Why Being Blonde in Japan is Harder Than You Think!
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- Опубліковано 9 січ 2025
- Japan is changing and being blonde isn't the same experience as 30 years ago. But today there are still challenges that face people with blonde hair who are living in Japan. In this video I talk about my experiences with being blonde while living in Japan and the differences I have experienced over the years.
If you are new to the channel, my name is Chani and I am a middle aged Australia who was stuck in a rut and moved to Japan to live. I bought an Akiya or empty house and started renovating. I'd love it if you joined the community.
🇯🇵I offer Japanese Language Courses, One on One Consultations and a Japanese Blog. www.chanijapan... 🇯🇵
☕️ Thanks for all your support of the channel, I really appreciate it so much. If you would like to help me continue to make videos and support my ability to keep the channel going, here is the link:
ko-fi.com/chan... ☕️
I look forward to seeing you in the next video 😀
@ChaniJapan
#lifeinjapan #blondehair #japan
Have you had any hair disasters? I’d love to hear about your experiences. ❤ Check out my website for consultations, Japanese Language courses and more❤ www.chanijapan.com/ 🇯🇵
No but am African and I have some friends with blue eyes 👀. It's a gorgeous color 😃There's a certain "intensity" that u don't find in other eye colors. Also some people's blue eyes tend to brighten up during summer, like a certain glow is added 🤔 catches me by surprise every year. 😂 It's a very unique thing. Honestly curious about it but am scared of making my friends uncomfortable if I ask 😭 so I just keep my curiosity to myself until now.
Your eyes and hair is beautiful
Natural blonde here, living in Mexico. I went to a salon to have my hair done for my niece's Quinceanera. Stylist ran his fingers through my hair, asked me what I wanted. I wanted my lowlights to be reddish brown and my highlights to be silver. He was strongly opposed to the reddish brown and kept trying to talk me out of it because he could not grasp that I actually wanted to go DARKER. Once he was finally convinced, he did it perfectly, and complained the whole time.
It was beautiful.
This is such a common problem! Being a Mediterranean brunette in Finland, I've struggled to get highlights without that brassy look - like they don't know how to handle hair that isn't naturally light. My solution? Sticking with the same hairdresser, even if she messed up the first time. The second time, she knew what to expect, and by the third, she nailed it - she knew my hair would get reddish, prepped the toner, and understood I didn't want to be full platinum blonde. It took years of hairdresser hopping to figure that out!
That’s a good idea you had to work with the hairdresser as they learn.
@ChaniJapan hoping all the hair doesn't fall out until the hairdresser learns what to do... 😂
@@VanillaPeach-y7l yep in general it is no problem to find a hairdresser who used to work with aisian hair, but my country is pretty much diverse in terms of ethnicity
STOP with the dangerous hair dye
Hair looks gorgeous by the way
Thanks ❤️❤️❤️
I totally thought about how nice your hair looked while watching your videos - you’re doing a terrific job managing it, honestly! Thank you for sharing your experiences as well!
Another thing that might happen in Japan that affects blonde hair is that some areas might have high levels of chlorine in the water. After living in Japan for about a month my skin got very itchy and my hair dried out. After buying one of those shower filters (which suck for hard water, but are amazing for chlorine) my hair became very soft and smooth.
As I lived close to Tokyo it was easy for me to find a good hairstylist, and she was in fact the best stylist I've ever had. I'm natrually ginger, and I had dyed it blonde. She was able to match my lengths to my natural roots with just 1 application of dye! I couldn't believe my eyes. And she also gave me a 2000's side swept bang Harajuku girl cut as requested. I find that in Japan hairdresers are very good at cutting, and do it very precise. Compared to europe where I feel the cutting is done in a more organic way. Like it took at least 15 minutes to cut my bangs in Japan, where they even perfect the cut after drying. Every time in Europe I got my bangs got it was just 3 random cuts, some overdirecting and some slicing, and you got bangs. Took my ages to find one fantastic stylist.
TL;DR: Check for chlorine in water, and don' t be afraid to get your hair cut, and if you need a good color, look up stylists in the big city
I think I’ll have to make a trip to Osaka. I’ll check out the shower head you suggested too. That sounds great. Thanks ❤️
Ginger is nice
I often preferred Asian stylists when I could not afford top professionals to work on my tresses. You described that very well as to WHY I did that - also the tone of the salons was not intimidating. However, I did not have them dye my hair either.
Where we live now has HARD water and I am thinking about solutions to the shower - thank you for sharing your experiences!
I have been cutting my own hair putting in highlights and root colour for over 4 years. I buy my products from professional hair supplies and I love it! Getting my hair done in Melbourne Australia has become too expensive over $500 a visit and I’m not going to pay that to anyone. I’ve learnt how mix colours on UA-cam tutorials and well …. So far so good! The more practice you have the more confident you become!
I hear you! That’s amazing that you learned to do your own hair. 😊
Can you please give some tips on cutting your hair? I've done it in the past, got sick of crappy haircuts at salons and now exclusively get my hair cut by the students at TAFE and they do an excellent job! (I'm retired so their hours work for me!). My issue is the 2-3 months until they return in the new year, so I'm thinking of cutting it myself again but have lost the courage to do so. Any advice please? Cheers from Sydney!
