I've heard great things about Asian hair care products. Actually, I kept hearing about brands like Ryeo (Korea), Daeng Gi Meo Ri (Korea), and Shiseido Tsubaki (Japan) so much that they occupied a little cranny of my mind, until it came time to replace my existing shampoo and conditioner. I was roaming around the little Japanese market we have nearby, and it carried a few varieties of Shiseido Tsubaki products, so I decided to take the plunge for my proteinic plumage. Anyways, fun story.
In terms of my hair condition, I have a pretty oily scalp that accumulates buildup with ease, and my strands are on the drier side, since I don't really nurture it as thoroughly as I do my face with respect to skincare. Because the oil on my scalp sits at or near the root of my hair, I tend to not get a lot of volume near the roots (I may be making this up, but it sounds about right based on my experience), so I picked up the Shiseido Tsubaki Volume Touch set that comes with a shampoo and conditioner.
PACKAGING
I learned from reddit and the lovely Laven of Berries In The Snow that this is the newest product line in the Tsubaki hair care range, the others being the Shining / Extra Moist range (red), Damage Care (white), Damage Care Rich Premiere (orange), and Head Spa (gold). Each bottle, whether shampoo or conditioner, comes with 500 ml of product, and it is possible to buy 350 ml bags of refills to fill up the plastic pump bottle once one runs out.
The Volume Touch line comes in a fuchsia plastic pump bottle with gold and yellow lettering on the front. On the back, what I only assume are ingredients and instructions are printed. When new, to activate the pump, one has to twist the pump to the right, after which it'll spring up, ready to dispense product.
PERFORMANCE
Shampoo
Pros
The scent is really nice which is something I always love in the shower.
It suds extremely well and rinses out easily and thoroughly - my hair feels clean without any leftover residue.
I really love that I can buy refills which helps to reduce plastic waste.
It's pH balanced for the scalp - clocking in at a 5. Apparently alkaline hair products can be a bit damaging to the cuticle as well, which is normally at about a 3.7.
Cons
I do feel that this is pretty drying to my already dry hair. When I use it, I feel an overwhelming need to follow up with a conditioner (vs. my other more moisturizing shampoos like that from the brand Shea Moisture) and to apply argan oil to my ends.
Also, to be honest, it doesn't seem that dissimilar to drugstore darling Clairol Herbal Essences - except the Tsubaki Volume Touch might be just a tad more moisturizing.
Conditioner
Pros
I have a pretty low bar for conditioners since I'm satisfied when they moisturize without making hair too weighty, but this conditioner seems to do just that.
Rinses out cleanly.
Cons
There's really nothing remarkable about this conditioner. As it costs $10 for 500 ml, I didn't expect miracles, but I did hope it would outperform something at the drugstore and I can't say it did.
Overall, I enjoy both the shampoo and conditioner, but I'm not hooked on them and am just as much looking forward researching and picking out the next set!
FIND THEM AT
I found mine at my local Japanese mart for $10 each - you may want to check out your nearest Mitsuwa marketplace if you're interested.
Amazon (Shampoo) $12.19*
Amazon (Conditioner) $12.19*
YesStyle (Shampoo) $19.85*
YesStyle (Conditioner) $19.85*
Have you tried any of the Shiseido Tsubaki lines? What did you think?
Disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post. Purchasing through an affiliate link is one way you can choose to support this blog at no additional cost to you. Affiliate links are marked with an asterisk. If you're curious about my policy on press samples, affiliate links, and sponsors, please see my disclaimer and policies.
In terms of my hair condition, I have a pretty oily scalp that accumulates buildup with ease, and my strands are on the drier side, since I don't really nurture it as thoroughly as I do my face with respect to skincare. Because the oil on my scalp sits at or near the root of my hair, I tend to not get a lot of volume near the roots (I may be making this up, but it sounds about right based on my experience), so I picked up the Shiseido Tsubaki Volume Touch set that comes with a shampoo and conditioner.
Disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post. Purchasing through an affiliate link is one way you can choose to support this blog at no additional cost to you. Affiliate links are marked with an asterisk. If you're curious about my policy on press samples, affiliate links, and sponsors, please see my disclaimer and policies.
PACKAGING
I learned from reddit and the lovely Laven of Berries In The Snow that this is the newest product line in the Tsubaki hair care range, the others being the Shining / Extra Moist range (red), Damage Care (white), Damage Care Rich Premiere (orange), and Head Spa (gold). Each bottle, whether shampoo or conditioner, comes with 500 ml of product, and it is possible to buy 350 ml bags of refills to fill up the plastic pump bottle once one runs out.
The Volume Touch line comes in a fuchsia plastic pump bottle with gold and yellow lettering on the front. On the back, what I only assume are ingredients and instructions are printed. When new, to activate the pump, one has to twist the pump to the right, after which it'll spring up, ready to dispense product.
