Japanese women’s hair

I have been wondering about Japanese women's hair: it often looks sleek and smooth, even in the rainy season! On the otherhand, my hair seems to get frizzy ! especially in this season! what hair products to you Japanese ladies use? or do you get a "straight perm" ? I' d love to know!
thanks !

I certainly don't have straight hair and I am not Japanese. Although I do use certain Japanese products after I have pressed my hair straight. Before my hair is pressed it is usually 2 inches longer than armpit length. After I press my hair it is nearly waist length.

I usually use Shiseido Tsubaki hair care products. They are really wonderful and always leave my hair feeling silky afterwards.

You should definitely give it a try. I am sort of picky about which products I put in my hair. My friends offered me to try some of the product while I was in Japan. I have been buying it diligently.

I also use Mandom hair treatment water. Its important to keep your hair moist correctly. I usually spray it in the morning or after I condition/ co-wash my hair.

Would you like the link to my supplier? :)

button,

I have been a Japanese women for decades and let me tell you, Japanese hair is very seldom sleek and smooth, especially on rainy days! You would be amazed at how much time girls (as well as boys) spend time on their hair each morning to get it right, and each person eventually finds or not find their solution.

In my case, the solution, at least for the moment, is La Sana. I notice a lot of people saying they're good, and although they may cost a bit, all you need is a small amount per day, so you won't be wasting your money. http://www.lasana.co.jp/index.html

Personally, I prefer their Hair Essence, because it is scentless and yet keeps my hair like you want it to. I squish it on my hair while it's wet, and then after I set my hair right, I put a thin layer over my whole head using both hands to sort of cover the whole thing. They're available at major drug stores in Japan.
http://www.lasana.co.jp/damage_haircare/hairessence/index.html

Another thing is hair style. I think each person has her/his right style of length and layers and shapes that keeps her/him looking good.

Buy mind you, Asian hair is generally harder than Caucasian or African hair.

in general if you see people with extremely smooth and silky looking hair even in summer, they have done something called shukumou kyousei

women who do this do it to straighten their hair generally once every 6-12 months. it makes your hair look super silky and straightens it out to however straight you want it at the time your stylist does the treatment.

i do shukumou every month or two as i'm a guy with extremely curly hair but i hate curly hair and very short hair is not fashionable for me. my hair stays dead straight even in summer time now, no frizzing and shukumou doesn't wear off over time - the roots just grow out.

thanks for all the info!
Sweetest Tokyo, I use the Tsubaki shampoo and conditioner, and then that's where my hair care regime stops! what product do you use on your hair and how exactly?
Uco - is that so?!! I spend less than a minute on my hair every morning :( no wonder I haven't been looking so good lately. Yes, I think Japanese women take care of their hair a lot better than others .. I'm going to try Le Sana products, thanks.
Winterwolf - is the shukumou kyousei process the same as a "straight perm" ? doesn't it damage the hair?
thanks !

Uco, I do have to disagree with your statement that Asian hair is harder to maintain than African hair. I seriously couldn't stop laughing at that statement.

Button, usually I conditions my hair every week. My hair is in the 4b-c are considering texture.

First I usually comb through my hair. I alway begin at the end and comb slowly through with a wide tooth comb. Never start all the way towards your head when detangling. I made this mistake and nearly killed my hair.

Second I thoroughly wash my hair with water that is a little cooler than warm. I begin to apply the Tsubaki Head Spa cleansing shampoo. I then was out all of the shampoo.

Then I apply Tsubaki head spa conditioner. This conditioner really leaves my hair feeling clean.

I repeat both of these processes using Tsubaki Shining shampoo and conditioner.

Afterwards I dry my hair and wet it lightly. Your hair shouldn't be soaking wet. I then apply Knot Today by Kinky Curly. Then I bag in sealing my hair with grape seed oil. All you do is apply the grape seed oil as a top coat. The next day I Press my hair. My hair is a lot to work with so I usually let my boyfriend do the back while I do the front.my hair is really bouncy afterwards. I only shampoo every two weeks. I condition every week. I press my hair once a month.

If I am in need of a little more moisture I apply The Mandom Hair Moisture Spray. You can find all of these products at www.prettyandcute.com

shukumou is different from a normal straight perm

in english it's known as japanese thermal hair straightening

i guess you could say it damages the hair - the chemicals change the structure of the hair itself. your hair will become a bit more delicate (it will break/snap more easily) but generally it's not THAT bad, and appearancewise it looks REALLY good - shiny and smooth and soft.

i highly recommend it, it's much better than trying to straighten your hair with an iron.

otherwise if you don't want to do that you could coat your hair with a good quality leave in conditioning oil. it may help keep frizz down. but personally i wouldn't count on anything besides shukumou. today was 29c and very humid and my hair would have been going nuts today - thankfully i just had my hair shukumo'd a month ago. will be going back in soon to get it done up again.

I have the opposite problem- I have very straight fine hair and it looks really lank and lifeless during rainy season. If anyone knows of any products to fix that I would love to hear about it!