They say a good hair day starts in the shower, but you can also make or break healthy hair growth depending on how you wash and dry your strands. Japanese women have been wise to this for generations. The foundation of J-beauty is built on a lifelong commitment to self care and longevity. Slow rituals supersede fast fads, and while we’re just beginning to tap into scalp care, in Japan it’s a cornerstone of healthy hair routines. One of the most important tools for the job? A scalp brush. In the western world the scalp brush has barely made it into our wash routine, but in Japan, they use it twice.
Hair stylist María Roberts founded the Madart x Studio 25 hair spa in Ouijorna, Madrid after first spending several weeks training in Japan. While there she discovered that washing your hair is as much about scalp care as it is about cleansing your roots and strands.
She shared what she learnt from Japanese hair-washing and how we can implement the techniques into our wash routines at home to encourage healthy hair growth.
Double-brushing
Tugging a paddle brush through wet hair is not the best way to about utilising your hairbrush. Instead, Roberts recommends a dedicated silicone scalp brush (well, two in fact – one for each side of the head – to use while you’re in the shower washing your hair, to deeply cleanse roots and encourage blood circulation). “The best way to massage the scalp is to start at the back of the head, working your way up while focusing on the crown, which is where there are the most nerve endings,” she explains.
It’s best to use this step once you’ve lathered in your shampoo. Using two brushes while applying shampoo enhances the effects of the massage and ensures that every part of the scalp is reached. This way you not only stimulate hair growth but also relieve tension in the scalp, says Roberts. It’s even a good tool to reach for when your stressed. Massage a silicone brush into your roots and it can help restore calm (and gently exfoliate away dead skin and product build-up for cleaner, healthier roots).