History Of GutsyGinger's

Well...where do I begin..? At the age of 12 I began as a facepainter...I street traded initially in Whitby for several seasons upto the age of 16…

One day...A new group of street traders came into Whitby doing henna for folk week… They set up next to me...I was quiet…Not many takers for facepaints that day!!! Next thing I knew a henna tube was put into my hand followed by "youre not busy...theres a girl waiting here for a dolphin"! That was it...no training...dolphin completed and I fell in love from there….

10 years down the line I am self-taught and still learning…

I have spent years studying and perfecting this age old form of artistic expression. I have travelled extensively throughout the UK and Europe to fine-tune my creative ability of providing simply timeless works of art on my client's bodies. Although mehndi does not come from my own culture, I have adopted it as my own. Whenever henna is done, a wonderful exchange has happened and my goal is to bring that awareness to this culture..

I have done designs for the toddler to the ageing hippy, for the glamorous to the gregarious gran!!!!

’Originality’ has been the key to my success, as a western henna artist I am not limited through religion or culture for the designs I can create'

I only use Natural Henna—I don't do ‘Black’...I have campaigned against black henna for the last 3 years...I have met ‘black henna artists’ and hundreds of their victims...I have seen ‘simple’ scars to young girls having their kidneys removed because of it and its chemical ingredients…

I frequently cover this topic when teaching in schools or to anyone who asks or is willing to listen!!! Please see page on ‘Black Henna’ for more details….

I went from budding street artist to stall holder at many events across the UK. I met again some fantastic contacts...along with some friends for life!

Festivals taught me many things...At Whitby Musicport Festival 2003 I was asked that often if I had a permanent base that it made me think about and look into a premises..

The building I have now used to be a cafe with a secret garden of which I often frequented after a hard days street trading..I used to often wonder what I would do with a premises like this and well...here I am today and hopefully with the support from you...will remain for many years ...Thankyou to all - you know who you are :-)