DIY Shampoo Bar Recipe: 3 Sustainable Ways to Keep Your Hair Clean & Healthy

DIY shampoo bars are the answer to more sustainable hair care. Try a shampoo bar recipe from below that will save you hair damage from harsh chemicles, and help the planet, too.

Why Shampoo Bars Are Good

Making your own DIY shampoo bars has beauty, health, environmental and financial benefits convincing enough to stop you from ever buying drugstore shampoo again. 

Firstly, DIY shampoo bars are the best way to avoid using harsh chemicals in your hair and on your scalp. Making them means you can choose all-natural ingredients that are both kind to your hair and the planet. Plus, you can tailor your DIY shampoo bar to suit your hair care needs exactly. 

Shampoo bars are also a much more sustainable hair care option than drugstore shampoos. The plastic packaging of normal shampoo ends up as single-use plastic waste, contributing to around 550 million empty shampoo bottles in American landfills every year. Homemade shampoo takes out the need for plastic packaging, therefore significantly reducing plastic pollution. 

If these benefits are not convincing enough, consider that they’re also a huge money-saver. Making your own shampoo bars at home, using natural ingredients you probably already have at home, is going to massively reduce the cost of your monthly drugstore shop. 

Follow these DIY shampoo bar recipes for how you can sustainably keep your hair clean and healthy.

DIY Shampoo Bar Recipe for Normal Hair

Ingredients:

• ⅔ cup organic coconut oil
• ⅔ cup organic olive oil 
• ⅔ cup organic avocado oil 
• 2 tsp. essential oil of your choosing 
• ¾ cup water
• ¼ cup lye 

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, combine the oils. 
2. In a saucepan over a low heat, add the water. Pour in the lye and stir constantly.
3. Allow the water and lye mixture to reach 125 degrees Fahrenheit before slowly pouring it into the oil mixture. Stir constantly.
4. Combine the mixture using a handheld blender. The mixture should reach a pudding-like consistency. 
5. Stir in the essential oil. 
6. Transfer the mixture to a silicone mold. Cover the shampoo mixture and leave to rest for 24 hours. 
7. After 24 hours, remove the shampoo from the molds. Cure the shampoo bars in a dry place for one week before use. 

DIY Shampoo Bar for Dry Hair

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp. bentonite clay
• ⅓ cup water 
• 1 tbsp. lye 
• ½ cup organic coconut oil 
• ½ cup organic olive oil 
• ¼ cup castor oil
• 3 tbsp. shea butter 
• 2 tsp. essential oil of your choosing

Instructions:

1. In a small dish, add a drop of water to the clay to wet it and mix. Set it aside. 
2. In a separate dish, combine the water and lye. Set aside.
3. In a larger bowl, combine the oils and shea butter. 
4. Slowly pour the lye mixture into the oil mixture. Combine with a hand-held blender until it begins to thicken. 
5. Turn the blender off. Pour in the clay mixture and essential oil. Stir by hand until a pudding-like consistency is reached. 
6. Pour the shampoo mixture into molds and cover. Set aside for 24 hours. 
7. Remove the shampoo bars from their molds after 24 hours and allow them to cure for between two to three weeks before use.

DIY Shampoo Bar for a Sensitive Scalp

Ingredients:

• 1 cup castile soap
• ½ tsp. castor oil 
• 1 tsp. olive oil 
• ½ tsp. black molasses 
• 40 drops essential oil (choose three-four different kinds)

Instructions:

1. In a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the castile soap. Melt the soap.
2. Once melted, add the castor oil, olive oil and molasses. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool. 
3. Stir in the essential oils before pouring the mixture into molds. 
4. Allow the shampoo to set in the molds for 24 hours. 
5. After 24 hours, remove the shampoo bars from their mold, ready for use! 

Read more:

• Homemade Conditioner: Three All-Natural DIY Recipes
• DIY Dry Shampoo: Homemade Dry Shampoo for All Hair Types
• Dry Scalp: These Remedies Help Treat an Itchy Scalp

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Tags: DIY Guide Personal Care Plastic Free