henna made today, but I doodled a little on my hand to test the colours, and here’s the result:

The gel takes a bit to dry, so you can help yourself with a hair-dryer – remember to use cold air only when working with kids – and once dry, it stays on for long! To take it off, you just wash it with soap and water. This paste needs no special storage (just away from direct sun/heat) and the cones can be re-sealed with a little adhesive tape for further uses.
Now go and give it a try – have fun!!!!

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Henna Season Again

We’re having quite high temperatures already here in Tenerife, so for me is Henna time again! I made this for myself this morning as I’ve got asked for some flyers for a hairdressing salon near my house – the owner is one of my Tarot consultants. Making a new flyer was the perfect excuse for a relaxing self-hennaing session! I added the word “pax” (peace in latin) – there isn’t much writing usually on henna designs but there is a lot on tattoo designs and, as I made permanent tattoos before the non-permanent ones, I guess I got the habit!

I love all kinds of body art, and today I’ve been discussing with my husband the acquisition of some Harquus and Indigo (black and blue dyes for skin), which I think would boost the business as I cannot make permanent tattoos anymore and I have a lot of customers who miss me as much as I miss them! Still, men are 75% of permanent tattoo customers, and they always ask me if I have black henna – which I don’t of course! If you didn’t know, what is known as “black henna” is a very dangerous product that can cause permanent allergies, burnts and bruises – it is a shame for all true henna artists that still some people sell and use that product, putting people in such big risk.

Now, all I need is a “victim” for a full henna backpiece, something I’ve always dreamed of making – but never got the chance. Any volunteers?

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