Shiseido Tsubaki Shampoo and Conditioner

In one of our favorite Nora Ephron books, I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts On Being a Woman, the late author wrote about the rigors of hair maintenance and how she “env[ies] all Asian women — I mean, have you ever seen an Asian woman whose hair looks bad? (No, you haven’t. Why is this?)” We're sad to report that the reason behind this phenomenon is probably genetics — but Asian shampoos, which contain different essential oils than their Western counterparts, probably do their part, too.

Brought to you by Shiseido, Tsubaki is the best-selling mass shampoo in Japan (and a personal favorite of our global editor Connie Wang). Tsubaki is Japanese for camellia oil, which is a frequent featured ingredient in Asian hair-care products and a traditional ingredient for adding shine and smoothing hair, dating back to geisha days. In Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha, you might remember the scene in which Sayuri visits her hairdresser to have camellia oil combed through her hair to add luster.

Because of the addition of camellia oil, you’ll notice that Tsubaki’s shampoo is a little more liquid and has more of a serum-like texture. It works particularly well for people with thicker or unruly hair because of its great smoothing properties. People with finer hair should use this weekly to restore shine. Fun fact: Japanese beauty publications traditionally recommend that you rinse your hair for three minutes, so rinse well!

Shiseido Tsubaki Shampoo and Conditioner, $18, available at Amazon.