Sunday, August 4, 2013

Shampoo Bars: The Lazy Way to Have Gorgeous Hair

     I love shampoo bars. What could be better than lathering your hair with a bar of soap? No extra bottles to cart around if you're camping, less clean up in the shower....and most of all, you're not washing your hair with detergent....which you are doing when you buy commercial shampoos.
     I have very fine hair...baby fine, if you will. And it's dry...has been my whole life. Shampoo bars don't condition quite enough for me...I still have to use a conditioner, or an apple cider vinegar rinse, but my head has gotten used to the bar and I will never buy shampoo again.
     Here is a recipe that I used tonight; I prefer hemp seed oil as well, but I am out:

6 oz Castor Oil
6 oz Sunflower Oil
10 oz Olive Oil
16 oz Coconut Oil (76 degrees)
5.45 oz lye
12.54 oz distilled water
(superfat at 6%)

     Tonight's batch was Lavender, Cedarwood, and Sandalwood. (not the best photography, but you get the idea)
      While I won't claim that it has cosmetic properties, let's just say that shampoo bars tend to help my color stay longer...so it's more blonde than white. (which I wanted at 22; not so much at 38) I used to dye my hair every two months or so; now I am going about four months.
      Shampoo bars take some getting used to...at first, your hair may feel really dry....but it's the fact that you're using natural oils, not detergents that strip the oils from your hair to make you dependent upon using them...it will take a few days to adjust, but for me, personally, I much prefer the bar over the bottle.
      If you try the recipe, tell me how it works out for you!

-Angie 

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11 comments:

  1. I would really like to try this. I have been looking for something natural for hair. I would love to pin this if you get a pin it button at some point.
    Thanks for sharing At Wildcrafting Wednesday.

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  2. one question - since it uses lye, how long do you have to cook it or heat it and then how long does it need to cure?

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    Replies
    1. For the cook, it really depends on your crock. Mine takes about 45 minutes from start to finish, but depending upon how it distributes heat, your time could be shorter or longer. I know that's not much help...sorry. My first post on the blog was a tutorial on HP, if you would like to check it out. Minimum two weeks for a cure, just to evaporate out the extra water...but technically, it's safe to use right away.

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    2. Here is the link for the tutorial: http://soapingforsanity.blogspot.com/2013/08/tutorial-red-eye-hot-process.html

      Would love for you to pin when I get that figured out. I am used to wordpress so this is a little new for me. Thanks for reading!

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  3. are there any oils you would suggest staying away from when making a shampoo bar??

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    Replies
    1. You want to make sure that you balance your castor oil; it's great for lather, but too much will make it feel sticky. I don't use palm as a general rule, but I don't see why you couldn't.

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  4. Are your measures by weight or volume?

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  5. They are by weight. Sorry, did not see your comment

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  6. For you guys that asked about how to Pin this article, if you just add the "Pin It" button to your bookmarks toolbar, you can pin anything from any site (except Facebook) that you visit. Here is the link to get the "Pin It" button. http://about.pinterest.com/goodies/

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  7. Love your blog!! I recall your name, from FB? Just know she was very nice and very helpful ; )

    Thank you for all the info. I have some questions...but for now, off to read more.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Love your blog!! I recall your name, from FB? Just know she was very nice and very helpful ; )

    Thank you for all the info. I have some questions...but for now, off to read more.

    ReplyDelete