Whereabouts in Melbourne are you getting your hair cut coloured and they're asking $500?!?!?😮 I can tell you that the average going rate is about a quarter of that for a cut and colour, maybe up to $150/160 if you get it blow dried as well.
@@andersonomo597 there are some good youtube videos on cutting your own hair.
You do a great job on your hair. I would have never guessed that you colored your own hair. It really does save a person a lot of money.
Hi Chani, I recently came across your channel and have been watching your videos daily! I love your adventurous nature and admire your courage to try new things. I get quite irritated when I hear that some faceless troll has criticized you in any way, especially when it's directed at appearance or decisions you made. You are a lovely, brave lady who had the courage to follow your dreams. Ignore those keyboard warriors who are simply jealous or hateful and just know the rest of your fans admire what you've accomplished! Good on ya, Chani!!!!
Very kind words. Thank you so much ❤️
I was wearing my hair blonde until the pandemic hit and all salons were closed. So I tried doing it myself, but my hair turned orange. So I shaved my head. My hair grew back in a salt and pepper color. I like it! so now I don't have to pay so much and spend time in a salon.
Your hair looks very nice - you did a great job.
Hugs from San Diego, California 😊
Oh yeah, CA was a NIGHTMARE, yet Nancy Pelosi could get her hair done w/o even needing to wear a mask!! 😷 My family is gone now. ☮
It’s true that when salons overcharge for various services, it behooves one to figure out how to do things yourself and save money. Congrats on figuring out what worked for yourself!
When you mentioned Sailormoon, I almost spit out my food. That was hilarious! 😆
I love sailor moon!
Haha I’m glad you found that part funny! 😆
@Jessica-n7f4z I'm Sailor Saturn! 💜
@@IzzyOnTheMove JUPITER
Your hair looks very pretty. I am 76, and self-lightened my hair ever since I was 18 years old. Always very light blonde. I always got along well, except during a time in college when I was cast in an opera where they mandated dark hair. So I bought a dark brown kit and it turned out okay. But after the opera was finished, I was eager to return to my very light blonde hair. I inquired at a hair salon, and they refused to do it, telling me that such a thing would damage my hair. I, in my infinite wisdom, bought a heavy duty bleach kit and bleached my hair over the dark brown. Yes, it worked, but I did a lot of damage to my hair. So for a few weeks, I suffered with hair that broke off. It was dry, brittle, and quite bad looking. Over time and new hair growth, it eventually was okay again. But I learned my lesson, lol. Fast forward to today- about 2 or 3 months ago, I decided to go natural, which is a lot of gray that I had been covering up for a long time. It’s fascinating to me to see what my true color is, and I’m embracing the gray.
Thanks! 😊 I love that you are going natural. ❤️
Opera where dark hair is mandated ? How racist. 😢 (And I say that as a dark haired afro-mixed woman probably afro hair forbidden too in this Opera)
Wearing a dark wig would have been easier
As someone with naturally red hair, being in the countryside in Japan sometimes feels like your sailormoon experience 😂
People do stare and ask about it. Thankfully my hair structure is similar to Japanese hair so getting my hair cut is fine. Even though I always end up looking too strict and old
I can imagine 😽
Your topics are always so spot on. Finding a hair stylist is almost as important as finding a doctor in a new city. I went to my stylist before I left home hoping that I'll be able to go into a salon in Osaka and just have them trim to the same shape. Wishful thinking I'm sure but hopefully I won't have any hair disasters to report. I left hair color behind during covid and am happily pepper with salt highlights 😉
I can echo your comment about the difference in being blonde in Japan then versus now. While I'm also a bit on the tall side, being blonde in Showa Japan were two factors that made me stand out from the crowds.
But now, you'd think they have tall (dark) blondes walking around all over the place considering there's no reaction or fascination about it.
I agree. It’s interesting how times have changed.
Your experience is why it took me about 6 years to get my first hair colouration here in Japan 😅
You found the perfect solution for your hair that's awesome! It looks really good!
There is a really great place in Osaka that works with Western colours if you have blond or thin hair, but it's of course expensive.
I now colour my hair myself too, it's just easier 😂
I know what you mean. It’s an expensive thing. Especially if you’re looking for something specific.
Your hair looks great! My hair is fashion colored and has been various shades for the past 12 years. From purple to pink to red to green. When I first started I did go to a salon because I was terrified to bleach my hair and give myself a chemical hair cut. They did such s terrible job bleaching, my hair is also super brassy, and so the hot pink came out orange! The rest of it looked terrible too. I've been doing my own hair ever since! Since doing fashion colors can range from $400-800 (US dollars) a service, I've saved myself nearly $30,000 in service fees and tips! Plus my hair looks amazing 😂
Well done! That’s so expensive. You’ve saved so much ❤️
Your hair looks amazing Chani!! I'm 47 and never been to a hair salon. I cut my hair myself and haven't used dye since my 20s (drugstore type). I have dark coffee brown with white ones, it looks great as is. I tried to do blue streaks at home once using Manic Panic for St Jean Baptiste (Québec National Day) and on the yellowy bleached part it came out neon green 😆
I only use henna I don't want to use chemicals. Here in the US the hair dyes contain some really bad chemicals that has shown to cause cancer and other health problems most of which is banned in Europe and many other countries. Beauty products aren't regulated so they can put what ever they want in there and also not having to include some of their secret ingredients on the label that they want to protect from being copied by other companies.
