Without Khadija, I don't know if there would be a Mektoub Henna or any of the trips we took to Morocco. In Khadija we found a kindred spirit, someone so passionate about Moroccan henna that it became her life's work. She was our teacher at our first Mektoub event in Marrakesh. We met her on Instagram and loved her work, hoping that she would teach at our event. Jenpa and I went to Morocco for a research trip before our first event and that is where we first met Khadija. She gave us both huge hugs just standing in the middle of the Fes Medina and it just got better and better after that.

To be in Khadija's orbit is to be enveloped in her passion and generosity but also her wicked sense of humor. It's no wonder that she is a pivotal part of all our Mektoub Henna events. I hope that you get to join us on one of our trips so you can have a real-life experience of Morocco, Moroccan henna, and Khadija herself. Like so many of our conversations during Mektoub, there is a lot of language switching in this conversation. It felt like so many conversations we had in person, where there is a mix of English, French, Arabic, and Spanish, and strange combinations of all of them. Another little taste of our Mektoub events. Enjoy the interview!

You can find Khadija on Instagram at @galerie_henna and Mektoub at @mektoubhenna on Instagram, and our website, where you can find out more about our trips and events, is MektoubHenna.com

I came across Fatma's work on Instagram from a comment she left on one of my posts. We got to chatting and I knew I wanted to learn more from her. I know so little about East African henna and thought that others might be as curious as I am to know more.

Today's guest is Caryl Cunningham (@carylcunningham on Instagram) who is a tattooer but started out as a henna artist. She was one of our guests at the Mektoub Marrakesh Henna Journey in March 2022. I was excited to talk to someone who is a hardcore traveller and learn about her perspective on the event. If you are interested in the Mektoub events please follow us on instagram (@mektoubhenna) or visit us at MektoubHenna.com. If you have suggestions of people you would like us to interview email us at MektoubHenna@gmail.com.