HennaMe Happenings

Adiós Oaxaca

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 02:46:26 GMT

Last day in Oaxaca :(
I'm too exhausted to write a lot, but I will say that this was probably my favorite day. Today, Charlotte and I went back to the Juarez Market. We separated and I was on my own for about 3 hours. I got to really explore the market. Bought a few more things (surprise, surprise)...

I was proud of myself and the amount of Spanish I have picked up. I got along quite well on my own.

I left the market and still had an hour to kill before meeting up with the others so I stopped at a cafe in the zocalo for some tacos and beer. The tacos were more like enchiladas in the US, rolled up ans served with sauce. They were yummy! I sat for a while and watched people go by. I ended up having a nice conversation with a Canadian woman seated next to me.

We then went to dinner down the street. I got to finally sample Oaxacan hot chocolate. After dinner, we hung out at the zocalo for a bit. We ended the night at The Italian Coffee Company. I traveled to Mexico, thousands of miles from my home in Little Italy, to have Italian coffee ;)

I'm so exhausted, I'm delerious. I am glad to be going home tomorrow. I hope to come back to Oaxaca soon.

Market Mania!

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:52:44 GMT

Day 3 - Shopping frenzy.

Charlotte, Russ, Kathy and I started the day with a trip up to a place where there make ¨black pottery¨. Oaxaca is very famous for it. The firing process produces a distinctive black, almost metallic sheen. Almost looking like hematite. Too porous for eating from, this pottery is meant for decoration only. Many pieces are decorated by cutting through to produce intricate patterns. It´s very beautiful. We didn´t get to see anyone in action, but Charlotte talked with a little old woman who makes it. She was so cute. Charlotte had taken a photo of her. I later saw her undo her long braided hair and re-do it. Having someone photograph her, seemed to make herself conscious of her looks for the first time in probably a long while. She showed us her ¨potters wheel¨.I wish I would have gotten a photo for it was nothing but a small plate on a saucer. There was no mechanism of any kind. Just two plates balanced on top of each other. Being a former potter myself, I can´t begin to imagine how much skill it must take to make the precisely symetrical pottery this way.

The prices on the black pottery are very reasonable here for this is where it´s made. If you come across the pottery elsewhere in Mexico, it is more expensive. Not a lot makes it to the US for it is fragile. I´m hoping mine survives the plane trip home ;)

We then stopped by and had a snack at a road-side stand serving roticerie chicken. It was incredibly delicious and so cheap, it was practically free!

The whole time we were in the area, we heard firecrackers that were as loud as gun shots. There was a church across the street that was in the middle of some celebration, maybe a religious ceremony. We walked over to find young men liting rockets with cigarettes, letting them go from their hands! They certinly weren´t bottle rockets, they were roman candles or something. Certainly an accident waiting to happen!

After the black pottery extraviganza, we headed back to town and had lunch. I didn´t know what to get, so I asked the waitress what she recommended. She pointed to a few things and I finally just said Ï´ll have THAT¨. Not knowing what I was going to get for we couldn´t understand what she was saying. After looking up the dish I got, I discovered it traslated to ¨shellfish¨. What they brought, was a huge foil pouch on a plate filled with steamed shrimp, octopus, squid(?), a whole small crab and a large piece of white fish. The sauce was tangy and spicy. It was a treat! After lunch, us girls headed over to a few markets for some shopping.

At the Warez Market, there was a large indoor area as well as streets lined with vendor stalls. Selling everything from pork rinds, meat, fish, peppers, cheese and grasshoppers to jewelry, clothing and everything else you can think of. The streets surrounding the area also had vendor stalls. We came across a great black pottery stall.

I bought a ton of bracelets to sell at festivals this year. Some regious themed, some made of the black pottery.

After hitting another market on the way back, we were shopped out! We headed dwn the street to catch a cab, stopping off at a cantina along the way. THAT was an experience! Typically, just a male-only hang out, we were quite the hot commodity in there ;) The only women that can be found in a cantina are prostitutes or tourists.

We came back to the hotel and rested a bit. I did a little henna design on Kathy.

Charlotte, Russ and I then headed out to the park up the street. For $1.50 USD, we got a single order of beef tacos from a street vendor. You got 3 and they were filled with fresh cilantro, cheese, onions and a bit of hot sauce. Muy beno! We then headed over to a tamali place for MORE food!

Now to sleep...

The ruins of Monte Alban

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:07:55 GMT

Day 2 - Monte Alban
Once again, Charlotte, Russ, Kathy, Steve and I crammed into a
tiny taxi...this time for a longer ride up the mountains to the ancient
city of Monte Alaban. The driver's gear shift was MIA underneath poor
Kathy ;) Testing the limits of the taxi's suspension, we slowly made
our way up the steep road.