I taught English at a uni in China from 2009 to 2012. I was in a city that was developing quickly but there were some villages nearby. There were about 1,000 foreigners in the entire province so everywhere I went people noticed me. I have grey blue eyes and dark brunette hair and I mostly went to hair stylists for a trim or to get an updo for a special event. I made friends with a lady who owned a salon and I wanted to get red highlights. Her team were very skilled, but unfortunately I ended up with sunset orange hair. 😅 We guessed that the ingredients in the dye was a fomulation that worked differently with foreign hair. It was a bit of a disaster and I got some ribbing at work from the other teachers, but I just left it as is and waited for it to grow. Turns out it was the perfect camouflage as my hair stood out so much (and I am a short petite lady) that people didn't even take a second glance at me. People in shops only noticed I wasn't Chinese when I spoke to them or they were close enough to see my eyes behind my glasses. Stealth mode: Activated. 😂 Also, after a while I noticed some ladies (and one gentleman) in my class were getting their hair done like mine ON PURPOSE! I asked the students what was happening and they told me, "Miss Dani, we think your hair is so cool!". I accidentally became a trend setter. 😂😂😂
My son had a lot of attention when he lived in japan with ginger hair, particularly in the small coastal town where he lived. People were keen to touch it and were very surprised when he spoke to them confidently in Japanese. He Always commented on how good the hairdressers were. He now lives in S. Korea and doesn’t seem to receive as much attention.
I completely relate! Maintaining blonde hair is difficult. Glad to see you've found some products that work for you! It's a lovely blend of shades currently~
I was so curious about this, but didn't know how to ask in a polite way. Your hair looks professionally done, I'm impressed!
I highlight and lowlight my own hair with a cap too and have for at least 10 years. Many years ago I used to have a hairdresser in Harajuku. It was very expensive, but I was younger and back then, my looks was more important to me than costs. These days I would never pay that amount, when I can just do it myself the way I want to. I cut my own hair too.
If I go back to my home country for a visit, I then have my hair done professionally.
I think I’ll continue to do the same as you ❤️
Well done. You look perfectly natural and quite lovely.
I love your hair color is perfect!
Thanks so much! 😊❤️
I know a fellow with a salon near Wakayama-jo that does a good haircut. He could manage with my weird hair texture well enough. Colour though… it was very clear I was the first white person he’d worked on. I got the kinpatsu treatment too (from grey/brown to nightmare haha). I believe his salon is called Orca.
Oh my gosh, I know exactly what you mean! The color can be so unpredictable.
I am mixing my hair colors for decades. Like you I am a natural blonde with a light beige natural hair color (with quite a bit of grey because I am a grown up woman….) German and French manufacturers of hair color use a numeric system in order to indicate the color in shortcut. The first number indicates how dark or bright the color is and the second and third number indicate the shade. 1 is black and 10 is platinum blonde for the first number. Usually I use a 9 for a light fair blond - sometimes a 8. The shades (second an third number) use a 1 for gold and a 3 for cendree. I mix 9,13 and 9.31 depending on the color I want to obtain. Never use bleach for your naturally blond hair. Use an Oxigenta solution 6 % - that is totally sufficient. My mother was a chemical engineer and part of the team which developed all professional hair colors for Schwarzkopf/ Siluette. I normally use L’Oreal or Schwarzkopf products. Schwarzkopf has an own brand for blond hair called blonde me. I use a sand color of the line. Nice because it has keratin added to the color. When I go to a salon I always mix my own hair color. I like the service of the salon but do know a lot more about colors than the girls …. 😂
Really interesting to know about the number system.
@ I recently discovered your channel and like it very much to discover another hemisphere and culture with you as my guide. Your energy to challenge yourself in unfamiliar situations is admirable! I am German and do not speak or learn Japanese. (But I do speak and read Spanish, French, Italian and Catalan fluently). I am fond of traditional craft and arts. Keep on the good work! Greetings from Hamburg - Gabrielle 🛳🌸🎂
@@Christine-y1u lovely to meet you (virtually) and know more about you❤️
I had to smile at the thought of a company with the name "Schwarzkopf" making blonde hair color. 😄
@@allie1953 oh yes, it was their family name and trademark. They were founded in 1903. In 1995 (after a tragic car accident of one of the leading “Schwarzköpfe‘ = blackheads 😮) one of their important shareholders, the chemical Company Henkel took over the rest of the shares. Nevertheless the brand is still existing and very well known in Germany and Europe. The name is quite difficult to pronounce, write or remember for non-German speakers. Therefore the company uses in some countries the brand name Siluette or Siluetta together with the iconic emblem of the black cut-out silhouette of a female head. They started with a dry- shampoo in 1903 in Berlin Chalottenburg and have a big variety of hair products for consumers and professionals. My mother worked for them as a chemist for over 35 years. She passed away two years ago and now I own the little silver needle with the emblem of the black silhouette…. And yes - they even have a range of products and hair colors with the name Blonde Me! 👩🦳
I have brown hair and when I lived in Japan I didn’t bother dieing my hair or getting foils. I just kept it brown.