INGREDIENTS
I don't have the official ingredients list since they were not provided to me in English. However, if anyone reads Japanese and could translate, I would greatly appreciate it. Try as I did, I couldn't find accurate ingredients anywhere - however, I did find ingredients for a Tsubaki shampoo of an unspecified line, and the ingredients for the Tsubaki Shining conditioner, both of which I'll list below, because at least that will give some sort of frame of reference.
TSUBAKI UNSPECIFIED SHAMPOO INGREDIENTS Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Taurine Cocoyl Methyltaurate, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycol Distearate, Dipropylene Glycol, Cocamide MEA, Sorbitol, Sodium Chloride, Hydroxyethyl Urea, Camellia Reticulata, Polyquaternium-7, Dimethicone, Citric Acid, Locust Bean Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Bis-Isobutyl PEG-14/Amodimethicone Copolymer, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Methyl Lauroyl Taurate, Potassium Cocoyl Glutamate, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, PCA Ethyl Cocoyl Arginate, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Benzoate, Fragrance, Yellow 5, Yellow 6
I assume that the Volume Touch also contains sulfates like the ingredients list above, simply because most shampoos that I have used that have a volumizing and/or clarifying function seem to contain it. I also assume that the Volume Touch contains camellia, as camellia is part of the namesake of the hair care line (Tsubaki in Japanese means Camellia). Other than that I'm uncertain what else is in this brew I put on my locks.
TSUBAKI SHINING CONDITIONER INGREDIENTS Water, Sorbitol, Dipropylene Glycol, Stearyl Alcohol, Dimethicone, Hydroxypropyldimethylamine, Stearoxy Ether, Glutamic Acid, Hydroxyethylurea, Amodimethicone, PEG-90M, Steartrimonium Chloride, Camellia Japonica Seed Oil, Polyquaternium-61, Cetyl Alcohol, Mineral Oil, Bis-Isobutyl PEG-14/Ammodimethicone Copolymer, Isoceteth-10, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, PCA Ethyl Cocoyl Arginate, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, CI 17200, Yellow 5, CI 61570
I have no clue if the Volume Touch conditioner is similar to the list above. The only thing I'm pretty sure of is that there is Camellia Japonica Seed Oil in it as well. Camellia Japonica Seed Oil is an antioxidant. Scalp is also skin and can benefit from it, which in turn probably helps the hair strands as well.
PRODUCT
The shampoo on the left is a very viscous, almost clear liquid that when applied to wet hair creates a lot of suds. The scent is a really fresh, fruity and floral - when I stick my nose really close to it - I catch a little whiff of tea as well.
The conditioner on the right, is an ivory, creamy liquid that feels almost oily but with some siliconey-ness to it as well. The liquid is a medium weight - and the scent is much more generic than the shampoo. It smells like... well frankly, conditioner to me.
PERFORMANCE
Shampoo
Pros
The scent is really nice which is something I always love in the shower.
It suds extremely well and rinses out easily and thoroughly - my hair feels clean without any leftover residue.
I really love that I can buy refills which helps to reduce plastic waste.
It's pH balanced for the scalp - clocking in at a 5. Apparently alkaline hair products can be a bit damaging to the cuticle as well, which is normally at about a 3.7.
Cons
I do feel that this is pretty drying to my already dry hair. When I use it, I feel an overwhelming need to follow up with a conditioner (vs. my other more moisturizing shampoos like that from the brand Shea Moisture) and to apply argan oil to my ends.
Also, to be honest, it doesn't seem that dissimilar to drugstore darling Clairol Herbal Essences - except the Tsubaki Volume Touch might be just a tad more moisturizing.
Conditioner
Pros
I have a pretty low bar for conditioners since I'm satisfied when they moisturize without making hair too weighty, but this conditioner seems to do just that.
Rinses out cleanly.
Cons
There's really nothing remarkable about this conditioner. As it costs $10 for 500 ml, I didn't expect miracles, but I did hope it would outperform something at the drugstore and I can't say it did.
Overall, I enjoy both the shampoo and conditioner, but I'm not hooked on them and am just as much looking forward researching and picking out the next set!
FIND THEM AT
I found mine at my local Japanese mart for $10 each - you may want to check out your nearest Mitsuwa marketplace if you're interested.
Amazon (Shampoo) $12.19*
Amazon (Conditioner) $12.19*
YesStyle (Shampoo) $19.85*
YesStyle (Conditioner) $19.85*
Have you tried any of the Shiseido Tsubaki lines? What did you think?
Disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post. Purchasing through an affiliate link is one way you can choose to support this blog at no additional cost to you. Affiliate links are marked with an asterisk. If you're curious about my policy on press samples, affiliate links, and sponsors, please see my disclaimer and policies.
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