Who needs all the chemicals that come with most shampoos on the market? Why not make your own shampoo bar and bypass the plastic container along with the questionable ingredients!
This recipe comes from The Natural Beauty Solution, a book full of simple, well-photographed DIY recipes.
What You’ll Need
- Strong pale ale or hoppy beer (Gluten-free is optimal. New Planet Beer is on option.)
- Rhassoul clay or kaolin clay
- Jojoba oil
- Avocado oil
- Rosemary essential oil
DIY Shampoo Bar
Feel free to adapt this recipe to your individual needs and always follow with a natural hair rinse to avoid build-up.
Save Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound natural Castile bar soap, shredded
- 1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons pale ale (or any type of strong, hoppy beer)
- 2 tablespoons rhassoul or kaolin clay
- 1 tablespoon jojoba oil
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 2 teaspoons rosemary essential oil
Instructions
- Grate the soap.
- Combine shredded soap with 1/2 cup pale ale in double boiler or crock pot set to low.
- Heat the mixture, stirring often, until fully melted.
- In a separate bowl, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of pale ale with the clay.
- Add the clay mixture, jojoba oil, avocado oil, and rosemary essential oil to the soap and stir well.
- Transfer to a wooden mold lined with parchment paper. (Silicone molds which come in a variety of shapes may also be used.)
- Allow the soap to cool and harden for up to three days.
- Remove from mold and slice into bars.
- Allow the soap to harden for an additional one to three weeks.
How to Use Your Shampoo Bars
Wet your hair. Work the bar into a rich lather between your palms. Apply the lather to your head and massage into your scalp. There is no need to apply shampoo to the ends of your hair, simply focus on the scalp. Rinse well and follow with a natural hair rinse. (See 3 Natural Hair Conditioners.)
I recommend a natural sheep horn comb. The keratin of the horn produces a smooth comb that helps prevent unruly hair and evenly distributes the natural oils for richer, shinier hair.
Prefer not to make your own? Try Just So Natural’s Rosemary Rhassoul Shampoo Bar modeled after this recipe!
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I have tried quite a few recipes for things like deodorant, dental care, and cleansers (for hair, body, etc). I’m still working on finding what is right for us, but it’s fun trying new things!
Yes, this one is especially fun because you can always use it for body soap. Nice to hear from you, Megan.
I love making new products for personal care products. Thank you so much for all your recipes. I love them!
Thank you, Sarah. Melting soap is such a fun way to create individualized products. Nice to hear from you!
This looks SO cool! I’m wondering whether you can suggest a substitute for the beer part for those of us who are gluten-free and want to avoid gluten even in our personal care products. Huge thanks for coming up with such creative natural products, Andrea!
Great question! I would consider brewed coffee perhaps. I might also try green tea or an herbal hydrosol. There are lots of options I would imagine for the liquid. I’m going to add a suggestion to consider gluten-free beer. Thanks for the question!
I have wanted to try shampoo bars out for a while now and this may be the perfect opportunity to get introduced to them. Affordable and easy, so why not? Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for including some product sources that I haven’t seen yet!
Could the Rhassoul clay be replaced with Bentonite clay? I have a ton on hand so it feels redundant to order some online just for this recipe.
I use straight rhassoul clay on my hair and bentonite clay would not work nearly as well. In a recipe like this it might work fine but I don’t think it would do quite the same thing as the rhassoul.
The link said chamomile Tea and honey shampoo… didn’t see it… did I miss it? thanks 🙂
Not sure where you saw the link, Deb. But this is the recipe I have on my site.
I also clicked a link that said that. I think the blog that posted the link must have used the wrong one but labelled it chamomile and honey.
Hello.
Do you think I could use liquid Castille soap in place of the grated bar?
It won’t harden back into a soap bar. But perhaps you can make a liquid shampoo – but I’m not sure on that.
Isn’t the ph of the Castile soap too high? I’ve read that this is not good for the hair or scalp.
Good question! The pH of soap is generally around 7. This will help clean the hair without being too harsh. It’s always a good idea to follow a shampoo with a naturally acidic rinse to bring balance back to the hair. I like apple cider vinegar. Some like lemon juice. Here’s a bit more about conditioners.
https://it-takes-time.com/2015/08/01/three-natural-hair-conditioners/