Nori's EcoSalon: Encino gets a green hair salon

Shades Hair Studio's not the only L.A.-area hair salon going green. Encino's got Nori's Eco Salon, an eco-conscious hair salon that's going to hold its grand opening Saturday:

When: Saturday, March 29, 7 pm - 9:30 pm
Where: 15826 Ventura Blvd., Suite 224, Encino
What: Music, refreshments, and celebration; all ages welcome

The salon's too far away for me to frequent, but the place sounds eco-dreamy, with natural linoleum floors, recycled denim insulation, and other green features. Nori's offers a full range of services, for haircuts to hair color to hair or foot massages with organic essential oils.

Nori's specialty is non-toxic hair color, using the EcoColors product line. Compared to conventional colors, EcoColors contain less questionable ingredients -- and shuns sulfites or parabens altogether. However, the EcoColors still do contain some ingredients environmentalists might not like, including ammonia, peroxide, and PPD (a.k.a. coal tar). Purists may still opt against coloring their hair, but those who feel they must cover up their grays or get highlights for the summer will likely welcome EcoColors' less toxic products.

For my part, I find the world of eco hair color super confusing to navigate, since eco's hardly a defined term, especially for artificial coloring. For example, Susan Henry's line used at Shades Hair Studio contains parabens but no ammonia, while EcoColors contains ammonia but no parabens. Those with sensitivities to one or the other might make their choices accordingly.