A heated lounger, not a hairdressing chair, awaited me on this special morning. No hairdryer noise, no bustle. Instead, subdued lighting, gentle sounds, the scent of oil and tea.
I'm at Mucks Retreat day spa in Cologne for a head spa. I know that it's more than a mere hair-washing. But what exactly? So I'm here to find out.
I slip into soft slippers, drink roasted rice tea and run a damp, fragrant cloth across my hands and face. Proprietor Wijitra Kaehne and her husband, Tobias, explain the procedure and inquire about my scalp and sensitivities.
Then I'm led to a Japanese head spa bed in an adjoining room: a heated lounger with a foam headrest over a large, rectangular washbasin. It seems strange at first but turns out to be quite comfortable. My neck and shoulders are bare. Everything below is draped with a blanket.
Rooted in Japanese wellness traditions, a head spa focuses on scalp and hair health, and mental relaxation. It quickly spread throughout Asia, incorporating additional care and massage techniques. Wijitra Kaehne, a native of Thailand, reflects these influences.
I close my eyes, hear the sounds of singing bowls and feel feathers on my face. My hair is slowly brushed and combed before my face is given a Japanese pressure point massage: Kaehne presses on the acupressure points on my temples, cheeks, mouth, eyelids and forehead. It's rather intensive and meant to ease tension.
The back of my head comes next. Again Kaehne combs my hair, but this time makes several partings and distributes warm oil on my scalp with an eyedropper. It stings for a moment, and then a warm film settles on the skin.
She gently works in the oil, occasionally applying a Chinese gua sha facial scraper, and relaxes my shoulders and neck. I'm in a state between meditation and being half asleep. "In Thailand people call it 'sleeping salon' instead of 'head spa,'" Kaehne says, "because you're on the verge of falling asleep."
Only now is my hair washed. Kaehne doesn't work in the shampoo with kneading, circular motions, as I'm used to in hairdressing salons, but with rapid, pushing pulses. I'm alert again. The lather suffuses all of the hair, is given plenty of time to soak in, and then thoroughly rinsed out.
Not until the very end comes the signature "gold halo" water treatment that's often seen in social media: A curved overhead fixture gently delivers a continuous stream of warm water onto my forehead and scalp, mimicking a waterfall and designed to deeply cleanse cleanse and relax.
Sixty minutes have gone by, and I feel pampered and much more relaxed. My hair is soft, I'm refreshed and ready to take on the day.
In some establishments you can even combine a haircut with a head spa, and a number of hairdressing salons now offer the trendy wellness treatment.
Hairdresser Nina Baxmann, who has been running a Japanese head spa in Germany since mid-2023, says her treatments can begin with a microscopic scalp analysis. What she looks for, she says, is "how thick your hair growth is, how many of your hair follicles produce a hair, how good the blood flow is."
While this is no substitute for a medical diagnosis, it helps in making a recommendation, Baxmann says, explaining that many problems are immediately recognizable on your scalp, "for example, dandruff, clogged pores or deposits of some sort."
The results of the analysis are the basis of a multi-stage treatment. "If your scalp is dry, we use oils, heat and steam to provide intensive skin care," Baxmann says. Heat and steam open the hair cuticles, facilitating the absorption of care products.
If there are sebum plugs - hardened mixtures of dead skin cells and sebum (natural skin oil) - or residue from care products, Baxmann recommends scalp exfoliation using fine sea salt crystals. And "in cases of hair loss, we use products and massages that stimulate blood flow to the scalp."
Baxmann's clients, like Kaehne's, have various wishes. For some it's primarily deep cleansing of their scalp, for others relaxation. The main emphasis of treatment is agreed upon in advance.
Head spas aren't aimed only at people with a full head of hair. Since the scalp is the focal point, says Kaehne, people with little or no head hair also get a head spa treatment. Baxmann says that even for people undergoing chemotherapy, the desire can arise to have their scalp pampered.
And Kaehne reports that people suffering from frequent headaches have come to her day spa as well. There's no scientific evidence that head spas are an effective therapy for headaches, however.
