Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Product Review: Art-Noise Japanese Hair Salon's SHA Base Care Shampoo and Treatment

Thanks to the folks at Beauty Undercover, I got a treatment done at Art-Noise Japanese Hair Salon (Holland Village) last November and got a glimpse of healthy hair after a long time of seeing straw on my head :P The friendly stylists at Art-Noise sent me home with a bottle of their specially formulated SHA shampoo and treatment so I could better test the product with continued use. 

The shampoo and treatment come in a very simple and pretty package. Just as I would expect from the Japanese! 

A close-up shot of the shampoo. 
I don't read Japanese, but here's a picture for those of you who can! 

For the rest of us who don't understand Japanese, here's more information:

SHA Base Care Shampoo ($65)

Benefits for scalp:
  • Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate, a degreasing, emulsifier and foaming agent used in many hair and cleaning products. The salon shared that this ingredient is used to help clarify and wash the scalp more completely.
  • Glucosyl Hesperidin, a flavonoid compound known to stimulate blood circulation. The salon included this in their shampoo formula to increase the scalp's blood circulation.
  • 9 kinds of herbal extracts (including licorice and chamomile), which the salon included to moisturize the scalp, suppress dandruff and reduce scalp irritation.
Benefits for hair:

  • Sodium Dilauramidoglutamide Lysine, a plant-derived ingredient that is said to help repair skin and hair, while also functioning as an emulsifier in cosmetic formulas (to keep unlike substances from separating; e.g. oil and water).
  • Polyquaternium-61, a newly innovated chemical that is said to retain 3.5x water than hyaluronic acid, keeping the hair moisturised and allowing hair colours to remain vibrant for longer periods of time.

  • Customers who had tried the product for a month reportedly saw healthier and more voluminous hair. With my badly damaged hair (from countless rounds of salon and home colouring sessions), I couldn't wait to try it!

    A close-up shot of the treatment.
    Again, don't understand Japanese, but some of you may!

    More information about this treatment product:

    SHA Base Care Treatment ($65)

    Benefits for scalp:
    • Capryloyl Glycine, an ingredient that restrains bacterium and controls sebum secretion. The salon also shared that this was included to help suppress dandruff and speed up hair growth.
    • Aloe Vera, to help soothe the scalp.
    • 9 kinds of herbal extracts (including licorice and chamomile), to moisturize the scalp, suppress dandruff and reduce scalp irritation

    Benefits for hair:

  • Hydrolysed Keratin, a common cosmetic ingredient, with studies showing significant increases in skin elasticity and hydration after topical application of the ingredient. The salon shared that this was included to help make thin hair more bouncy.
  • Hydrolysed Collagen, a form of collagen. When used topically, it acts as a texture conditioner and moisturiser. The salon included this product to make coarse hair softer.
  • Hydroxypropyl Chitosan, a derivative of chitosan. Chitosan (a cellulose-like biopolymer found mainly in the exoskeleton of marine animals, e.g. crabs, shrimps) forms a clear, elastic film on hair, increasing its softness and mechanical strength. Art-Noise shared that this was included to accelerate regeneration of the hair cuticle, and is supposed to make hair stronger and shinier over time.


  •  Phew~ I did quite a bit of googling and researching to understand the different ingredients in the shampoo and treatment products.

    Now on to actual usage!
    .
    .
    .

    Just a tiny bit of shampoo (about the size of a 50-cent coin) is enough for one wash. 

    Not too different from the usual shampoo texture, this SHA shampoo has a neutral smell and foams up quick! There's hardly any resistance whenever I apply the shampoo to my hair (I'm talking about the sort of resistance that I sometimes feel when using other shampoos that don't seem to lather unless I shampoo a second time).

    Again, a tiny bit of product goes a long way with the SHA treatment. I used this much treatment product each time (about the size of a 50-cent coin) to condition my hair after shampooing. 

    The treatment product feels rich and has a thick, heavy texture, with a somewhat nutty smell. Leave it in for about 10 minutes, wash it off, and the hair feels smooth and conditioned!

    On days when I find my hair somewhat dry after wash, I apply a tiny bit of SHA treatment to my hair after towelling dry, and blow-dry my hair after. This makes my hair quite silky and soft for the rest of the day (Yukie's genius tip!). 

    Be careful not to apply too much as the heavy texture of the treatment will weigh your hair down and make it look oily (I know this because I made that mistake :P). 
    .
    .

    I've been using the SHA Base Care shampoo and treatment for slightly over a month now. I think one bottle of each has enough product to last you for more than 2 months - I still have plenty of product left after using it everyday. 

    Do I see a marked difference between using the SHA line and other hair products I've tried? Unfortunately, not really. To be fair, I had a Brazilian Blowout treatment done just before I had the chance to start using this shampoo and treatment, and was told that the keratin layer from my brazilian blowout treatment would seal my hair cuticles and make it hard for other chemicals to penetrate. Which could be why I didn't see a marked difference after a month of using these two products.

    Also, eczema runs in my family and I may have scalp psoriasis and not dandruff. I guess the SHA line may be more suitable for those with mild cases of dandruff and itchy scalp.

    Will I be purchasing the shampoo and treatment again after finishing my current bottles? Probably not. Although the treatment does leave my hair feeling smoother than it normally is, the shampoo and treatment's purported effects of moisturising scalp, suppressing dandruff and reducing itchiness did not apply to me. I also don't quite know how to appreciate the treatment's nutty smell.

    SHA Base Care Shampoo & Treatment

    Pros:
    • A little bit of product goes a long way
    • Shampoo foams up very quickly (for those who love lather!)
    • Treatment leaves hair soft and smooth
    • A tiny bit of treatment can be left in hair for a more lasting effect throughout the day

    Cons:
    • A little pricey ($65 a bottle)
    • Treatment has a somewhat nutty, artificial smell
    • Purported effects don't seem to be obvious on very badly damaged hair

    It may not have worked for me, but that might be because my hair is really too damaged. Or special :P

    The SHA Base Care Shampoo and Treatment are used in all of Art-Noise's hair services. If you're curious about the SHA line and would like to give it a try, consider popping by the salon to give any of their treatments a go and decide for yourself! The SHA line can also be purchased directly from the salon (though they don't always have them in stock, so do check!).

    1 comment:

    1. Our complete suite of CRO services spans the entire molecule development pipeline including contract research for target identification, Licoisoflavone A

      ReplyDelete