11 Philly Beauty Salons That Use Organic, Non-Toxic Products
Take care of your hair, nails, and skin in safe ways at Philly's clean salons.
Looking for safe, toxic-free beauty treatments? These 11 Philly salons have you covered. / Photograph courtesy of Skin Haus
Treating yourself to a day at the salon is one of life’s small pleasures. Whether it’s the experience of having someone else wash and style your hair, getting those nasty shoulder knots out during a much-needed massage, or unclogging pores with a hydrating face mask, beauty salons leave us feeling like pampered royalty.
Or so we think. Many of our beloved salons actually use products that contain harsh, toxic chemicals, which can seep into our pores and bloodstream when applied directly to our skin, nails, and scalp. Talk about SCARY.
Fortunately, quite a few local beauty salons have gone organic, making our manis, facials, and shampoos safe and sustainable for both customers and the environment. Join the clean and green movement by checking out these 11 Philly organic beauty salons.
Beauty Is Salon
258 South 11th Street, Washington Square West
The mission of Beauty Is Salon is philanthropic and community-driven: Make every person feel beautiful and support environmental sustainability. To ensure their clients look and feel amazing, this Philly hair salon uses organic, all-natural L’anza products that are both cruelty-free and sulfate-free. Even better? Beauty Is donates 10 percent of its profits from guest services to humanitarian causes and encourages its employees to take time off work to volunteer with local nonprofits.
Duafe
3129 North 22nd Street, North Philadelphia
One of the local leaders in holistic hair care, Syreeta Scott has styled celebs such as Janet Jackson and Philly’s own Jill Scott. But that’s not what makes her salon, Duafe, one of the city’s best. Since 2001, Scott and her team have been using products that nourish and detox your locks from root to tip. Their “Dry Wash Hair Cleanser,” made with rosemary, tea tree, neem extract, aloe vera, and coconut oil, absorbs your hair’s excess oils, while cleansing your scalp. As an added bonus, Duafe also sells some skin care products, including its moisturizing Hair & Body Butter, made from shea butter and sweet almond and jojoba oils.
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Eviama Life
109 South 13th Street, Suite 2N, Midtown Village
Eviama Life is a body-focused green spa, offering massages, body wraps, sauna rejuvenation, facials, facelifts, and waxing. Committed to nurturing clients, the Eviama team uses only plant-based products, specifically the eco-conscious Dr. Hauschka line. The spa includes a variety of packages, including “Wish You Were Beer,” which uses a non-alcoholic barley malt scrub to exfoliate your skin, as well as essential oils to give you a mellow massage. Eviama also provides specialty services, like reiki sessions, aromatherapy, and CBD-infused massages, that’ll leave you feeling recharged and at peace.
Glow Beauty Lab
1024 Buttonwood Street, Callowhill
Owner and esthetician Samantha Mayorga focuses on providing high-quality services that’ll make your skin look brighter, healthier, and more youthful at Glow Beauty Lab. Her most popular treatment is the 55-minute signature custom facial, consisting of a skin evaluation, steam, cleanse, exfoliation, mask, and face and neck massage. Another must-try is the Radiance Recovery Facial using the Scientific Organics line by emerginC. This high-performance facial takes eco-conscious to the next level with natural botanical extracts of hydrating water lily, nourishing tea extracts, and powerful antioxidants.
At Glow Beauty Lab, you can treat your skin to a plant-based, all-natural facial. / Photograph courtesy of Samantha Mayorga of Glow Beauty Lab
Juju Salon and Organics
713 South 4th Street, Queen Village
Around since 2005, Juju Salon and Organics is a full-service salon, pampering your hair, nails, and skin. Whether you’re getting balayage, a gel manicure, or a brow wax, you can expect to be treated with non-toxic, fume-free, and biodegradable products, including Philly-made PiperWai. Beyond its products, Juju promotes and facilitate a healthier, greener planet by stocking the salon with repurposed or second-hand furniture, offering filtered — not bottled — water, operating 100 percent off wind power, and brightening the salon with compact fluorescent bulbs (which use 50 to 80 percent less energy than incandescent ones).
Mi Cumbia
328 South 17th Street, Rittenhouse
Husband and wife duo Hustine Mitchell and Karina Restrepo Mitchell have been committed to safe, organic beauty for more than 12 years. Their boutique nail spa, Mi Cumbia — which also offers waxing services — utilizes all-natural beauty techniques that originated in Colombia. They create non-toxic formulas for their manis and pedis by using natural ingredients like mango butter, coconut oil, and therapeutic minerals. For Brazilians and brows, the salon removes hair with non-wax, ultra-gentle products, leaving your skin smooth in the most natural way.
Moko
55 North 3rd Street, Old City
Moko is a full-service organic beauty studio that is eco-conscious to the core. Its hair color products are ammonia-free and its keratin treatments are formaldehyde-free, leaving your hair clean — literally. The salon’s skincare services use custom-blend herbal and all-natural mixtures and tinctures, like milk (for lactic acid) or oils (for hydration), depending on what your skin needs. A client who has sensitive skin might benefit from the “Coconut Rose” mask mixed with milk while someone dealing with acne issues could use the “Matcha Mint” mask to unclog pores and draw out impurities.
Moko in Old City offers DIY Detox Masks from the organic line Honey Belle. / Photograph courtesy of Moko
Naturale Salon
1606 Locust Street, Rittenhouse
This all-natural nail salon is committed to green efforts in both product and practice. For one, Naturale Salon is fume-free because of its toxic-free polishes, meaning you won’t be suffocated by those chemically offensive smells typical of most salons. Regardless if you’re receiving a mani or a pedi, you’ll be treated with high-grade, clean lacquer and polishes, like BCL’s organic spa line. Where the eco magic really happens, though, is in Naturale’s speciality spa services. Its “Repair & Renew Manicure,” for instance, detoxes and hydrates your nails with all-natural ingredients like white chocolate (YES), sea salt, argan oil, vitamin E, bamboo collagen, milk, and honey.
Plume Salon
111 East Girard Avenue, Fishtown
Plume Salon works toward environmental sustainability by providing hair care that’s free of harsh chemicals. Featuring organic, biodynamic lines like Oway, Onesta, and O&M, Plume treats your hair with pure essential oils, plant butter, and other fair-trade, cruelty-free ingredients. In addition to its top-notch hair services, the salon also sells house plants, so you can go green in your own home.
Raw Lab Spa
264 South 10th Street, Washington Square West
This all-natural nail salon believes that maintaining and beautifying your nails shouldn’t come with all the harmful chemicals. Raw Lab Salon doesn’t use any artificial coloring, and its polishes are toxin-free. Its eco-friendly product lines include Emchi dipping powder, which is enriched with vitamin E and calcium, and the vegan, 5-free Zoya nail polish. Plus, its manicures and pedicures nourish and exfoliate your hands and feet with warm essential oils and botanical raw sugar scrubs.
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Skin Haus
1238 South Street, Washington Square West
The first facial bar in Philadelphia, Skin Haus believes facials are a necessity and strives to make skincare accessible to and affordable for everyone. The spa offers a variety of facials and peels to meet all kinds of skincare needs as well as unique treatments like a vitamin infusion mask and LED skin therapy. As for its products, Skin Haus uses high-quality, vitamin-rich skincare lines, such as Environ Skin Care, which feeds your skin with Vitamin A and other essential nutrients like antioxidants to help combat numerous skin conditions and the aging process. Bonus: Skin Haus serves as a wellness shop where you can buy vitamins that work to ameliorate skin conditions such as eczema, acne, or pigmentation.
