Let me explain what this product is for before I get on with the review. Shiseido MA CHERIE Perfect Shower is not a leave-in hair conditioning spray, heat-protectant, or hair fragrance — it is a neguse (pronounced “neh-gu-seh”) spray, a very Japan-specific product. (Neguse means “bed hair” in Japanese.)
Most, if not all, Japanese shower and bathe once a day in the evening. (Why would anyone want to get into bed with trace of dirt on their bodies?) This, of course, comes with its cost as hair often end up with odd kinks in the morning (a.k.a. bed hair). In image-conscious Japan, cosmetic companies long came up with a product that can quickly and easily fix this common problem — the neguse, or bed hair, spray. Just lightly spray onto problem section(s) then use your hands or a brush to smooth out hair. Let dry naturally (takes a few minutes at most) or give hair a quick blast with a hair dryer, and voilà, bed hair gone — at least that’s the idea.
I put in a lot of effort into creating the slightly messy, bed hair look on my naturally smooth, sleek, semi-straight hair so I’ve never taken a glance at neguse sprays — that is, until beginning of this year. I got some brow-skimming fringe put in (first time in more than a decade!) and no matter what I do, they always look ridiculous in the morning — completely flatten on one side with kinks all over the place. Wetting the entire section and restyling work well, but that honestly too tedious to do every morning.
I haven’t previously tested a lot of neguse sprays, but the ones I did try weighed down my hair. They might work fantastically at smoothing typical thick, coarse Asian hair, but they just make my normal (but still Asian) hair look and feel unwashed — oily, limp, and flat. MA CHERIE Perfect Shower (Sara-sara type), however, does exactly what it promises to do without making hair feels coated. It’s very light, so perfect for slightly oily hair like mine, but also moisturising, so great if your hair is also coloured or a little damaged.
I wash my hair at night. In the morning, I just lightly spray it onto my fringe (or any problem sections) and finger-comb through the hair several times in the direction I want the fringe to fall. Once it dries, hair style is not only “reset” to pre-bed condition, but it also makes hair shinier, smoother, and static-free.
I love this spray — I’m on my third bottle! It is definitely right up there with my most favourite beauty products! If you wash and style your hair in the morning, neguse sprays would be no use to you. But if you’re looking for a quick and easy bed hair fixer, The Shiseido MA CHERIE Perfect Shower, specifically Sara-sara (Smooth) type, is an excellent one to try out.
The 250ml bottlle is US$ from Amazon.com (HERE).
This is my absolute fave. Along with the other versions in this line. I have incredibly thick stubbornly straight hair that will not yield once it’s been ironed into shape by being slept on. This product is a godsend, like you i’ve also tried numerous brands to little effect. I occasionally get a hot perm and the nourishing version is really good at reviving curls in the morning. I’ve been using this since 2011 and I think I am on my 10 bottle or something!
I noticed that the section “conditioner” was not updated in a long time. I’ve been looking at Shiseido Tsubaki Shinning line (seems pretty popular on amazon), any opinion about the shampoo and conditioner (or maybe they have a better line than this one)? I have one shampoo with biotin, I only use it when my hair is shorter and I also can’t use it during summer – because of too much buildup, the other one (from the same brand) leaves the hair a bit too soft (not dry though) and the conditioner in combination with the latter shampoo creates only… Read more »
I rarely add hair-related things to the site simply due to lack of interests from most readers. Shiseido’s Tsubaki shampoos and conditioners i in Japan is kind of like Pantene in the US — flashy adverts, heavily marketed, but get slammed by myriad of people (pros and regular users) as being terrible. They’re definitely more popular outside in Japan! Their styling products are decent, but their shampoos and conditioners (especially the Shining and Damaging Care lines) have received very poor reviews overall on @cosme site — averaging 3.5 stars out of 7 based of hundreds of user reviews. I personally… Read more »
Thanks and yes I agree on the analogy. When you say “@cosme site”, is there any specific site you’re talking about that is very respected in Japan, like a japanese ratzillacosme version? :p
Wow! thanks for the explanation. I just got this product at the Asian supermarket, and I do not speak Japanese at all so I did not have idea what this “Perfect Shower” spray supposed to be for. I haven’t tried it yet but smells like Tresemme thermal protective spray. The shampoo and conditioner that come with this product are really good..love them! They make myhair so soft.