Unfortunately I did not get the henna cone for about a week. I had seen that it was stuck in a warehouse in Florida. When it did finally come to me in a box, it was not chilled or frozen. I put it on my skin and not surpirsingly the staining power was nearly gone and it came out very weak even after following all the instructions and leaving it on my skin for 12 hours. I am sure they are aware that henna paste is a perishable product and after being unfrozen for more than a couple days, the potency can greatly diminish. I do think the delays in shipping most likely contributed to the expired paste I received in the mail.