Natural is better
Hi Chani, i'm an ol' punk n have alwaz coloured my own hair. Yes, i've had a variety of colours over the years, like ya do. Doing it myself (occasionally with the help of a friend) has just been the way it is. I've had no choice. Going to the hairdresser would have been way too expensive. I'm dark haired n need to bleach before i colour. Ok , i'm greying now. When i was still living in Sydney my best mate was a hairdresser, wow, what a luxury that was (cheers Leah!). You do it, you've got no choice, i really don't find it a problem. Maybe i'm just used to it. Punk has alwaz has been DIY. And at least you get it done the way you want. So good on you for coming to grips with doing it yourself!
I'm enjoying your vids n look forward to each new post. Take care of yourself n continue enjoying your new experiences. ✌🏼🌻
Hi Chani I think you do a great job on your hair colour. I have turned white. I was a redhead. So no colour for me. I just roll with the change. Some people think I'm blonde haha.
Love your channel ❤️
Thanks so much! I love your attitude!
In the past 7 years I only had one time when a stranger touched my hair (it was a kid on the bus), and I agree that it's kind of nice that it's easy for people to find us! I've also had several nightmares with hair coloring in Japan at the salon where the color turned out ....strange, and not suiting my coloring at all. Once it even ended up darker than my natural color.. 😭 I found a hairdresser now that worked in the US before and she does a great job with my highlights! ..I'm in Tokyo so it's a bit easier to find someone, but to find someone at a reasonable price is the catch (I see a lot of ppl advertising to work on foreign hair but they want like 4-5 man 🙀)! Your hair looks great, you do a wonderful job!
You are right! Even if you find a good hairdresser it will be really expensive 😬 A lot easier in Tokyo for sure❤️
That was really interesting..thank you..♥️♥️♥️
Thanks so much 🤗❤️
I’ve been on a similar journey with my hair, just not in Japan. Moved to a country that hair dressing salon is prohibitively expensive. I’ve learned so much about colour theory. My biggest aha moment was understanding it’s just all colour theory, and how undertones affect the eventual colour. A colour wheel helped a lot.
I know you are getting along with box dye but as you get into colour theory you realise that you don’t know the exact mix of colours (and undertone) of box dye. I suggest building up a stash of salon grade colours and bleaches. In the long run it costs less, because you know exactly what you will get. Look at international sites who ship to Japan, or speak to someone in bigger cities.
Wishing you the best on your diy hair journey. You got this.
I had a phobia of going to the hairdresser for a long time - when I was school age my mum dropped me off to get my hair cut and they found nits in my hair! I was embarrassed but everyone in my year got them. They basically stopped washing my hair and told me to leave 😢 as a 12 yr old I was so devastated I sat crying waiting for mum to come back and get me. Since then I refused to go in case that ever happened again- I only just started going back in the last few years and I’m 42 now. It was probably very silly of me but that fear was real for a very long time!
My husband and I have talked about moving to Japan in the next few years and I wondered about my blonde hair! Good to know they have easy to access supplies there so I can just dye it myself.
Thank you for the super informative video ❤
And now there is Amazon as well to help 📦Best of luck!
Chani your hair & skin always looks fabulous😊
Thanks! 😊
A tip: try to contact Brazilian communities in Japan. Generally, Brazilian hairdressers have experience with differents type of hair collor and structure. Good luck!
My hair coloring stories in Peru and Brazil were akin to yours- in Peru they made it too red and in Brazil they made it too dark! I was only visiting in Brazil so as soon as I got back to the US my hairdresser did foils for me to reduce that mass of really dark brown hair. In Peru, where I was actually residing, my mother-in-law took me to her usual salon and that was where they made it too red. So I had to find another, more upscale salon that was used to doing a greater variety of colors and styles and get my hair put back to it's natural shade of medium ash brown. It was costly but it was worth it. I never had much success with doing my own hair color and when I was nearing retirement age and after I met my (now) husband who was already a nice silvery "salt-and-pepper", I decided to grown my silver in. For that my hairdresser did blonde highlights at the roots every month so that the contrast between the silver coming in and the brown would be less of a "skunk stripe" while growing out the dyed hair. The purple shampoo is great for removing the yellowing that can occur as ones hair goes from silver/gray to white. Adding blue dye to one's conditioner- in a small amount- also tones down the yellowing. You just can't leave it on too long otherwise the blue tone is obvious.
That's great that you were able to find salons that could work with your hair! I like your idea of working with the gray as it comes in.
It's better to use cornflower as it actually reverses the oxidisation.
I’ve been cutting and colouring my own hair for the past 20 years because the costs here in the UK just got out of hand. It’s about £140 for a cut, colour and blow dry now!
