Wearing hair weaves is a growing trend. Stars including Tyra Banks and Kim Kardashian are wearing hair weaves. It gives you versatility with your hair styles and allows you to try different hair colors without damaging your hair. If you don't take care of your hair weave, however, it may develop a musty mildew smell. This smell develops for two reasons. First, if your hair is left wet under the tufts of weave, mildew will grow, just as it grows in the wet spots of your home. A musty-mildewy smell can also be caused by hair product build-up. If you have a mildew smell in your hair weave, some simple steps will give you back your pleasant-smelling hair.
Wash your hair thoroughly. Focus especially on the scalp. Wash with a clarifying shampoo, which conditions the hair and contains acetic acid. The acid removes product build-up on hair that can cause scents. Don't use a clarifying shampoo for your regular wash because it might be too damaging for your real hair. Only use it when you need to remove a smell.
Rinse your hair thoroughly. Improper rinsing will cause product build-up, which can lead to smells. Spend twice the amount of time you usually spend rinsing your hair when you are not wearing a weave.
Dry your hair properly. When you dry your hair, use a blow dryer and focus the heat on the scalp. Wet hair is the main factor in mildew hair smells.
Rmove the weave if you cannot get the mildew smell out. Although it may be pricey to remove the weave, you don't want to be known as the person whose hair stinks.