Her henna art goes far beyond copy and paste; how one Kansan’s craft (and kindness) went TikTok viral

Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. This series is possible thanks to Go Topeka, which seeks economic success for all companies and citizens across Shawnee County through implementation of an aggressive economic development strategy that capitalizes on the unique strengths of the community.

TOPEKA — Henna is all about connection, V Heiland shared. It’s one of the first ways she integrated as an 8 year old when she moved to Kansas’ capital city. And now the art form allows Heiland to introduce her Indian heritage to the community.

V Heiland, Essential Henna

Heiland — owner of Topeka-based Essential Henna — has been practicing henna for a decade but turned it into her full-time passion project in 2021.

“I love that I can connect with people,” she said. “I can bring a little bit of culture into people’s lives who usually don’t know anything about henna or have heard about it for the first time.”

She’s become known for her henna crowns for cancer patients, with one of her TikTok videos recently going viral, garnering 1.3 million views on TikTok (and 6.3 million on Facebook) in a couple of weeks.

“Overwhelmed is the word,” she noted of the attention.

Click here to watch Heiland’s viral TikTok video.

After getting the idea for henna crowns from a client preparing to undergo chemotherapy, Heiland — who makes her own organic henna paste — said she did her first one in 2017 and has completed about a dozen since and has three upcoming appointments scheduled. 

Henna — a staining of the skin that lasts one to two weeks — symbolizes prosperity and good luck in a new journey, she shared, as it’s traditionally done on Indian brides before their wedding.

Click here to learn more about the henna process.

A client shows off her henna crown by V Heliand, Essential Henna

“Why not offer it to someone who’s going through something dark?” she explained. “It helped me transition from depression and anxiety back in college and it really brought me to where I am now. It was sort of my medication, if you can say that. It seems to help me feel confident. I have it on me 365 days a year — I don’t go without it. That feeling that I get from henna, I want it to pass on to someone else, and who better to do that with than someone who’s going through something that’s potentially life and death.”

Cancer patients who lose their hair, Heiland noted, often feel self conscious about their bald head and find wigs itchy and uncomfortable. 

“Why not keep it bald, just have a design on, and feel extra bold?” she added. “(Clients) have been saying, ‘People are gonna stare no matter what. So why not give them something to talk about?’”

She said she is hoping to start distributing brochures to area oncology offices soon to spread the word. All of the crowns are done free of charge for the clients, and — after encouragement from her social media followers — she has set up a donation button on her website where others can help contribute. She has already received several hundred dollars and has used that to purchase supplies for henna aftercare products — like tape and homemade balm to help it last longer — to provide to her clients.

Click here to donate or submit a crown request.

“Their donations will also help me support doing multiple rounds,” she continued. “So the first one’s always free, and if someone wants another one in a couple of weeks, hopefully some other donations can help cover it so that it’s still at no cost for the client.”

Heritage by hand

Henna art by V Heiland, Essential Henna

Heiland grew up with the art form, she shared. Her mom frequently applied henna to her and she remembers always picking out the most detailed options.

“It’s just part of our culture,” she recalled. “My mom used to have a big binder for designs and they were really super intricate designs. She went and learned it in India. I had small hands when I was little but I wanted the most intricate thing. And my mom knows I’m not going to sit long enough or take care of it.”

When the family moved to Topeka, she said, it was difficult for her to integrate into her new life. But henna became a good icebreaker.

“I was in third grade, and yes, it was easy to make friends, but it wasn’t easy to fit in,” she explained. “So when I had henna on me and I’d come to school, I realized everyone would be like, ‘Whoa, what’s that?’ Or they wanted to talk to me. All the kids were excited, so I found a way to connect with the people around me through henna.”

Although her mom was an inspiration for starting her own henna art journey, Heiland taught herself how to do it, she said.

“One day, I was in middle school and I wanted it done for a special occasion at school,” she said. “She said she was too busy, so she just told me to go try it myself and I did. That’s where the transition truly happened.”

Meditation in the mix 

V Heiland at her Essential Henna booth in Topeka

Interested clients can book appointments with Heiland — who is also helping to organize the Indian Mela, a cultural celebration which will take place in August in Topeka — at her private studio or for events like weddings, birthday parties, and corporate gatherings. She also travels around to fairs and festivals as a vendor in the Topeka, Lawrence, and Kansas City areas.

She makes her own natural henna paste fresh for each client — from a recipe she’s been perfecting since 2013 — with just four ingredients: henna powder, sugar, eucalyptus oil, and water.

“It should contain ingredients that are familiar to you,” she added, noting she uses her platform to educate people on good and bad henna paste. “There’s something called black henna that contains very dangerous, dangerous chemicals. You’re going to see that in tourist destinations and beaches. Be very careful. It can leave you with welts and blisters and scars.”

With the eucalyptus oil in her henna paste, Heiland said, it can relieve stress with its cooling sensation and fragrance.

“It’s very therapeutic for me,” she shared. “And a lot of times, it’s therapeutic for the person across from me, as well.”

This series is possible thanks to Go Topeka.

Go Topeka seeks economic success for all companies and citizens across Shawnee County through implementation of an aggressive economic development strategy that capitalizes on the unique strengths of the community.