Pretty hair again: Galaxy Balayage + Organic Moist Treatment at 99 Percent Hair Studio (Katong MODA)

For an update on how well this colouring lasted and a discount code for 99 Percent Hair Studio (Katong MODA), read here!

Original review below.

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Back at 99 Percent Hair Salon (Katong MODA). 

I love this place and its simple, woody interior. And its warm and friendly staff!

So the pretty wine/purple I last had has since faded, leaving a bronze-blonde mix of sorts. I find the slight variations in tone quite interesting, and am pretty impressed with balayage and its effects!

As interesting as the streaks of blonde/brown were, it's time for an update for the new year. Here's one last shot of me with my brassy hair. On to pretty colours!

My wine/purple hair didn't last long because of my damaged hair cuticles. The colours washed out after slightly over two weeks (it was gorgeous while it lasted!). This time, Danson wanted to try a new brand of hair colour, an acid dye that is supposed to last slightly longer than the last brand I had. The chart says "semi-permanent", but Danson shared that this brand of semi-permanent dyes lasts longer than the semi-permanent dyes of the past. It's also ammonia-free, so yay for my hair!

I fell in love with the pastels (me, sucker for pastels). Danson saw how much I loved the pastels and suggested using some for select strands. Yay!

As usual, love Danson and his attention to detail. He showed me some hair samples so that I had an idea of the shade of colours he wanted for me. 

I didn't need a hair cut because my hair was still in pretty good shape from the last trim. And because my hair had already been bleached before this and was pretty light in colour, the violet highlights were applied immediately. I'm going to have violet in my hair!

Danson chose to do a darker look for me this time because I can't sport a bright style due to upcoming shows. The last time I tried a darker look for a new year, it lasted a total of a day before I decided that the dark look didn't work for me. I bought a home-dye and lightened my hair the next day :P

Second attempt at going darker for another new year!

After applying the violets on select strands (kudos to Danson's keen eye and skill!), it was on to spot bleaching on select streaks of hair for the pastels that I fell in love with. Can't achieve pastels without bleach, so what to do (the things I do to my hair for the colours I love).

Time to let the violet and bleach sit for a bit, while Danson prepares the colour for my overall hair - blue-black (part of the salon's organic dye range)!

The noob that I am, I was surprised when I saw this being brought to the work station. Blue-black? Isn't this... white? Jackie, the latest addition to the 99 Percent Katong family, promptly addressed my quizzical look and assured me that this colour will oxidise as we go along. 

Wow, the things I learn with every trip to the salon.

The white cream has oxidised and is now an ash blue-gray mix!

Danson marks out the foil pieces that are wrapped around the strands with bleach, for easier identification later.

Then it's time to let the colours and bleach do their work. I currently have violet, blue-black and bleach in my hair!

Waiting...

Danson comes round to check on the strands with bleach, to see if the bleach has worked its magic. Looking good!

Asian hair can never truly go full white, so I guess blonde is the best I can ask for. The strands are now ready for the pretty pastels!

The bleached strands were then wrapped with foil again to prevent them from getting stained by the blue-black in the rest of my hair. 

Folded foil pieces for violet, rolled foil pieces for bleach. I like this system Danson has going on (yes, I am easily amused).

Time for the wash! Jackie first washes off the overall blue-black...

... then, time to remove the folded foil pieces and wash off the violet. Check out the water. And poor Jackie's hands.

Finally, time to remove the rolled foil pieces to completely wash off the bleach.

Danson shows me more hair samples of the pastel colours he recommends for my bleached strands. He's going with green, a mixture of blues, and a spot of orange, just for fun. I love pastels, so the more the merrier! :D

Hello orange! Because orange doesn't quite match the rest of the colours used, Danson only applied it to a tiny bit of my hair for a pop of bright.

Then it's time for green...

... and finally, blues! See how Danson carefully applies his strokes to achieve a gradient effect? 

Yes, the man is magic. 

While the orange, green and blues slowly stew in their foils, it's time for the Organic Moist Treatment! My damaged hair definitely needs this.

But before we got started with treatment, Jackie wheels out a strange looking machine.

Time to apply the treatment to my hair! The parts in foil are the orange, green and blues, still taking their time to stick to my hair. Jackie explained that she won't be applying treatment to those strands as the pastels will take a while to set in and may be affected by the chemicals in the treatment.

See Danson who's right behind us? The talented man had so many customers that day, he was tending to at least two people at any one time. If you want your hair to be in his good hands, call early and book an appointment!

Meanwhile, the strange machine that Jackie wheeled out earlier will soon be ready for its performance.

So what exactly does the strange machine do? 

It's a hair mist machine that helps to seal the nutrients from the treatment into the hair!

So much mist!

The mist created such a scene that the kid behind me who came with her mom couldn't help but stare. She's quite cute, eh? :D

After misting, it was time to sit and wait while the treatment works its magic.

And then on to the wash, to wash off the treatment and remove the foil hiding the lovely pastels in my hair.

See that pop of orange? And the violets? And that sliver of green?

I love colours. Especially when they're in my hair.

Last steps to the treatment, before we're all done. 

Left: Leave-in spray

Middle: Serum

Right: Yoghurt hair mask (Jackie included this to further moisturise my hair after the treatment. This is also one of the salon's bestsellers.)

In goes the spray, mask and serum...

... then time for blow drying...

... and more blow drying (If I had the patience to blow dry my hair the way they do in the salon, I'd have pretty hair everyday. But, no).

Remember that serum in the earlier picture? Danson applied the serum to my right hand, and a bit of pharmacy-bought serum to my left. See the difference? The organic Rose oil felt slightly oily at first, but absorbed quickly, leaving my right hand soft and smooth. The pharmacy-bought serum didn't quite absorb and remained shiny for a looongg time. 

Danson explained that usual pharmacy-bought serums contain silicon, which is why they leave a coat of shine and feel slightly rubbery to the touch. The Rose oil is part of their organic treatment line, and is used as the last step in their Organic Moist Treatment. It can also be bought in store, at SGD44 a bottle.

I fell in love with the oil's fragrance and love how it leaves my hair soft and silky without the usual sticky feeling I get from other serums. I have a bottle at home and have been using it for the past few days since the colouring session. I only have three words for this product: I. Love. You.

Hello silky, colourful hair!

As expected, a very satisfying hair colouring session at 99 Percent Hair Salon (Katong MODA).

Three days after the colouring session, and my hair's still soft and smooth, thanks to the Organic Moist Treatment and the lovely Rose oil! 

I'm in love with the colours that Danson has chosen for me, and while miss them dearly when they eventually fade. Like he says, "深色的头发让你看起来很 classy". I'm definitely not freaking out over a darker look this time, because I'm in love with his skilled use of colours!

Another colour update in two weeks or so. 

Till then, 

:)

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!

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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). 

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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!).