Korean & Japanese Hair Care: Best Repairing Treatments for Damaged Hair

Feeling like your hair quality is worsening as you age? Besides aging, hair becomes damage in large part because of the 'heat damage' our daily care routine often inflicts. Whether it's dyeing, sunlight, hair iron styling, or the trusty hair dryer you use for an early night, it's the small everyday procedures that can cause yellowing, frizz, roughness and split ends.

Hair conditioner is of course essential in keeping hair smooth; but conditioner alone isn't enough to restore health and shine to damaged strands. Rather, reach for hair repairing treatment products for deeper nourishment and better defence against damage. Hair masks and hair oil are two common hair treatment products; but it doesn't stop there. Out of the dizzying variety out there of masks, oil, milk, emulsions, serums and more, keep reading to find out what each type does and what's good for your hair type!

Hair Mask

Providing deeper, more intensive care than a conditioner, a hair mask is often thick and creamy in texture and consists of excellent hydrating and repairing factors such as keratin, natural plant oils or panthenol. Just like a facial mask, hair masks deliver hydration through your hair cuticles to the deeper layers of your strands, repairing damaged bonds. We recommend using a hair mask 1-2 times a week, which can help to gradually improve hair quality.

Tips!

To boost repairing effects, wrap your hair in cling film or a shower cap after applying hair mask to prevent heat loss on the scalp surface, as heat can enhance the penetration of the nutrients through the hair.

Best Japanese Hair Mask Recommendation｜Shiseido TSUBAKI Premium Repair Hair Mask

A household name even in Japan, the camellia-infused TSUBAKI hair mask has a richly hydrating formula that sinks into your hair indulgently, rejuvenating damaged tresses from the core of each strand. It boasts a '0-second wait' efficacy that spares you the leave-in hassle of ordinary hair masks, yielding post-salon-grade hair instantly.

Best Korean Hair Mask Recommendation｜Dr.SEED Black Bean Vegan Anti-Hairloss Treatment Hair Pack

Formulated with Black Foods Complex (Black bean, Black sesame, Black rice, Black rye, Black cumin) and a rich selection of nutritious botanicals, this hair mask quickly replenishes the nutrients lost from the core of the hair to invigorate the scalp and strengthen the roots. It promises comprehensive deep repair, from the roots to the ends, while preventing hair loss. Enjoy the gentle formula and natural ingredients with the reassurance that it's passed sensitive skin tests and awarded a Green EWG rating.

Best Japanese Hair Mask Recommendation｜P&G Pantene Macaron Hair Mask

These cute tiny hair mask capsules come in three different colours for different hair types: pink for colour care, blue for light hydration, and yellow for damage repair. The highly concentrated essence provides instant care with nourishing formulas of vitamins, amino acids, squalane and other hair care ingredients, hydrating and repairing split ends to improve frizz and restore a healthy radiance. The portable, individually packaged design also makes these hair masks the perfect travel companion.

Best Japanese Hair Mask Recommendation｜Milbon Home Care Hair Treatment

If you've ever left a hair salon with one of these, you'll know how good they are. Milbon's hair masks are widely used by hairdressers in Japan and highly acclaimed by professionals, but now you can indulge in salon-grade hair treatment right at home with the brand's home care hair masks! They repair the internal structure of hairs with collagen-rich formulas and help to fortify the bonds of damaged, dry strands, leaving hair with a dewy, hydrated glow. If you have limp hair, fear not – these hair treatments hydrate without weighing hair down and offers lightweight yet thorough care.

Best Japanese Hair Mask Recommendation｜Kracie ICHIKAMI Premium Hair Treatment Mask

Let this Japanese hair mask adorn you with an angelic halo-like glow! It moisturises with a concoction of Japanese herbs and botanical oils, targeting even minor damage in hairs to deliver intensive, comprehensive enrichment that spreads from the roots to the ends. Reinforcing hair strands down to the core, it leaves hair silky and shimmering with a light yet moisturising creamy texture reminiscent of luxurious face creams. Hair maintains a natural, healthy bounce while becoming smooth and manageable.

Best Japanese Hair Mask Recommendation｜Shiseido SUBLIMIC Airy Flow Hair Mask

A blend of rebonding and repairing ingredients, this hair mask from Shiseido's SUBLIMIC hair care line reaches deep into the hair core to repair and improve frizz from within, restoring elasticity and bounce with a treatment quality on par with the hairdresser's. Formulated for thick and unruly, especially coloured and permed, hair. it doesn't just leave hair with a healthy shine but also a subtle floral aroma that charms even without perfume.

Hair Oil

No time to spare for hair masks? Keep reading, because a major perk of hair oil is its leave-in, no-rinse feature! Simply apply before blow drying to keep your hair effortlessly yet fully protected as you go about your routine. Hair oil is often engineered with plant-based oils and can combat frizz and split-ends, enhance shine, and keep your ends smooth and frictionless while combing. Hair oil infused with heat-protecting ingredients also help to block the heat damage caused by styling tools like hair dryers and irons, so if your styling routine involves a lot of heat, hair oil is crucial.

