If you are a fan of those expensive shampoo bars, give these DIY coconut shampoo bars a try! They’ll leave your hair soft, silky and healthier than ever before without any added chemicals or costs!
Not too long ago – okay, it’s been six years – I walked away from conventional shampoo. I simply got tired of my hair always being greasy and of putting who knows what on my head. Enter homemade coconut shampoo.
Basically, I started making my own homemade shampoo along with a whole lot of other things I simply stopped buying and make homemade instead. –
In addition to helping my budget, it has also allowed me to rely on the store less which is so important to my family.
In the time since then, I’ve made several different shampoo varieties, but to be honest, at this point in my life, these coconut shampoo bars are my absolute favorite.
Why Use Coconut Shampoo Bars?
While I still adore my original homemade coconut milk shampoo recipe and do make it from time to time, these coconut shampoo bars are much quicker and honestly easier to make.
Plus, they are a true zero waste product since every bit of each bar gets used.
Not only that, my hair looks amazing!
How Coconut Shampoo Helps Your Hair Heal
A very little known fact about my life is that I spent the majority of 2019 to 2021 on 2 different chemotherapy medicines for an auto-immune disorder I have.
Ankylosing Spondylitis. Try saying that three times fast! Sounds like a dinosaur, right? I’m a dinosaur! Rawr!
While my dose was much lower than cancer patients, I still experienced the same side effects of those meds and to be frank; I was horrifically sick.
Sick enough that it got to be too much and I just up and quit taking them one day. My disease will progress I’m sure, but I am able to live my life now without something that is supposed to heal me making that much sicker.
You would think that the vomiting or the other stomach issues would bother me most, but for me, the worst side effect was losing my hair. I cried many times standing in the shower while holding a clump of what used to be quite pretty.
What I was left with was a dull, lifeless mop on top of my head.
Until these coconut shampoo bars. To be frank, once I stopped the chemo meds, these bars and the goat milk soap base they begin with, helped bring my hair back to health and beauty.
And they did it for much cheaper than other expensive shampoo bars.
Do These Shampoo Bars Use Essential Oils?
No. These DIY shampoo bars are only coconut scented. It is the other ingredients that help clean and heal your hair.
If you are looking for a homemade shampoo recipe that uses actual coconut milk to moisturize, THIS DIY coconut shampoo does. It was the very first DIY shampoo recipe I ever made and like I said earlier, it still holds a place in my heart.
How Do I Use Shampoo Bars?
You can use these in two different ways. Which way you use is up to you.
First, you can lather the bar with your hands and then use your hands to soap your hair. This method would be best for those who have fine hair or for use on children.
The second way to use shampoo bars is to wet the bar and rub it across your hair. As the shampoo begins to coat your hair, lather it up well with your hands.
Now that it has grown back my hair is very thick once again. The second method is what I use for my own hair when I am using these.
How Do I Store Shampoo Bars?
Like any other bar of soap! I personally use one of THESE travel soap boxes after I shower. This keeps the bar I am currently using from sitting in the shower and going to waste because it’s so damp.
For extra bars you may have, store them in an air-tight storage container in a cool, dry place. Moisture is the enemy of most DIY products, but it will especially destroy a homemade soap product very quickly.
Use your stored bars within 1-year unless they start to smell off. If this is the case, it’s best to toss them since the fragrance oil or castor oil has likely turned rancid.
If that is a concern for you, consider adding vitamin E oil like THIS to the mixture before you pour.
DIY Coconut Shampoo Bars
Equipment
- 4-cup Liquid Measuring Cup with Pour Spout Microwave Safe
- Spoon
Ingredients
- 1 lb. Goats Milk Soap Base cut into 1" cubes
- 2 tsp. Castor Oil
- 1 tsp. Shea Butter
- 25 drops Non-Toxic Coconut Fragrance Oil
- Rubbing Alcohol in a spray bottle (optional)
Instructions
- Cut soap base into 1" cubes and add to measuring cup. Microwave on 30-second increments until melted. Add shea butter and microwave another 15-20 seconds. Stir until shea butter is melted and fully incorporated.1 lb. Goats Milk Soap Base, 1 tsp. Shea Butter
- Add castor oil. Stir until well combined.2 tsp. Castor Oil
- Allow the soap mixture to cool for 30-45 seconds then add coconut fragrance drops. Stir to mix well.25 drops Non-Toxic Coconut Fragrance Oil
- Pour mixture into molds. Wipe clean any spills around the edges if you desire. Allow bars to sit in a cool, dry place for 2-6 hours or until fully hardened.
- Optional: If you have air bubbles in the mixture, spray each bar with a quick spritz of rubbing alcohol to pop them. It will evaporate as the bars harden.Rubbing Alcohol
