Taraji P. Henson’s weave gone bad inspired her haircare product line

After a bad sew-in weave left Taraji P. Henson’s hair reeking of a mildew smell when the weave was taken out, she went on a quest to find a haircare product to solve the problem. As Henson explains it, she’d been washing her hair but it was not drying properly, which led to the smell.

Her hair weave was the result of an install process that sewed a hairnet on top of her braided natural hair before sewing the hair tracks on top of the net. Henson described her dilemma, which is the same problem that many black women have. “How do I get to my scalp? How do I clean it? I didn’t ever want that mildew smell again.”

When Henson could not find a retail product that addressed this problem, she found her answer in an unlikely place – in her own kitchen. Working (as she describes herself) like a “mad scientist,” Henson mixed products to formulate and perfect her formula. She launched her own haircare product line – TPH by Taraji – which has been finding its way onto shelves in Target since January.

The affordable product line, tailored for many hair types, focuses on scalp care and includes 18 products that range in price from $5 to $15.