solid CP shampoo - is it any good?

[Zhuliya]

Hello everyone,

I hope this is in the right section, but I have a big question for you:

I really would love to make solid shampoo with some CP recipes I found here and elsewhere, but I've read from other soapmakers that solid shampoo (made as soap) has a basic ph, whereas the hair and scalp have acid ph, therefore it is no good for the hair - no matter how good you make it or how much you discount the lye, it will never be good for the hair.
What do you think? Have you tried it?

I am currently using some solid shampoo I bought, and I actually find it lovely, but would the shampoo I make ever be that lovely?

Thanks a lot!!

 

[Pepper]

Zhulyia, I make a beer shampoo bar which I find fantastic for my hair. However, I do have very short hair, not coloured, and I understand soap shampoo bars can strip colour. I also don't know how it would go with longer hair, although mine is always squeaky clean when I use my beer soap and no conditioner. I have been using soap on my hair for 11 years, but only just started making beer soap a few months ago. Now I wouldn't use anything else! Hope this helps.

 

[gunner]

I've tried EVERYTHING to make shampoo bars work for me! I have long, thick, sort of course hair and cp soap/shampoo bars just make it dull and a little unmanageable. I've even made all of Catherine Failors liquid shampoo recipes and they do the same thing.
I'm curious, though; what are the ingredients in the bars you bought?

 

[Zhuliya]

Thanks for sharing your experiences. I too have short hair, so maybe that's why I find using solid shampoo alright.

The bars I bought are from Lush, and the ingredients are:

Ultimate shine: Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate, Profumo (Parfum), Elemi e.o. (Canarium luzonicum), Ylang Ylang e.o. (Cananga odorata), Viola odorata essence, Gardenia jasminoides, Polyethylene terephthalate, *Benzyl Benzoate, *Limonene, *Linalool.

and the other one (I don't know the name): Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Parfum, Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), Nettle (Urtica dioica), Water (Aqua), Tea Tree (Melaleuca alternifolia), Mint (Mentha piperita), Rose essence (Rosa damascena), Chamomile e.o. (Chamomilla recutita), Vanilla e.o. (Vanilla planifolia), *Coumarin, *Geraniol, *Benzyl Benzoate, *Limonene, Linalool, Hydroxycitronellal, Clorofillina (CI 75810).

So you can see they are not "all natural" soaps as I hoped, thats why I want to make my own!!

 

[Zhuliya]

btw, I wanted to try exactly a recipe with beer on it for my firs shampoo!

 

[Bama]

I have been using the soap I make as a shampoo which the main oil is olive. I have color put on every 4 weeks and it has worked great. Does bother the color. Leaves my hair clean and shiny and almost works like a volumizer. My husband uses it too. I am happy because I was paying 24 dollars for a quart at the Salon and now i like this much better. My hair is completely manageable and I wash it every other day.

 

[judymoody]

Zhuliya, the Lush bars are not CP soap. They are what is known as syndet bars (made with synthetic ingredients; basically what you would find in most liquid shampoos but without the water). Most of the raw materials are derivatives of coconut oil.

If you are interested in making syndet bars, there is a fantastic blog by swiftcraftymonkey that explains the process and has some recipes and tutorials. You can also google search for KathyMb and syndet shampoo and will find information.

You will need a completely different set of ingredients than for CP soap. www.theherbarie.com has most of what you would need to get started. There are other vendors in Canada. The start up costs are kind of expensive, but not if you compare to what Lush bars cost.

I have tried various CP recipes - beer soap, superfatted coconut salt bars, etc. and none have worked for me - they either leave residue or make my hair flyaway or both. I have heard that if you use an acidic rinse (vinegar, lemon juice, etc.) that it will bring your hair back down to the right Ph level and they are fine. I haven't tried this.

I have just bought ingredients to try to make syndet bars but haven't done it yet. Good luck to you.

 

[nattynoo]

Yes, what Judy said. Those are solid shampoo syndets.
I love love these & make them regulary now. They're very easy once u have the ingredients.
http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/p/hair-care.html
here's a link I have saved & look at over & over again.
If u scroll down you'll find the solid shampoo links.
Good luck.

 

[Pepper]

My beer soap recipe:
515g coconut oil
165g corn oil
145g sunflower oil
105g ricebran oil
20g grapeseed oil

350ml beer - flat and half frozen
142g caustic soda (7% superfat)

 

[soapbuddy]

I can't use CP soap as a shampoo bar. It makes my hair look and feel awful and rough. Syndet bars work much better for me.

 

[Zhuliya]

Thanks again, I meant that I like the Lush bars, but I'd prefer a totally "natural" soap like CP bars are, I've tried a rosemary and nettle bar and a beer bar to start with, I'll try them as shampoos as soon as they are cured and let you know the results.
Both bars were very soft and greasy when I tried to take them out of the moulds, and I'm not sure how long it'll take to cure them (and whether they will EVER be hard enough to be usable!).

If this first experiment fails, I'll then probably try the shampoo syndets as you suggested, since the ones I've used from Lush work great fro my hair.

Here are the recipes I tried for shampoo bars:

Natural Wonderbarr (from the book "the handmade soap book" by Melinda Coss, slightly changed because I didn't have all the ingredients!):

67% olive oil
12% sweet almond oil
12% castor oil
3% flax seed oil
6% coconut oil
lye (5% dicount)
stingy nettle and rosemary infusion

at trace:
one teaspoon of wheatgerm oil
tea tree and rosemary e.o.
1 teaspoon of rice flour (I've read it acts as fragrance fixative)


Beer shampoo (from the book "Soap Naturally" by Patrizia Garzena and Marina Tadiello)

55% olive oil
10% corn oil (added at trace)
15% rice oil
10% castor oil
5% flax seed oil
lye (6% discount)
water (2/3) and beer (1/3) --> i heated up the beer in a low flame with half a tablespoon of salt to take away the gas and make it thicker.

at trace:
corn oil, rosemary and eucaliptus e.o., 1/2 teaspoon of henna powder

The first one was absolutely too soft (I've probably worked out a wrong combination of fats), the second one is quite soft but alright.
What do you guys think??

 

[agriffin]

I can't use CP for shampoo either. I love making syndet bars.

 

[rebekahp]

I use CP soap in my hair & have been for a few years. I love it & wouldn't go back to shampoo, however natural.

FTR, My hair is coloured & shoulder length. I use cider vinegar with a bit of natural conditioner & rinse both out. My hair if left to dry naturally feels wonderful & shines.

I have made the "Natural Wonderbar" & found it very soft, too much for my liking. I soap with 20% palm & 25% coconut for lather & firmness, but now run every recipe through soapcalc first.

 

[Zhuliya]

I'm going back to this thread just to let you know the development: after curing for only 25 days, I couldn't wait any more so I tried the first batch of shampoo bars I made (the one I described above as Natural Wonderbar)... and I have to say they are great!!!
I tried a bar on myself and on my bf's hair yesterday evening, and I have to say that even without the vinegar or lemon rinse I today feel my hair soft, silky and amazing!

Maybe it's just the initial excitement, so I'll keep using it for a while and then see if the results are the same over time. But right now I'm one happy soapmaker!!