If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that having damaged hair is no fun. Even if you take breaks from heat-styling or extend the time between your colour appointments, your strands can still look frizzy and feel coarse. Some of the most unlikely culprits, such as wearing your hair up in a ponytail, can add daily stress on your tresses too.
If damaged hair is the current bane of your existence, you’re not alone. Our colleague Gwendolyn noticed that her hair’s health had deteriorated a year ago, and she struggled to manage her rough, tangled hair since. Recently, however, she found a way to salvage her locks by using a unique haircare range that showed her visible results from the very first wash.
Curious to find out the products she used? Keep reading to learn about her hair journey and the haircare range that restored her hair’s shine and smoothness.
The struggles of managing damaged hair
Gwendolyn’s blue balayage hair (left), her hair one year later (right)
Once a year, Gwendolyn would give her hair a makeover by chopping her long locks to her shoulders and saturate it in a new colour. It was something she would do to round off the academic year and give her hair a fresh start. Even when she experimented with dip-dyed ends and a full head of magenta, her hair didn’t sustain much damage. However, that all changed earlier last year.
“I decided to try a blue balayage, which meant I had to bleach my hair. When I felt my hair after, I immediately knew I made a mistake,” Gwendolyn sighed. “After a year, I’m still waiting for hair to grow to a length where I can snip the bleached areas all off.”
As her hair colour faded from blue to brassy yellow, she noticed that her hair felt rougher and the frizz became more apparent. No amount of hair oil, serums, or masks has been able to salvage it. Some of the haircare products she tried left her scalp greasy, and none of them could tame her frizzy, damaged strands for long.
If you have both coloured and textured hair like Gwendolyn, you’ll know that damage can look like a double-whammy. “I like to describe my hair as fried noodles because of its tone and texture. A hungry horse would probably mistake my hair for hay and chew on it if I stood nearby,” she joked.
All she wanted was to get her hair to a healthier, smoother state, so we handed her a little care package to take home: Je l’aime’s new Amino Algae Rich haircare range.
Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich haircare range
To treat your hair and scalp as well as protect it from further damage, Japanese haircare brand Je l’aime created its new Amino Algae Rich range. Enriched with 18 different types of amino acids, the shampoo, conditioner, and mask coats every strand of hair in a nourishing essence to prevent split ends, hair breakage, and sun damage.
The algae essence in the formula is made with kombu extract, which has excellent moisturising abilities, as well as bladderwrack extract, an ingredient that contains a wealth of minerals and vitamins to strengthen damaged hair. This powerful tag-team provides fast, intensive, yet long-lasting repair to smooth even the frizziest hair.
Keep reading to find out what Gwendolyn thought of the products and see the stunning results after just three days of use.
First impressions
Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich Deep Moist Shampoo
As soon as Gwendolyn received the products, she commented on the packaging. “They come in such pretty blue bottles – definitely a plus point because I’m a sucker for pretty packaging,” she says. She liked that the Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich Deep Moist Shampoo came in a pump bottle too because otherwise, she’d be fumbling about in the bathroom trying to pop open the cap of the bottle.
“The shampoo smells like a lovely mix of guava, lychee, and grapefruit,” she shared. If you adore sweet fragrances, you’ll love the scent of Je l’aime’s Amino Algae Rich Deep Moist Shampoo. She used a full pump of shampoo on her roots, right down to the lengths of her hair. “I like that the shampoo lathers easily even with only one pump,” she said, “My hair doesn’t feel as tangled and knotted after I washed the shampoo out.”
Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich Deep Moist Treatment
Compared to the shampoo, the Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich Deep Moist Treatment had a slightly stronger scent, but Gwendolyn didn’t mind that. “The treatment glided through my hair easily and detangled knots almost instantly as I combed through with my fingers,” she praised. She also enjoyed the texture and consistency of the treatment. It was neither too heavy and gloopy nor too watery, so it didn’t cause a mess as she was using it.
She used two full pumps of conditioner from the lengths of her hair, all the way down to the tips. After rinsing it off, her hair felt softer and smoother, balanced and not greasy.
Je l’aime Amino Deep Repair Algae Mask
Out of the three products, the Je l’aime Amino Deep Repair Algae Mask has the mildest scent, which is excellent for those with sensitive noses. Available in a tub, the mask received a different packaging from the shampoo and conditioner, but it certainly made it easier for Gwendolyn to scoop out more product.
Despite its thicker consistency, she was able to spread the mask through the lengths of her hair quickly. “The mask went on smooth and thick, like a cocoon of moisture for my hair,” she shared. It left her hair nourished and moisturised after she rinsed it off.
After one wash
After just one wash, Gwendolyn’s hair felt much softer and smoother to the touch. “I was able to feel a difference and see a visible change in the texture of my hair, which really surprised me,” she said. Her tresses were moisturised and balanced but not greasy, so she couldn’t wait to try the products out for two more days.
The results after three days
With continued use, she noticed fewer flyaways and less frizz. “My hair definitely looked less ‘poofy’ and dry, and the damaged ends felt a lot smoother and more manageable too,” Gwendolyn noted. “The haircare range works really well for my hair. These products are unlike others I’ve tried in the past, which usually take about a week to reveal a visible difference.”
Even after the review, Gwendolyn continued to use the Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich haircare range, and she still sees improvements in her hair’s texture, shine, and overall health.
Je l’aime Amino Algae Rich haircare products are priced at S$16.90 each and are available at Watsons.