Your hair colour looks just great, good job! I stopped colouring my hair since the pandemic and I only go to the hairdresser to get it trimmed. I went last week and specifically told the hairdresser to not touch my bangs so I could let them grow, well he ended up trimming them anyway. It will take me a long time to get them back to where they were.
Being a natural blonde with hair that very easily bleaches in the sun, I get what you mean about being easily noticed! As a pre-teen I lived in an African country and as a teenager I lived in Southeast Asia. In Africa, people would constantly try to touch my hair. To this day at age 54 I still hate my head being touched. When I moved to Southeast Asia, I was taller than the average woman and I stood out A LOT. There was no flying under the radar. People always knew when I’d been somewhere.
About hair care: when I was in Southeast Asia it was the eighties. Big hair was the norm and I have naturally very sleek, straight hair. The only solution was to get a perm. The number of times my hair got burned… until a hairdresser found a Japanese brand of perm solution that didn’t fry it to crispy, frizzy straw.
CHANI - your hair colour is fabulous - I thought you were getting it done professionally by a very skilled hairdresser and thinking it would have been expensive! My darling husband applies my colour and because he only touches up the roots the tips stay a bit faded so it looks like highlights. I get my hair cut by the students at TAFE and several teachers have complimented me on the colour which has made my hubby very happy - but he keeps saying he needs to charge me more! LOL Saving money is one thing but saving time is another - you're doing an excellent job on your hair, well done! Cheers from Sydney!
Your hair is very pretty! Good for you finding the correct mix of things. The gray will be beautiful with your eyes, should you ever decide to go that way.
何時も楽しみに見ています😃
NZ/AUSに住んでいる時に、私も困りました！カットが決まらないのでアジア人の方を探したものでした。仰る通り和歌山では合うサロンを見つけるのは大変かもしれませんね。
でもご自分で染められた髪綺麗です。
Oh dear what a dilemma. It’s rare that I ever come out of a salon being happy with the cut. Now that I’m old and it’s thinned down heaps and turned almost completely grey, I just leave it 😂. I even trimmed the length myself. Looks like I’ll be one of those long grey haired ladies til I die 😂 but it saves a lot of money and hassle so 🤷♀️
Your colour looks professional. I’d never have guessed it was anything other than an expensive salon trip.
Def saves money and hassle
"It’s rare that I ever come out of a salon being happy with the cut." Gosh!! I thought that was just me! I now get my hair cut by students at TAFE here in Sydney Oz, and I always walk out 's happy. They cut under the teacher's supervision, they discuss what you want and then do it and I end up with excellent haircuts for $8 !!
@@andersonomo597 wow that’s daring but very cheap. Don’t have anything like that here but I’ve come to terms with my situation. I’m very happy for you. ( Australia also )
@@miriam2909 It's a win win too which is nice. I get excellent cheap haircuts but at the same time, the students need real people to work on in order to learn and build their confidence. They also have a beauty therapy course - so I've been indulging in massages and facials - all of which I couldn't afford at full retail. Again, those students need all shapes and ages of people to work on 'cause you don't learn by massaging thin air LOL! I've had more indulging and pampering in the last 2 years than in my entire lifetime before! Cheers from Oz!
@@andersonomo597 haha making the most of it eh. Good onya. 😊
My friend always talks about how, the first time she went to Japan (about a decade ago now) people were very enamored by her blonde hair, blue eyes.
You really have gorgeous eyes!!!! 🥰
Im blonde and no one could care less when im in Tokyo.
In 2005,6,7,8 that was a different story 😂
Perhaps doing a cap, pulling through very small strands , every other hole would give you a more natural look. Probably only need 30’min
Lightening: 1 part bleach, 2 part peroxide volume 40.
Toner: 0.5oz toner: 0.5oz 20 volume cream peroxide 5-10 seconds is my guess
This is what I do with a mousy blonde hair, but I don’t tone it anymore, 30 min with just lightening is good for me
Thank you so much!! Great tips 😃
DIY works, Ash Blond with a drop of Violet to counter the brassy orange, or buy purple shampoo.
100% love my purple shampoo 💜
I am a hairstylist for 40 years in the USA... Boy can I tell many horror stories... Many countries have different teaching even in hairstyling... But you have done an beautiful coloring on your hair... I'm glad I found your channel and enjoy seeing Japan.. Many adventures awaits...
When I was doing exchange at Naga high, Wakayama a hair of mine fell on a table. Ewwww! I went to brush it away, but my friend got it. Then started to marvel at it. Our hair is a lot thinner.
Your friend was curious 😃❤️
Love your hair. Im blonde and have a regular hairdresser. When I was touring Japan a few months ago, there were no comments or looks as everyone seemed to be too busy on their phones.😅 😅😅
So true. Everyone is busy doing their own thing 😃
It's definitely better to be blonde in Japan than in China. I had to go to Hong Kong to buy blonde hair dye, because there were none in Shenzhen shops and malls. I'm glad you found your way to keep your hair beautiful.
