Waterfall of Silk: Hair Feng Shui

Feng Shui (pronounced fung' shway') literally translates as "Wind and Water" in Chinese. According to Dictionary.com, it's "The Chinese art or practice of positioning objects, especially graves, buildings, and furniture, based on a belief in patterns of yin and yang and the flow of chi that have positive and negative effects."

According to Chen, Feng Shui was developed by Taoist priests who observed the natural world, its life cycles and how balance promotes harmony. Over the years, the teaching evolved to address all aspects of life, including health, and beauty.

Chen says that the ancient Chinese believed that the external appearance is "merely a reflection of the internal condition." For that reason, Beauty Feng Shui incorporates meditation, acupressure, yoga and proper nutrition to establish balance and external beauty.
For optimal meditation, Chen includes Chinese characters for you to visualize while sitting quietly and concentrating on your chi, or "life energy." For hair, she includes the characters that mean "Waterfall of Silk," an elegant reference to shiny, healthy hair.

Chen also includes accupressure exercises that she recommends performing as frequently as possible for gorgeous hair.

First, Chen says to rub your hands together until they're hot. Then, while exhaling, she says to tap your fingers on three key points: the forehead at your hairline, the very top of your head, and behind your ears. She suggests repeating the hand rubbing, exhaling, tapping, and inhaling four times on each of these three acupressure points.

At least one celebrity hairstylist has incorporated Feng Shui techniques into his repertoire. Billy Yamaguchi is considered one of the first in the West to employ the ancient Chinese practices when creating customized hairstyles for his clients.

At least one celebrity hairstylist has incorporated Feng Shui techniques into his repertoire. Billy Yamaguchi is considered one of the first in the West to employ the ancient Chinese practices when creating customized hairstyles for his clients.

Beauty Feng Shui: Chinese Techniques for Unveiling Your Inner Beauty goes beyond hair to include Chinese beauty secrets for the whole body. I highly recommend picking up the book to learn more about this fascinating practice.