We hired a tour guide to walk us through the mysterious ruins. He was a
really nice man, but he bored me to death. I wandered off by myself. He
just spent too much time on (what I thought were) irrelevant details. I
spent my time taking photos, climbing to the top of one of the tallest
of the ruins, listening to Radiohead and enjoying the view. It was
crazy beautiful up there, so high I could almost touch a cloud. You can
view a bunch more photos on my Flickr page that I just uploaded:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/henname
Gotta love the iPhone...yes, I LOVE MY iPhone! Possibly too much...

My sunburned arms are killing me right now...good reason to have
another cervesa! Silly me, pasty white, thousands of feet above sea
level on a crystal clear day.

Since Oaxaca relies heavily on tourists, there are countless street
vendors EVERYWHERE. Even inside Monte Alban. Lots of jewelry made of
semi-precious stones, masks, and various chachkas. I must have muttered
a polite "no, gracias" a hundred times so far.

After Monte Alban, we made our way back to town...certainly a much
smoother, quicker taxi ride going downhill ;) We had the most amazing
lunch at a place in the town center that Charlotte had recommended, La Casa de la Abuela. Probably one of the more pricier of places, our bill
was only $100 USD for 5 people including a few drinks and a couple
desserts. The Margarita I had was the best I've ever tasted. I ordered
my favorite, Chile Rellenos. It was a bit different with smokey
chipotles added to the cheese and pork fillings. Oaxacan cheese is
stringy and salty. Like a tangier mozarella.

After dinner, I stopped at one of the streetside "markets" and found a
few treasures. It was another wonderfully exhausting day...

Oaxaca es muy hermoso!

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 05:50:53 GMT

Oaxaca es muy hermoso!
Originally uploaded by HennaMe

It's 11pm as I sip my cervesa, winding down for an early rise. Today
was our first full day here in Oaxaca and so far, I have eaten
crickets, rode in a pimped-out Mexican taxi, visited markets where
room-temperature raw chickens sit on counters, women stir drinks with
their hand and children try to solicit tourists with various trinkets.
I even managed to accidentally break a piece off a parked car with my
hoody as I walked by so the policia may be looking for me as I type
this ;)

I am staying at Las Mariposas hotel in Oaxaca, just blocks from the
gorgeous town center where thousands of pointsettias grow in flower
beds. My room is small but charming and impecably clean. All the rooms
open to various little outdoor courtyards. The terra cotta ceilings
are very high so the small room feels much larger. Skylights wake me
in the morning. I can't even imagine how expensive a hotel like this
would be in the states... certainly no where near the meager $40 USD
per night, that's for certain! The photo above is from the main
courtyard.

We woke early and made our way to the main courtyard for the daily
complementary hot coffee and fresh bread. The coffee tasted of
cinnamon, the home made honey and jam was sweet and sticky. Friends of
one of my travel mates met us for the day. Steve and Kathy are
originally from Cleveland but have been living here for a couple
months. They were a lot fun and we even got to see their place. It was
small but cute. The kitchen sink is outside. They took us to their
favorite eatery for dinner. It was $15 USD for 5 of us and we left
pleasantly full of great local food.

Earlier, all 5 of us hopped in a (tiny) taxi and drove to some local
markets. The taxis are very small compact cars like Nissan Sentras and
even old VW Beetles. The going rate seems to be $3 USD for a ride. I
didn't see a meter. Apparently, you don't tip the drivers unless they
are going above and beyond like helping with luggage. I'm so used to
the insane standard 15-20% tipping in the States. Here, when tipping
is appropriate, it's usually no more than 10%.

The first market we went to was like a huge dollar store...lots of
junk. It was great for sites and sounds though. I was disturbed by the
raw meat sitting out for sale. Lots of flies...ewww! Certainly not up
to FDA standards! There were shrimps, whole fish, chicken, beef,
veggies and lots of bread. We stopped for a deep-fried fish fillet
with hot sauce. It was quite tasty.

The second market had higher quality items. Recommended by Kathy, this
one was full of items handmade by locals. Lots of beautiful clothing
and handbags. I plan on going back for a few things later in the week.

After dinner, we were ready for a siesta...

HennaMe on vacation

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 12:32:24 GMT

Please note that I will be on vacation from January 20th to 25th. Mail orders will not be shipped during this time.

I am excited to be visiting Oaxaca, Mexico (my first REAL trip out of the country). I am looking forward to my journey for Oaxaca is popular for it's beauty and art. I will keep my eye open for cool, unique items to add to the HennaMe Shop!

