homemade shampoo and conditioner

**forestdale** · 01-24-2006, 10:14 PM

Does anyone have a recipe for homemade shampoo and conditioner?

**Kimberlina** · 01-24-2006, 11:53 PM

Rhonda, I've not tried any of these as my hair is a nightmare with even the best of help, but here is an easy recipe that might be worth trying:

http://www.pioneerthinking.com/shampoo2.html

**Englishlady** · 01-25-2006, 04:05 AM

Rhonda I don't know what the prices are like in Australia for the things Kimberly mentioned, but I have looked into and priced up this sort of thing over here.(I have made my own creams and stuff in the past).

Basically with the high cost of the D I Y ingredients, I have found it works out cheaper to buy a bulk amount of pure shampoo and use that as both hair and body wash.
For the conditioner, as I have mentioned many times on FV, I use Aloe Vera gel, just a little blob combed through( and left in) is perfect

The Aloe Vera is also "Double duty" as I use it to moisturise too

There is a company in the UK who sell soap making supplies and they make solid soap bars and now they have brought out a solid conditioner bar, smallest purchase is a 1kg tub that you melt down into smaller bars ( with the idea of selling on...........) I am sure these would last a very long time.

Lush, a company you might have over there,? also do solid shampoo and solid conditioner bars too, ready made.

HTH?

**forestdale** · 01-25-2006, 02:25 PM

Thanks ladies.

Englishlady, this is not for me, it's for a friend. I use the organic shampoos and conditioners we sell at our store. I have a friend who has terrible problems with regular shampoo - she gets dermatitis and itchy scalp when she uses it. She's tried almost every supermarket shampoo. She can't afford organic and as this will be a long term problem for her, she's looking into making her own, organic if possible, harsh chemical-free shampoo.

I found this on http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/200...ch_alternative

I'm going to try it too because when we sell our store, I want to make my own as well.

Lemon, Lavender & Rosemary Shampoo
Ingredients
4 cups water
peel of 2 lemons
1 branch rosemary
1/3 cup pure soap flakes, or grated soap
1 tablespoon glycerine (from the supermarket)
1 teaspoon lavender essential oil

Method
1. Put the lemon peel, rosemary and water into a large saucepan. Put the lid on the saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes.

2. Remove the peel and rosemary, then add the soap flakes and stir until dissolved.

3. Add the glycerine and stir again. Turn off the heat. Add the lavender oil and let the mixture cool for about 5 minutes, then use a funnel to pour it into a plastic bottle. (Tip: don't use glass - it's dangerous in the bathroom).

4. As the mixture cools it will thicken; shake it up a few times to make sure it doesn't separate. After a few hours you should have a thick, pale yellow liquid.

Rinse
lavender flowers or mint leaves (added for the scent only - they can be omitted)
1 cup white vinegar
3 cups water

To make the rinse, simply combine the herbs, vinegar and water in another plastic bottle and give it a good shake.

Using and storing your shampoo
Use a good handful of the shampoo to work up a decent lather. Wash your hair once (or twice if it's very dirty), then rinse with about half the vinegar rinse. Make sure the rinse doesn't get in your eyes. Rinse again with ordinary water, then dry normally.

Keep the shampoo in a cool place, and throw it out if starts to look or smell odd - remember, it doesn't contain any preservatives.

**canadian gardener** · 01-25-2006, 03:09 PM

Rhonda for years all shampoos and conditioners made me break out in itchy weepy runny blisters on my scalp. TMI LOL!

What I did for YEARS was simple bar soap, to wash my hair and a DILUTED vinegar rinse.

Works fine. Just tell her to use a simple bar soap, I think i used an organic one with tea tree oil, made from olive oil and lye, just a simple plain soap.

I diluted a couple tbsp of vinegar in about 500 ml of water (2 cups) and poured it thru.

I still do that if I'm feeling itchy.

BTW get her on your emu oil supps. Its a W3 fatty acid with W6 in it isn't it???

When I started taking salmon oil (also W3) and evening primrose oil (W6) and increased the olive oil (cold pressed extra virgin) in my diet and took all that with natural (d alpha, not dl alpha tocopherol) Vit E my allergies finally calmed down a whole bunch.

This helps exzema too.

1 to 2 grams of the salmon oil (W3)
1 to 2 grams of the EPO (W6)
400 IU of NATURAL SOURCE vitamin E (the expensive one, the D ALPHA NOT THE D L ALPHA which is cheaper and synthetic)
Increase fat consumption in the diet by adding extra olive oil.

Avoid all trans fats and processed fats. No margerines, or cookies or crackers or processed foods, as they are prime sources of trans fats which destroy W3 and W6 fatty acids and create the chain reactions in the body that lead to increased inflammation and greater allergic sensitivity.

It's easier to start with the lower dose and ramp it up as she tolerates it in her diet, then when she is on that lower dose, tolerating it, ramp it up again to at least 2 grams each per day till the allergies settle down

THEN back it down to whatever dose keeps them under control.

**forestdale** · 01-25-2006, 05:00 PM

thanks Margery, I'll send her an email with your post in it.

BTW Margery says bawwwwwwwwwwkkk.

**canadian gardener** · 01-25-2006, 08:41 PM

oh give my feathered sister a nice little baawwwwwwwwwwwwk back from her Canadian 2 legged pal!

**Kimberlina** · 01-26-2006, 11:13 PM

LOL You two....

**armywife2002** · 01-27-2006, 04:00 PM

i've used honey and olive oil as a conditioner, and it makes my hair feel awesome- mix 1/2 cup honey, and 1/4 cup olive oil (you can use less, depending on your hair type)work through wet hair. cover with a shower cp for 30 minutes, then was as usual

**Hardy1** · 01-28-2006, 09:40 AM

I like using Lush shampoo bars. I hadn't thought of trying simple soap!
W

**canadian gardener** · 01-28-2006, 09:54 PM

If you do use bar soap, you must use the vinegar rinse recipe above, or use lemon juice in the dilution.

It lays the cuticle of the hair back down, the alkali in the soap raises it, making it tangly.

DILUTED vinegar (NEVER STRAIGHT!) or diluted lemon juice restore the acidity and make the hair shaft smooth again.

I want to try that honey and oil thing, that sounds lovely.

When I did mayonnaise once it took a ton of shampoo to clean it out and it still felt greasy afterwards, back when I was a teenager. But the hair was shiny.

Maybe the oil and honey thing would feel good and wouldn't be as hard to wash out.

**QuilterMom** · 02-03-2006, 11:40 AM

**camismommy** · 03-05-2006, 09:09 PM

I know it has been while but I wanted to share! I have been using a simple paste of baking soda and water; apply with a wonderful scalp massage of course, and rinsing with water-diluted apple cider vinegar. I have very long, thick hair and it works wonders when done every other day. Before blow drying I apply a very small amount of grapeseed oil through my hair which helps with the fly-away's!