@VanillaPeach-y7l I left in 2020 for winter holidays, but I couldn't come back because of closed borders. I lived in Futian.
@@VanillaPeach-y7l It was pretty good back then. Convenient. Nice weather, big parks, proximity to Hong Kong and Guangzhou, it was great for shopping, too. Perfect metro system. Living was easy in Shenzhen.
The same thing happened to my coworker here in China. I warned her not to go to the hairdresser to get her blonde hair dyed but she got some gall and decided she would go anyway, with the help of our Chinese work supervisor. Long story short, she ended up looking like the Lion King! After a few expletives, they re-dyed her hair to a more grayish blonde, which grew out quickly, and looked even worse! We were at the salon for seven hours that day! I embrace my natural blonde color in Asia! I’m afraid of what might happen otherwise!
The "greige product is called a drabber (I have similar hair to yours) Love your hair kudos for being old school and doing it yourself ! Love your vids I'm a young 50 something widow 3 cats love Japanese stuff/textiles/Ceramics your show has been a real pick-me-up thank u , I think your'e FABULOUS ! Thanks for showing us some of the Japanese products /stores, I am going to try the heated rug set !
Wonderful 😽
@@ChaniJapan May I ask you what store you purchased your white dish drain-rack in / model ? I love Japanese house-goods, I've jotted down the home-goods stores you have taken us to (thanks, great fun !) I've looked on some websites but can't seem to find it, thank you sorry to bother you. Hi Millie !
I’m a natural fiery redhead and in the early 80s I was chased around Covent Garden by a crowd of Japanese men with cameras 😂
All my haircuts in japan, about 5 or 6, have been in Tokyo. I just go to the cheap/quick 1000Y places coz I just get a number 4 shaver all over. Its always been fine except for the last one earlier this year. Something got lost in translation even though the guy understood my onomatopoeic sounds for a shaver I made, while stating し and holding up 4 fingers appeared to get us on the right track. The shaver passed over the top of my head and I immediately knew the thingo he popped on for the shaver was not a number 4 I'm accustomed too, it was the shortest my hair had ever been apart from one early 90's discovery of requesting a number 1 was a bad idea. However this seemed even shorter and the photos of our family yakuniku for my nieces 12th birthday still haunt me today 🤣
Oh nooooo! You got a number one😬 very much lost in translation 🤣
I have very long hair and I always do my own hair. It really isn’t anything to be intimidated by. I get my dyes, bleaches, & developer from Sally’s. You can order their products through the mail. You don’t have to find a store.
I've always done my own cut, bleach, and dye. Living in the Japanese countryside, taking a trip to Don Quijote is the only place I found a good blonde bleach + brassy tone remover. Most bleach kits in stores seem designed for a subtle lightening, nothing close to platinum. It was a learning curve for sure!
I can relate! It took me a long time to find a good bleach that would work here. Thankfully I can easily get purple shampoo. Its my go to when things go wrong 😬💜
Chani your hair looks nice. I have natural dark brown hair with reddish highlights. I lightened it to a chestnut color for so many years people thought it was my natural color. Now I’m about 30% gray but I don’t want to maintain dyed hair. I’m hoping for a nice gray or even white natural color. However I’ll accept whatever nature gives me. Love your channel.
I have played a bit with my hair color in the last 20 yrs. I once used one of those caps with blonde hair color and ended up with orange stripes! (I have very dark brown hair), of course I did it on a Sunday night (stores now closed) and of course I had work the next morning!!! Luckily I lived with my sister and she had a box of brown hair dye. I quickly used it and it helped immensely!!
I now bleach my hair and color it different colours (blue right now). It is just colored in my pony tail, so from the front my hair color is normal. I haven't gone to a salon in over 20 yrs, and just have fun with my hair!
your hair looks lovely
Thanks! 😊 It’s been a journey.
You did a great job on your hair!
❤❤❤😂 Thanks for the tips.
You have had some bumpy experiences! All my hair disasters have been too much perm or too short. I did go to a specialty salon where the stylists were all Asian once. After a wash and cut, she straightened my naturally wavy hair. She seemed to think I would want it straight. She did such a good job that my hair looked very thin and flat. I was so shocked and she worked so hard. But I got it wet at home and all was well again.
Your hair is lovely and the color Is great.
Your hair colour suits you very well!👱♀️👩🦳💇♀️
I lived in Singapore. When I first arrived my natural blonde and highlighted hair turned orange within two weeks. I think it’s a combination of the water and the humidity and hard UV. I went to Toni and Guy and they bleached it to remove the brass but it was like straw. I grew it out and toned it with coffee! You can’t get blonde DIY kits in Singapore. The hairdressers are so expensive and they always do foils even when you ask for just roots.
I have been back in the uk a year and the condition is so much improved. I just do a root touchup every six weeks at home. Having brassy dry hair was so embarrassing I used to wear it tied up most days.
