Natural Wonders
A plant is only as healthy as the soil it’s growing in. Same goes for hair. An unpolluted scalp means a merry mane. However, a surprising number of mainstream hair products leave a silicone residue that feels slick and great in the beginning, but, with time, weighs down strands, clogs pores, and dulls shine—a tragedy that has long plagued me.
So after a lifetime of average haircare, lathering up with Joshua Tree’s Wonder Valley shampoo and conditioner felt like filming an ASMR cleaning video with months of remnants being washed away in a sudsy timelapse. The word clarifying comes to mind. I won’t pretend to know every ingredient in the bottle, but, after a few washes and rinses, the result is shinier curls and a happier hair garden. –MH
Metaphysical Maintenance
We all need a reset from time to time. Once Antoinnette Chirinos began playing a loud crystal singing bowl, my reboot began. In an unassuming University Heights studio, Chirinos offers limpia sessions (what some might call an energy clearing). Have you ever seen those macro photographs of water being hit with different sound frequencies? The atoms dance into geometric shapes. Enveloped in the low, humming vibrations of the bowl, I felt the liquid molecules in my body turning to half-melted snowflakes. I became a cartoon angel, lounging on a cloud. The louder she played, the deeper I sank.
Chironos describes her work as “a massage for your nervous system.” A type of spiritual oil change—“so you don’t burn out and get depleted,” she says. Her work blends sound therapy; various energy work modalities like Reiki, smudging, and crystals; and a whole chicken egg. I can’t promise you’ll feel the same refresh, but in the weeks after, I found myself more easily able to find and return to the quiet center within me. –MH
Hand It Over
Despite my best efforts to branch out (chrome powder! electric orange!), I tend to cycle through a familiar set of solid colors for my monthly-ish manicures. North Park salon Hello Birdie offers a fun antidote in the Mystery Nail Art Gel Polish Mani, which gives your nail tech all the power. Watching my artist, Alina, work was like getting a master class in creative nail art techniques: She diluted gel with acetone to turn it tie-dye, drizzled some kind of transparent goo into subtle 3D curves.
The thrill of seeing my feminine-yet-edgy mani emerge reminded me of girlhood slumber parties in which I’d give friends free rein over my makeup—but instead of an AP student with an Urban Decay palette, I was in the hands of a consummate pro wielding a pot of metallic polish. –AR
