Design Vocabulary & Technique

What is Bel (Vine)?

A bel is a vine or creeper pattern in mehendi - a flowing line with leaves and small flowers that trails across the hand or along a finger. It is the backbone of Arabic designs and a common border in Indian work.

Bel (Vine) explained

Bels can be drawn thin and delicate for minimal looks or bold and leafy for Arabic and Khaleeji styles.

A single bel running diagonally across the back of the hand is one of the quickest festive designs.

Also searched as: bel mehendi · vine mehendi design · creeper mehendi · bail design

Mehendi designs related to bel (vine)

Arabic Mehendi

Arabic mehendi is a free-flowing henna style built from bold floral and leaf trails that run diagonally across the hand, leaving generous areas of bare skin between motifs.

Floral Mehendi

Floral mehendi is built from flowers, leaves and vines - roses, sunflowers, jasmine buds and creepers - arranged as trails, clusters or full-hand compositions.

Finger Mehendi

Finger mehendi is a minimal design applied only to the fingers - as rings, bands, vines or capped tips - for a subtle look that takes just a few minutes.

Related mehendi terms

ButaA buta (or buti for a small one) is a small floral or paisley motif, borrowed from textile embroidery, that is repeated across a mehendi design or placed singly on fingers and wrists.MotifA motif is a single repeated element in a mehendi design - such as a peacock, lotus, paisley, mandala or kalash. Motifs carry meaning and are combined with outlines and fillings to build a full design.OutlineIn mehendi, the outline is the main contour line that defines the shape of each motif before fillers are added. Bold outlines make designs read clearly from a distance and help lighter areas like the back of the hand look sharp.Freehand MehendiFreehand mehendi is applied directly with a cone, without stencils or transfers, so the artist composes the design on the skin. Almost all professional bridal and custom mehendi is drawn freehand.

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