I always do my hair myself. L’Oréal Extra Light Natural Blonde. It’s pretty easy but I don’t try to get different shades, I just use it as directed and my hair turns out fantastic every time! 👍😁🌷
I enjoy your very real life topics. When I was much younger and had medium brown hair and lived in Spain, some people would call me rubia - Blondie because that medium brown looked blonde to them. Same thing happened when I visited Mexico. Anyway, like others with covid I stopped dying my hair. There's a lot of gray. There's some darkish brown and it's so easy. I really really enjoy it.
I'm Spanish and what I call medium brown (mine own) was called black by an English person, so I can confirm your experience! I'm sure your "medium brown" is not my "medium brown".
Your hair colour is great
Your hair looks great Chani just like a professional has done it. Desley 🇦🇺
Thank you Desley! ❤️
Reading some of these comments, I am really fascinated. When mentioning blonde hair, are they referring to natural blonde or dyed? If the former would there be any need to have it coloured?
It is!! The swarkopf bleach made my pink section super duper fragile and I can’t find Kérastase!
Your hair color looks great!
I have a similar problem with you. I’m Asian but live in a more rural area in the US and have a hard time finding someone who is able to lift my hair properly with bleach and tone it correctly after. I like doing different colored hair but I have black hair that gets brassy with bleach.
I'm a blonde. Experienced many problems finding salons that could "do" my hair when I worked internationally....which was for over 20 years (now retired). Like you, found work-around solutions and searched until I found a stylist (it takes time). ALWAYS went to my regular stylist when I was "home" in Texas. GREAT video! 👍👏❤
I hear you! It takes time to find the right stylist for sure.
Where are you now
I used to be really blonde as a kid but now it's more of a light brown with some blonde/red highlights. I'm a bit sensitive to hair dye and it's too expensive for me to get a nice dye job right so I just don't dye my hair. But, I do have fine curly hair and salons have no clue how to deal with my hair type. I found an Aveda salon in Chiba station that I liked but sometimes I don't want a Japanese style haircut since they tend to use thinning shears and I need my hair to look fuller but not weighed down. It's a completely different technique for cutting my hair versus Japanese hair. I went to a salon in my town and the hairdresser cut my hair with a least a 3 inch difference in length. If I find a good salon in Tokyo, I might get my hair colored there once. I miss having my magenta/purply hair.
When I first traveled to Japan in the early 90s, I went with my uni friend, and she is 6 ft tall with reddish blond wavy hair; we were celebrities, especially when we traveled to more remote locations up north; my friend could also speak Japanese and that really blew them away 😆
Yes! The 90s was a totally different Japan 😃❤️
On a fluent level ?
I don't recall that she was fluent, but pretty proficient -- she was teaching English there
@@lindacwelter3213
Is your friend still teaching there and do you still revisit the place ?
I'm older than you and strawberry blonde and so glad I don't have to dye my hair - neither did my mum as her hair was a shade or two of a stronger red than mine and red hair often doesn't go grey. I have been doing my own eyebrows and eyelashes for many years now. One beautician was going through a divorce and I felt as if she was going to push my eyeballs in with the force of rubbing the product off and plucking is much more gentle than waxing eyebrows anyway. When hairdressers shut down, my husband took over cutting my hair and it's worked out great, as well as saving me a fortune. I spend almost nothing on my hair these days, but very often get compliments and would hate to have to run the gamut of terrible or disappointing haircuts once more. I'm often gobsmacked when I hear how much other women spend getting complicated dye jobs - running into hundreds of pounds.
Yes. Hair can be very expensive especially if you need regular appointments. Working out how to do it myself will save a lot ❤️ You are indeed very luck with strawberry blonde. That’s a lovely colour.
Some really funny parts in there!
I recommend the back combing / brush method instead. Its really beginner friendly and gives a pretty similar result as highlights. There are videos all over UA-cam. Source: ex colourist who does their own hair now.
That’s so good to know! Thanks for the tip. 😊 I will 100% watch some videos on that now. Thanks so much ❤️❤️❤️
Well, that sounds good. I could try that myself in order to put "low lights" into my whitening hair. I want to be "salt-and-pepper" again. I'll explore that a bit further.
Your hair looks really nice.
😢Chani I'll challenge your 90s experience in Wakayama with my late 70s experience in Aizuwakamatsu in Fukushima-ken (population 1/3 of that in Wakayama) as a curly blonde blue eyed Queenslander!
So many stares and comments on the street and on public transport... My favourite was when I was on a train with a fellow blonde blue eyed (Japanese speaking) Queensland exchange student and we had 3 obāsans sitting opposite us discussing everything from body shape, potential colour of body hair in unseen places to our skin colour and our creepy 'pale eyes' that apparently made us look like ghosts!!! 👻
You can imagine how uncomfortable we felt understanding the discussion, especially as they were speaking loudly enough and sniggering that other commuters who overheard looked up to find the 'ghosts'... 😳
Your home hair colouring efforts look fantastic by the way - maybe you could add another sideline in gaijin hair colouring as well as advice about buying an akiya?!? 🙃
Yes racism against blue eyes existed in Japan. See blue-eyed samurai.
Wow, you 1st arrived in Japan the year after I finally returned to the US after living there and working there for years. I finally made it back after 30 years for less than a week this year, and I’m ready to return to Japan again.
