Shampoo bars

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I'm another one who has been using my shampoo bar for 2 years (maybe 3, at least 2) with nonissues, in faCT my hair seems to be getting stronger, and barely any falls out now, compared to handfuls a few years ago.
I still use conditioner (my hair is to my lower back) and herbal ACV rinse that I leave in. I use comfrey, nettles, rosemary & peppermint infused in olive oil in the soap, and the same herb blend.infused in the ACV.
Maybe genetics, maybe hair type, maybe our water here..but for the long term, lye based shampoo bars have worked wonders for my scalp and hair.
So interesting reading all the comments..and that parsley rinse looks good...

I think there is something to the water idea, but not exclusively. How the water interacts with the hair+the additive (in this case the particular soap being used) is something I have noticed over the years because I travel a lot. But with detergent based shampoos it is less obvious, to almost impossible to notice. With sodium bicarb it was extremely noticeable when I traveled; so much so that my hair felt dirty when washing with water in some other municipalities. I don't think I recall traveling much during my brief encounter using lye soap on my hair, though, so I am unsure of how much of a difference I may or may not have experienced when I used different water with lye soap. My hair is pale, fine and straight. It was below my waist and had not been cut in over 10 years when I went through my lye shampoo experience that turned it to the texture of straw.

Although you and I are both in Illinois, it is possible we have similar water, but also possible we have totally different water, depending on our locations. IMO, it's more about our probably hair differences (which is determined by genetics). But for the sake of argument, our water is something along the lines of 'city water' (we don't live in a city, but it's not well water and it does come from the town's water supply) but the pipes are very old and the method of 'cleansing' the pipes seems rather archaic to me, but shows how much build-up occurs in our pipes (the water comes out an ugly horrible yellow for a few days a couple of times a year when they 'flush out' the system - so much so that people are warned not to wash whites.) Perhaps larger municipalities (our population is about 6,000 people and it is a rural farming community) would possibly have water with fewer impurities. Our water is full of various minerals that I find make drinking it pretty unbearable, so we use a water filter on our drinking faucet, but that is the only water that is filtered.
 
yesterday I went to hair dresser and she used her shampoo and conditioner on my hair, Jeez my scalp started itching one hour after that, The option for me is my ph balanced syndet bar and my awesome conditioner :)
 
yesterday I went to hair dresser and she used her shampoo and conditioner on my hair, Jeez my scalp started itching one hour after that, The option for me is my ph balanced syndet bar and my awesome conditioner :)

Yes! I recently bought a new natural liquid syndet shampoo and my scalp didnt itch. Yesterday i was at the hairdresser and she used her commercial product and i have been going nuts again with the itching. But now i really really want a syndet bar to get rid of plastic bottles and to make it easier to travel with carry-on.
 
yesterday I went to hair dresser and she used her shampoo and conditioner on my hair, Jeez my scalp started itching one hour after that, The option for me is my ph balanced syndet bar and my awesome conditioner :)


Take your shampoo bar with you next time you get your hair done. A good Stylist will use your shampoo.
 
I recently bought a new natural liquid syndet shampoo

But there is no such thing as a natural syndet shampoo.
Syndet literally means synthetic detergent. It's made from chemicals (disappointingly). Granted it may not have the irritating effect of SLS shampoos which has to be a good thing, but in no way can it be called natural :(
 
But there is no such thing as a natural syndet shampoo.
Syndet literally means synthetic detergent. It's made from chemicals (disappointingly). Granted it may not have the irritating effect of SLS shampoos which has to be a good thing, but in no way can it be called natural :(

Lol ya sorry. I am really bad at phrasing things. It is syndet shampoo but with lots of natural ingredients added and no sls(the bad one?) etc.
 
Lol ya sorry. I am really bad at phrasing things. It is syndet shampoo but with lots of natural ingredients added and no sls(the bad one?) etc.
I'll let you off ;):D
I was just really disappointed as I thought I'd stumbled across another natural option I could make myself
:shower:
 
I'll let you off ;):D
I was just really disappointed as I thought I'd stumbled across another natural option I could make myself
:shower:

Oh i hear you. I too was hoping but i have discovered that some things are not meant to be. If we want decent hair then some synthetic products are a must. I thought i wrecked my hair when i tried using my homemade soap. And of course i use hair color which is not good for us too, but i tried the natural gray look once and i scared myself :eek:so not going there again :p.

For anyone in Canada i found a company that makes syndet shampoo and conditioner bars if you are interested to try before making them yourself. I want to try before i diy just to see if i like them first.

They are called Unwrapped Life Canada and are from Alberta. And no i have not tried them yet, but i will be ordering on Monday if you want to wait for my impression.
 