More to come...

NEW ITEMS in the HennaMe Shop!

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 05:28:28 GMT

JUST IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAYS...

The HennaMe Shop is proud to offer super cool handmade purses and totes by Audrey Gaab (my lovely and talented Mum!). These bags are made from various vintage and recycled fabrics including neck ties, curtains, tablecloths, upholstery and more. Each bag is one-of-a-kind and completely unique!

Be sure to check out the vintage necktie purses!

http://www.henname.net/shop.html

More items will be added soon.

Nicki's Bridal Mehndi

Thu, 22 Nov 2007 19:31:23 GMT

It's cold in Cleveland and the henna biz is a bit slower these days. Last night I did some bridal mehndi for an Indian girl getting married this weekend.

Kenyon College & A Bit of Slack

Sun, 11 Nov 2007 17:48:02 GMT

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of working with fellow henna artist and friend, Lily from Dayton (www.ohiohenna.com). She, along with my sister Andrea, helped me out with a big gig at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH for their annual Diwali celebration.

The day started off with an hour trip to Stow to hang with some fellow artists at Catherine Cartwright-Jones's house for the annual "Sling & Slack". Traveling with me was my loyal henna apprentice (and sis), Andrea. She has been helping with large events and is developing some mad skills. We met up with Lily at Catherine's house and stayed for a couple hours, killing time before the Kenyon gig.

(Andrea, Lily and I)

Here's a little something my sis did on my leg based on a Neeta Sharma design.

The three of us then hopped in the car for a 2 hour drive to Gambier.

We ended up parking right in front of the building where the Diwali fest was to take place. Greeting us were hundreds of luminaries lining the sidewalks. Diwali is the Indian "Festival of Light", where according to Wikipedia, "the lights or lamps signify victory of good over the evil within every human being". It was simply BEAUTIFUL. Too bad I forgot to take a pic :( We ventured inside, set up shop and got to work.

It wasn't long before we had long line of eager Kenyon students. The celebration included music, food, dancing and a comedian (who BTW, was horrible). He was not only very NOT-funny, he told a few inappropriate "jokes" and remarked on how this was "the worst crowd he ever had". Go figure... It's sad when a comedian has to tell people it's OK to laugh! Thankfully, the students seemed to be thrilled at the super-sweet hennas we were giving them :)

Aside from having to sit through a train-wreck of a comedic performance, the night went well and we all had a great time. The students were friendly, patient and gracious. A good time was had by all!

Interview for article on henna

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 22:53:42 GMT

A few weeks ago, I was interviewed by a student at Kent State University, Brittany Moseley, for an article on henna. Apparently, I provided the "professional" contribution...

You can read the article, "Modern take on ancient art is a hit" on Kent's news website:

http://media.www.kentnewsnet.com/media/storage/paper867/news/2007/11/01/Entertainment/Modern.Take.On.Ancient.Art.Is.A.Hit-3070450.shtml

New Store Items & Kenyon College

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 12:09:12 GMT

As the henna season dies down due to colder weather, I will be working on adding some exciting new products to the HennaMe Store. I have some gorgeous bindis, Mang Tikkas, bridal bindis and more! The quality is excellent, with lots of crystals.

I do have a large henna event coming up at Kenyon College on Nov 10th with the super fabulous Lily from www.ohiohenna.com. Joining us will also be my loyal apprentice, Andrea, who is developing some super skills. Should be a great time.

Summer is sadly slipping away..

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 15:58:59 GMT

Saturday Sept 29th was my last festival for the season... It was just a small one on Coventry in Cleveland Heights. The weather was absolutely gorgeous! One bummer was that I started off the day by nearly crushing my toes. As I opened my rear door to remove my gear, one of my collapsible tables (the largest, heaviest one) slid out and landed on top of my poor toes... OUCH!

That night, I decided I needed some henna of my own for I had been henna-less for some time... GASP!

I did a design from one of my new Asha Savla books. I just love this one!

All in all, the festival season went really well this year. I will say one thing though... I will not be doing any more community "Home Days" festivals. I had never done them before and tried a few this summer. TOTAL BUSTS. I felt more like a baby sitter than a henna artist. Ah well... live and learn.

I may do some indoor fests during the colder months, although nothing is set in stone at this point. I was asked to do one at the end of Oct, but I am still debating...

HennaMe has finally joined the Blogging Band Wagon...

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 20:21:44 GMT

Figured it about time I joined the blog world so I can let my friends, family and clients know what's up in Henna Land!

Stay tuned...