Best Korean Hair Oil Recommendation｜UNOVE Silk Oil Essence

A favourite among Korean girls, this Olive Young chart-topping hair oil hydrates with a light, watery texture that leaves no grease or slickness. But don't let the quick-absorbing texture deceive you – it's richly concocted with 23 protein and amino acids, 5 botanical extracts and other highly nourishing ingredients to smooth frizz and roughness, detangle, and mend split ends, while also enhancing elasticity and shine.

Best Hair Oil Recommendation｜Moroccanoil Treatment Original

This iconic salon-quality luxury hair oil is a household name both in and out of hair salons at this point – highly acclaimed even by Hollywood celebs! Argan oil, rich in vitamin E and antioxidants, is seen as “liquid gold” for the hair and can instantly reduce frizz and leave hair smooth and manageable. Use regularly and find your hair nourished, soft and healthier over time!

Best Hair Oil Recommendation｜OLAPLEX No.7 Bonding Oil

Instantly revives dull, lifeless hair and smooths split ends, imbuing hair with softness and radiance. If you're troubled by damaged hair, this hair oil is for you. In addition to repairing, it's also armed with heat and colour protection, shielding hair from blow drying and hair iron damage while improving the durability of hair colouring.

Best Japanese Hair Oil Recommendation｜VICREA &honey EX Deep Moist Hair Oil

For stiff, rough and dry hair, reach for the &honey Deep Moist Hair Oil. 90% of this intensively hydrating formula comprises nourishing ingredients like honey, natural extracts, and royal jelly extract to deeply repair damage down to the core and restore natural smoothness and radiance. This beginner-friendly hair oil is showered with praises and awards in Japan for good reason – promising repair, moisturisation and frizz resistance in one bottle, what more could you ask for?

Best Korean Hair Oil Recommendation｜B Project Stay Hair Recover Treatment Oil

Coconut oil has great hair affinity and keeps hair moisturized and glossy all day long. This hair oil provides lasting nourishment with coconut oil as well as 14 kinds of natural proteins derived from seeds and grains to moisturise your tresses and smooth frayed hair cuticles. Also equipped with heat protection and anti-static protection, it offers all-rounded defense against hair dryer heat and weather conditions.

Hair Serum/Milk

As the name suggests, hair serums/milks are the creamy, more lightweight counterpart of hair oil while remaining similar in effects and usage. The lighter texture makes it easier to maintain volume and bounce, orienting it towards those with oily, fine hair or those wanting to keep hydration fresh and light. Besides hair milk and serums, hair mists have also begun emerging on the market to enable instant care with just a few spritz.

Best Japanese Hair Milk Recommendation｜Utena Proqualite Hair Maintenance Emulsion

Designed with dry, stubborn naturally curly hair in mind, this hair milk smooths and hydrates cuticles with a series of moisturisers, softening hair and leaving it sleek, bouncy and smooth to comb, with the mirror-like shine typical of healthy hair. Light and non-sticky in texture, it spreads easily without residue, offering the perfect daily smoothing treatment for naturally wavy hair.

Best Japanese Hair Milk Recommendation｜KOSE Bioliss Botanical Concentrate Hair Milk

This vegan hair milk comes in a light, mild texture as soft as a skin moisturising lotion, gliding on hair smoothly and sinking in swiftly with no stickiness. It infuses hair with rich botanical oils and moisturisers to deeply nourish, repair damage, and prevent hair static and breakage, restoring and touching up your tresses in one go. This is makeup for your hair in a bottle.

Best Japanese Hair Milk Recommendation｜Napla N. Shea Milk Hair Milk

Richly blended with 3 kinds of ultra-high-pressure treated plant oils, this professional-grade Japanese hair milk deeply nourishes the hair core with a thick creamy texture for all-round damage repair. Hair is left smooth yet fluffy, frizz-free and detangled, with a light, airy glow. It comes in a lighter-than-it-sounds, oil-free texture that leaves hair only with a subtle floral aroma and no stickiness at all.

Best Japanese Hair Serum Recommendation｜Shiseido TSUBAKI Premium Repair Hair Water

Camellia essential oil lies at the heart of this moisturising hair mist from Japan, which fuses the three effects of adding shine, repairing damage, and UV protection. It also includes heat protection benefits, making it your perfect pre-styling product to combat heat damage from hair dryers and hair irons. The spray design allows for instant no-fuss hair care – just spray and go!

Best Hair Serum Recommendation｜OLAPLEX No.0 Intensive Bond Building Hair Treatment

This hair treatment protects hair follicles with a salon-developed formula and repairs hair from the insides, strengthening its core structure and smoothing cuticles to prevent tangles and breakage. One spritz provides deep instant treatment for severely damaged hair, with the refreshing texture absorbing into hair in no time. Keeping your hair protected from sun damage is just important as protecting your skin! Spray it before heading out and keep your hair protected the same way you'd apply sunscreen in the morning.