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Thank you, Dahila, for this information. I will look for Susan's blog. Actually, I'm not new to soaping or skin care. It's been about 25 years since I began my soaping journey. I am new to shampoo, though, as well as the world of PH testing. I learned by doing, reading and experimenting. Thank goodness for the soap calculators! I enjoy formulating my own recipes and trying out others recipes. Making shampoo has been fun, even though there are two distinct groups of thought. Thankfully, this group has helped me understand some of the differences between the soap "camp" and syndet "camp". Until a month ago, I didn't need to test for PH. I knew that if i used a soap calculator and followed the recipe precisely, one way or another soap would be the result. It was easy to tell if the soap was "good soap" or lye heavy. Then I saw soapers on youtube, ph testing once or maybe even twice in a soap batch, and i thought I should do that as well. But I've found PH strips to be a bit of a waste! It can be a novel thing, to know approx. what the ph of my soap is, but they don't tell me anything i didn't already know, and that was, safe or not safe. Good soap or Not Good soap. Now my task is to research shampoo bars, and syndet bars, and figure out where I stand. There are many things to consider, and I appreciate all the voices I've heard and the info I've learned here. I am thankful to everyone who has contributed to my shampoo journey! ;)

Hi SoapyMumma!
Thank you for your response to my questions! As with the other lovely ladies who have responded, you are obviously very educated in the soaping arena. I have learned something new and interesting from everyone! I would like to ask....what do you use in your liquid shampoo? The only liquid shampoo I have made is potassium hydroxide based. Do you use the same cleansers and conditioners that you would use in a solid syndet bar? This will be an interesting and fun journey for me....shampoo is a little different. I think I still prefer soapmaking, but it will be very useful to know how to make shampoo that will satisfy both the "no soap" and the lye based shampoo bar groups. Lots of research ahead for me, but I like that! Nursing has taught me that learning is a lifelong journey....as life is a journey in learning! I must apologise to the person who first started this thread. It was not my intention to hijack your post. Guess my questions got the better of me. I hope we're all good. :)
Hi sorry for the delayed response, life happened and I couldn’t get back here! I gave up making liquid shampoo a few years back. I’ve been making sydnet bars and playing with different ones for a while. I experiment every time so I’m yet to find a favourite. I’ve got a base recipe and switch up additives each time. My husband travels a lot for work so the bars are easy. I make small ones for him for his trips. Beats a bottle. Then there’s the no plastic thing which is something we are conscious of. So try I can’t help you with liquid. It’s been so long.
 
Yes! I recently bought a new natural liquid syndet shampoo and my scalp didnt itch. Yesterday i was at the hairdresser and she used her commercial product and i have been going nuts again with the itching. But now i really really want a syndet bar to get rid of plastic bottles and to make it easier to travel with carry-on.
oh you have the same problem as I do, Gaisy, I can not use commercial products, Right now my scalp is not itching, but I just washed with my syndet ;)

Take your shampoo bar with you next time you get your hair done. A good Stylist will use your shampoo.
I keep forgetting to take it > I had not forget to take some to test for her
 
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oh you have the same problem as I do, Gaisy, I can not use commercial products, Right now my scalp is not itching, but I just washed with my syndet ;)

Hey Dahila my mom has the same problem with itchy scalp. I have tried switching shampoos but it doesnt take away the itch so now i am going to try the syndet bar.
 
Do you need to do an ACV rinse with a syndet bar, or it is just wash and wear, so to speak?
 
Do you need to do an ACV rinse with a syndet bar, or it is just wash and wear, so to speak?

Cannot speak for anyone else but i once tried an acv rinse and all i could smell was acv for a long time. Maybe my nose is too sensitive but i sure didnt like that smell on my head. I have seen hard conditioner bars which I would prefer in all honesty.
 
i tried the natural gray look once and i scared myself :eek:so not going there again :p.
Smack Laugh.gif
 
Do you need to do an ACV rinse with a syndet bar, or it is just wash and wear, so to speak?
Depends on the syndet, and depends on your hair.

My current syndet is fine without the acv rinse but I do use a conditioner bar on the ends.

I've used one where my hair was horrible even with both the acv rinse and conditioner, and one that only needed the acv without conditioner.

Trial and error it is, for the syndet, the rinse and/or the conditioner. In all of the ones mentioned, my scalp is the one taking the beating so I've not settled on one yet.

Oh, I have to say that throughout all the trials, I use a homemade hair oil. And while the acv smell doesn't completely go away (my hair is the sort that grabs and clings on to all smells - cigarettes, bathroom n car air fresheners, cinema seats lol), it fades into a lemony scent that isn't overpowering, and others don't seem to mind.
 
Do you need to do an ACV rinse with a syndet bar, or it is just wash and wear, so to speak?
No I put on my conditioner then rince it off . That's all I do . Syndet is not soap and does not lift up the cuticles of hair :)
The ph of syndet shampoo bar (in my opinion) is the most important thing , and at least 2 powdered surfacants and at least one liquid I use Cocamidopropyl betaine
 
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Here is a question then for your girls...how do you know if you need a hydrating bar or more protein or it doesnt really matter cause its all one formula (more or less) anyway?


I ask questions of the customer. Really long hair with dry brittle ends, very curly hair that the natural oils can't get to the ends, limp dull hair. overly bleached/colored hair, ect. This type of questioning gives me the overview of their hair. I blend up a test bar for them to try out, if it works then we are in business. The key is to define the hair's needs, after that it is just simple mixing.
 

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