Before you begin reading this blog post, I must get some serious legal stuff out and into the open for our mutual protection…
‘Created By Connie’ is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.co.uk. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.
Today’s blog post is sponsored with affiliate Amazon links, which means that at no extra cost to you, I may get a small commission if you click through and buy an item. Thank you for your support!
Yup. I signed up as an Amazon Associate. For a few reasons really. One is that I consider shopping to be one of my superpowers [ask anyone who has been out shopping with me. Seriously. Anybody.]
The second is that among the most popular of my social media posts are those featuring the various nick-nacks I have curated to form my henna kit(s) used for various conditions and situations so it seemed reasonable to be able to put my name and backing behind any recommendations for developing your kit as a professional henna artist. This way you will also know that I have extensively browsed All The Available Shopping Options and that I have personally tried or used the recommended product (or similar wherever the identical item is not available – which I will highlight).
Finally, I’m a Yorkshire born and bred shopper: I love a bargain and I seldom allow myself to really splash out on something extravagant (although I’ll admit, there are semi-regular points in the year where this policy is blatantly ignored – see below).
So, let’s begin: LIGHT
Hello everyone. My name is Connie and I am addicted to buying LED lighting solutions.
I currently have 5 portable light sources in my henna toolkit (and actually another 2 that I don’t think are really worth talking about *cough*). The usage of each one rotates depending on the working conditions and also my mood at the time. I shall start with the most expensive…
1) Petzl Mixed Actik Headlight, unisex, Actik, blue, One Size
So, here’s the thing with headlamps. Nobody really enjoys wearing these. They’re goofy and they squish your hair, and I know this very well. So WHY did I buy such a swish and fancy headlamp? My logic for this was that I know me; I know that if I bought a £3.99 headlamp for work, I would never wear it. It would remain in the kit bag, untouched. However, if I invested in a fancy, expensive headlamp I would feel obliged to use it in order to justify the cost. And so I am the proud owner of a Petzl Tikka XP Active Yellow Outdoors Sports Lighting Headlamp Head Torch which cost me £44.95 at the time, similar to the one pictured above. It is AAA battery powered and I have to say, as goofy as it looks when I’m wearing it, I feel immensely smug when I am able to light up my working area without having to adjust my positioning for shadows! I use this for poor lighting condition when applying foot henna and also bridal henna – it’s particularly useful when tackling the tricky ‘bermuda triangle’ space on the side/backs of the arms.
2) E-Plaza 2-in-1 Portable Power Bank and Foldable LED Desk Lamp 2 Lighting Modes Eye Protection Foldable USB Table Lamp for Reading
Okay, so this isn’t the exact LED Lamp/Power Bank that I have (this one actually looks better than mine, and is cheaper than the one I bought as well – boo). I have a similar lamp made by a brand call ‘Samson’, and is no longer available to buy. It is a rechargeable LED Lamp which also has USB outlets so it can be used as a power bank for recharging your phone – Genius! And as it’s white, I stuck my business sticker on it, and voila! A branded lamp. I’m crazy about sticking my name on All The Things. Just ask anyone who has seen my kits IRL.
3) OttLite LED Mini Clip Light
I have one of these OttLite mini clip lights in WHITE inside my festival/corporate party henna toolkit. I’ve used this in a pub, clipped to the top of a pint glass for extra light (because who on earth will wear a Petzl headlamp in a pub, for goodness’ sake?) This is AA battery powered, and switches on as soon as you flip it open. The catch to this is that you need to carry extra batteries incase they run out mid-application. But saying that, my batteries haven’t run out yet and I bought this 2 years ago. However, I have been super conservative about using it. I prefer to use the rechargeable light options where possible. I keep this permanently in my festival kit as it’s always super handy. As far as I am concerned, you can never have too much light for a henna situation!
4) Auraglow Wireless Dimmable Desk Lamp USB Rechargeable Folding LED Reading Light – Gold
My most recent purchase [and favourite] lighting solution is this Auraglow reading light. I actually bought it for around £21 over on eBay, then signed up to Amazon Associates and found it for £14.99!! What! And it’s free shipping. I had to wait 2 weeks for mine to be delivered from abroad! Anyway, this lamp is super slick and sexy. It’s USB rechargeable and has 3 levels of brightness. The clever designs means that it can be positioned in a wide variety of angles. It also comes with a wall mount clip so you could hang it from a wall and extend the frame so that the lamp reaches out. When folded down, it’s basically flat packed and easy to store. My favourite thing about it is how it FEELS. It’s metal (aluminium, I think) and has a very tactile weight to it. Very strokable and touchable. And very elegant. This lamp attracts many compliments whenever it is used and is suitable for pretty much all henna situations.
5) Ultrabright 160 LED Rechargeable Cordless Worklight Garage Inspection Lamp – Mains and Car Cigarette Charger Included
And my final light for this blog post is this rechargeable garage light. I actually bought 4 of these to use around my festival tent set up. I searched for these based on a recommendation by Kendra at Crescent Moon Henna. Each lamp has a magnetic clip, but I fasten them to my tent frame using bungee ties and twist to position. They’re actually a little bit dimmer than I would personally prefer – but they are sufficient to work by as tested at an event at the end of Summer 2017. Plus, I top up with all the above lamps above, so, it’s not like I’m lacking in light sources. I will still be looking to supplement this lighting with either more of these lamps, or possibly trying a brighter work light in the centre of the tent.
So there you have it. My top 5 light sources for use as a henna artist. Let me know if you use any of these, or if you click through and decide to buy one through the affiliate links. And I am ALWAYS interested in hearing in more suggestions to add to my Henna Toolkit! You can email me (bookings@createdbyconnie.co.uk) or comment on my Facebook or Instagram posts. I’m looking forward to hearing all your updates!