Sometimes, if a design is very symmetrical, or just beyond your skill level, a transfer can be very helpful. 

Here is what you do:
Get yourself a piece of transfer paper. You can go to a local tattoo shop and ask to purchase a few sheets, or go to your local office supply and get some old fashioned carbon paper. If you get it at the office supply, make sure it is PEN and PENCIL type, not the typing carbon. It should look like this:

Choose a design and make a copy of it on regular copy paper, or print it out from your computer. Lay the design on the ink side of the transfer paper and begin tracing on top of the design until you have the entire design traced, like this:

Once the design is completely traced, flip the paper over.  It should look something like this:

Use a deodorant stick on the area that you want to transfer the design to (no, this won't affect the henna's staining ability).  Most shops use Mennen Speed Stick, but any glycerine based stick will do. Press the transfer ink side down on the area. You will have an outline of the design that looks like this:

Then begin hennaing the design. Since the transfer is just outline, it is sometimes a good idea to keep the stencil close by to use as a reference, like this:

And in no time at all, VOILA! A complicated design can be a snap! The transfers can be used over and over again before they run out of ink, so put them in a file and reuse them when the opportunity arises!

This design from start to finish, including making the transfer, took about 15 minutes!'
 

Back to "Doing Complex Designs"

Want to try some Tattoo Transfer Paper?