Why we ask about black henna tattoos

Temporary black henna tattoos are fun, chic and scream vacation vibes.

But these holiday tattoos can trigger new allergies to colour dyes.

Henna paste is naturally orange/red in colour and leaves a temporary stain/pattern on the skin, which gradually disappears. But some tattoo artists in countries outside the EU and UK offer the much darker ‘black henna’. This isn’t henna at all and may contain PPD (para-phenylenediamine) to give it the dark colour. While PPD is safe and legal as an ingredient in hair colourants, when applied to skin, it can cause an immediate painful, severe allergic reaction.

It doesn’t stop there:

Even if someone doesn’t react immediately to the black henna tattoo, it can still sensitise them to PPD. This makes it more likely they’ll react to PPD in the future, which can cause problems at their next salon appointment.

We’re a caring, professional salon who put our clients’ health and safety first.

The colours we use at Chalk don’t contain PPD but a derivative of PPD so although a lot less likely to cause a problem than PPD we do still test as we can become allergic to things that we once were not.

So, if you have had a black henna tattoo on your travels this summer, please let us know and book in for your quick, easy allergy test.