More Eco-Friendly Salons Sprout Up in Old Town

A handful of salons in Old Town Alexandria have grown out of their owners' commitments to natural and organic products.

founded by Perry Pazazz has been offering service with natural products since 1986 when the salon first opened its doors. “We were the first in Northern Virginia to offer natural hair products,” Pazazz said.  He became interested in alternative products over a quarter of a century ago and was eager to learn more. 

Pazazz discovered that he loved the products and decided to specialize in using them. Petro-chemicals and other manmade ingredients are not healthy for the body and soul. he said.  “It is a state of mind; it doesn’t necessarily make you live longer but it makes you feel better,” he said.

Dr. Cara Welch, director of scientific and regulatory affairs of the Natural Products Association, said interest in the natural product industry has been steady, and it continues to grow.  She believes this is due to consumer interest in natural ingredients and environmental consciousness, as well as wanting to return to those ingredients grandparents and great-grandparents used.

Laura West, who cofounded with business partner Kathy Bell, agreed. A hairstylist and a certified aroma therapist, West said synthetic fragrances can have ingredients which are neurotoxins. Trade secret formulas often are not regulated.  “The skin is the largest organ. What you put on your skin goes into your body,” she said. 

West had always been interested in natural products. However, it was when she was pregnant that she began paying close attention to products she used. In the 1980s, Aveda was the organic product that most professionals in hair care talked about and used and while it's still popular today, there are many more natural products on the market for hair and skin.

At BellaWest, hair and skin products made with unscented organic ingredients are created, custom blended by West.  The salon is green in other ways too. Its furnishings are gently used and previously owned.  Hair clippings from the salon are sent to Matter of Trust, an organization that makes mats out of hair to clean oil spills.  Clients at BellaWest are offered filtered water, not bottled water.  West said they recycle as much as they can.

Owner Sharon Francis said her clients have been increasingly asking for skin treatments made with organic ingredients, such as a mud exfoliant that includes volcanic rock.

Angelo Castillo, owner of , said organic and natural products are beneficial because they do not contain harmful ingredients.  They last as long as the regular chemical treatments. However, they often do not have the long-lasting luster found in those treatments. Nevertheless, if used with complimenting shampoo and conditioning products it is still possible to obtain good results in terms of fee and texture, he said.

Castillo said organic and natural products do not work for everyone.  They tend to work better on hair that is coarser and thicker and he suggest that the best way to find out how effective they are is by trying them out.

At , stylists use EcoColors Hair Color, a permanent non-toxic professional hair color system containing flax and castor oils with no preservatives. Another natural treatment offered at the salon and spa is hydrotherapy. 

, owned by Ellen and Richard Vlasak, is an Aveda Lifestyle Salon and Spa that opened 20 years ago.  Sharlia Lee, marketing director of Circe, said client reaction is very positive both nationally and internationally.  The full service luxury salon offers various spa treatments and facials which include microdermabrasion aluminum oxide crystals (a substance often found in gems) because they are 100% biodegradable and 100% recyclable.   

Welch said her group for the last three years has been offering a voluntary certification program for retailers and suppliers and she said there has been an increasing interest in the program.

The NPA certificate marks products that have been authenticated.  Product ingredients are collected from manufacturers to see if they are sourced and produced naturally; they undergo a third party audit. The certificate is valid for two years.

Welch noted that it is the U.S. Department of Agriculture that oversees the national organic certification program.  For further details, check the USDA website