BEAUTY HAIR & NAILS

How to make your own solid shampoo bar (and why you should do it)

by Olga

Solid shampoos (do not confuse if with powder-like dry shampoos) become more and more popular, and there are some excellent reasons for it. First of all, it is cost-effective: you can wash your hair with one shampoo bar approximately 60-80 times (depending on the hair length). Surfactants in it are not diluted with water (like in liquid shampoo), so it takes less space and lasts longer. 

Also, it is eco-friendly – it does not need a plastic bottle. It is 100% biodegradable (we use plant-based surfactants to make it). It does not contain any harsh preservatives or silicones, synthetic fragrances, or other unnecessary artificial components. 

HOW TO MAKE SOLID SHAMPOO AT HOME

Several surfactants could be used for gentle homemade solid shampoo bars, I use more often SCI and SLSA. Both are made from coconut oil, both are biodegradable and mild (do not confuse it with SLS!).

Two of them work well together, providing your shampoo with excellent cleaning properties without overdrying the scalp and hair. They also give nice and dense foam, so it is a pleasure to wash your hair with it. 

It is relatively easy to make a solid shampoo with these surfactants, and most likely, you will succeed even if you never tried to make it before. 

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TRICKS

There are a few tricks to be aware of:

* both surfactants are in powder, and this powder can irritate your eyes and nose when you measure and mix it, so you should wear a protective mask and glasses while making your solid shampoo;

* surfactants change their texture when heated – you should warm up your boiler up to 80 degrees Celsius (when bubbles are already forming, but the water does not boil yet);

* heated surfactants need to be thoroughly mixed up – there should not be any grains of powder left.

 

It might take some time to dissolve, so be patient and continue to steer it (silicon spoon does a great job). The problem is that as soon as you remove your mixture from the heat, it solidifies very quickly.

So if you want to add any other components to your solid shampoo, you should act very fast! Measure and put all the other ingredients next to double boiler BEFORE you put surfactants on heat. 

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BASIC SOLID SHAMPOO RECIPE

This is the basic recipe, but you can add a wide variety of other ingredients to it (herbs, clays, essential oils, glycerin, etc. – see the list below)

So, for a 50 g solid shampoo bare you will need:

* 35 g SCI

* 10 g SLSA

* 15 g of water

Put all the ingredients into the container and then heat&steer it till the mixture becomes homogenous. Put it into silicon muffin cases and let dry for 24-48 hours. 

To wash your hair use it as a regular soap – apply on wet hair and massage till it makes a foam. 

SOLID SHAMPOO WITH GREEN CLAY AND ROSEMARY

This is my favorite combination! Green clay provides shampoo with detox properties (green french clay is a magic beauty remedy, you should have one at home!). Rosemary strengthens hair bulbs (and I like its aroma!):

Put surfactants with water in a double boiler and heat it till the mixture becomes homogenous. Remove from heat and steer in the clay and essential oils immediately. Pour it into silicon muffin cases and let dry for 24-48 hours. 

 

Here are some more examples of bars you can make at home:

  • * base + 2 tablespoons of nettle powder – for weakened hair, prone to loss;
  • * base + 2 tablespoons of ginger in powder + 10 drops of grapefruit essential oil + 5 drops of rosemary essential oil – for oily hair;
  • * base + 1 tbsp spoon of spirulina in powder + 10 drops of neem essential oil – to accelerate hair growth;

If you have very dry, damaged, or sensitive hair and scalp, then you are better off using a slightly different base proportion:

What other natural components can you add to your solid shampoo?

* butter (shea butter, cocoa, mango, almonds) – 1-5% of the total volume;

* liquid oils – for example, broccoli (which is also called “plant silicone” for its unique properties) – 1-5%;

* Inulin – up to 2% (moisturizes dry hair);

* Ceramides – up to 5% (restoration and protection of hair).

Solid shampoo can be tinted with clay (for example, red or pink), turmeric (yellow), matcha tea (green), etc. The basic bare itself is white so that it is easy to paint in any shade you need.

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