Jan 20 2008
Making Shampoo
Yet another creation! A few nights ago I decided to try making my own shampoo. I modified a recipe found in the book, Earthly Bodies and Heavenly Hair, by Dina Falconi. It was a simple recipe that called for an herbal infusion, castile soap, olive oil, and essential oils.
I had many of the supplies needed, so I bought a large 32 oz bottle of Dr Bronner’s Hemp Castile Soap (the baby/unscented kind) for $13. This will probably make about 8 batches of shampoo, making each 20 oz batch cost about $1.63! Shampoo for a year for only $13.00! I love it.
I have a flickr photoset with instructions and pictures of how I made the shampoo. Enjoy!
Thanks for the tutorial on flickr. That is so smart and helpful! Let us know how the shampoo is working for you! Do you know if it has a shelf life?
Good question on the shelf life. I’ll have to look back at the recipe and see if it’s mentioned. Otherwise, I may have to add a little bit of Vitamin E oil to the mix (which wouldn’t be too terribly bad since it’s still a bit drying to my hair).
Update on the shelf life. I spoke to my friend Elizabeth, who works in the wellness section of the co-op and is knowledgable about essential oils. The Dr. Bronner’s soap has Vitamin E in it, so the soap is well preserved. Plus, the Tea Tree and Peppermint essential oils are both anti-bacterial and antifungal, and should keep the mixture fresh for a while with a shelf life of up to 3 months!
Just long enough to make the next batch! I may add some Vitamin E oil or Grapefruit Seed Extract to the next batch to give it a longer shelf life.