It’s amazing how Japan draws you back in.
Wow great hair style
Thanks 🤗
I’ve honestly wondered this also since I have waist length light blonde hair and plan to move there next year. I’ve been worried about my look and language abilities because I’ve only been studying two years and have a long way to go
❤ te queda precioso the colors 😊.
Milli estaba intentando sorprender a un 🐦. 😊
Saludos 🤗
Manténganse abrigadas y bien.
Abrazo 🤗 🤗
Gracias! 😄
That footage with orange hair… boy you did not look happy lol and the sailor moon comment! Gold star😂
It was not my best moment 😅 I really wanted to hide😬
When you mentioned people see you out and about, I thought you were going to say they saw a blonde person and mistook someone else for you 😅 but being in a small town that's probably not the case. I could see that happening in other places though
Yeah. It’s usually me they see. I haven’t seen many blonde middle aged women around here.
We honeymooned in Japan in 1999 and I had long, curly, red hair. Well didn’t that attract attention!
Oh I can imagine😃❤️
This is great! 15 years ago me and my light brown hair worked a kinder teacher in Japan ( I ran away from home after my kids grew up😂) A hairdresser made me look like Barbie, complete with the flick. She was so excited to be using my western hair😂😂 it's just hair, it grew out eventually. I love living vicariously through your life in Wakayama ❤
Oh wow!
My ex lived in Malaysia asa kid in the 60s and early 70s all the kids in his family had blond hair and it was considered good luck for the locals to touch their hair. Also he said they got free hair cuts and apparently the barber sold their hair. I am not sure if any of this true maybe someone can educate me
Interesting 😁
I get alot of gray..and my natural color is brown but I dye it black. I use the dye in Shampoo apply the dye to dry hair then. Wait for 15 mins then wash out. Have to touch up few weeks .
Hi Chani if you ever want to treat yourself go visit my friend Mayuko who is the manager at Hayato Roppongi in Tokyo she did my hair for many years when she was in New Zealand (as I always do blonde foils too) she’s the best!
The very first haircut I got in Tokyo, I went to a normal Japanese salon. The guy used some kind of shearing scissor to do the layers, and my hair proofed up like a mushroom 😂! Learned my lesson and stuck to a salon specializing in foreign hair afterwards. It is a bit more expensive, but not outrageous.
Btw, are there any European style Christmas markets in Wakayama you can visit? I always loved the Xmas markets around Tokyo
I have silver hair and green eyes. I get a lot of attention from kids. Unsure if is the hair color or eye color. Whatever the reason, I enjoy interacting with them with a big smile.
Getting a haircut here in Japan has been a big challenge. Central Tokyo is about 45 minutes away, I may have to check out places there. Let me know if anyone has recommendations.
I guess I'm lucky. My hair has always been "mousy" blonde with no red at all, and it's also naturally got slightly different highlights through it, so I've always been able to simply dump a box of hair bleach on it every 6 weeks, and it looks great!
L'Oréal Very Light Ash Blonde does the trick for me.
Funny story though, I moved to Australia from California in 1994 and then back to California in 2014. When I came back to California, the demographic had changed so drastically in 20 years that they didn't have as many blonde colors available as they did when I left, and I couldn't find my color... they only had super white platinum blonde or colors that weren't in the ash range!
I even called L'Oréal to double check availability! I ended up switching from L'Oréal to another brand for about 5 years and then finally L'Oréal brought back more blonde color choices, and my beloved ash! Whew!
I'm lucky that at 56 years old, my hair is still pretty resilient and doesn't dry out easily. It's always been long, straight, no bangs, and blonde. And I still haven't gotten any grey hairs... but I'm sure it'll be an adventure when I do!
I've always been low maintenance: A box of bleach every 6 weeks and Pantene shampoo and conditioner. More recently, I wasn't happy with any hair stylists when I got back to California. I literally stared cutting my hair only once every 2 years or so. But now my husband cuts it for me, just straight across, once or twice/year, and it looks great!
You are brave learning to color your own hair in a place that can make that difficult! But you've done well! It looks great!
Another tip: L’Oreal professionnel has a product that neutralizes yellow tones in virgin and color trated white, gray or blonde hair. “Purple Shampoo”.
I actually dont like the salon experience. I grow my hair until it gets down well past my waistlist. I keep it in a plait and ocassionally trim the ends. Every 4-5 years I have one of my nieces cut off the plait and I donate it to the alopecia foundation and then start over again.
I ♥ your current color, Chani! In one pic, you had it all brown which I felt didn't suit you as much as the blonde highlights you have now. Maybe if there are some ex-pat communities near you, some of the ladies may have found hair stylists who can work with blondes. If you can't find someone, there is definitely nothing wrong with the color you have as it so lovely on you.
I get mine colored and am fortunate once I moved out of California to another state to have found a great colorist who had worked in CA. It costs enough, but I know I would make a total mess if I tried to do it myself.
Basically if you're a hairdresser from Australia or UK or USA go to Japan and please teach them how to work on our hair😅😅😅 Or open a salon ❤
Yes! I wish there were more salons that knew how to work with our kind of hair.