Homemade Shampoo

 

Homemade Coconut Shampoo
Liquid castile soap is generally made from olive oil (and/or other oils) and water.  Though some naturals have shied away from it with all the talk of pH, the reality is that other naturals have faired fine using it in their shampoo recipes.  If you are interested in giving liquid castile soap a try, the following mixture involves the addition of organic coconut milk (for dilution and additional lathering), distilled water (for further dilution), and safflower oil (for moisture).
Ingredients:
1/4 cup liquid Castile soap (like Dr. Bronner's)
3 tbsp organic Coconut milk
1 tsp distilled water
1 tsp. coldpressed Safflower oil or Coconut oil or Grapeseed oil (add more if you desire)
Instructions:
1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bottle. Shake the bottle well before use.
2. Save the remainder in a closed bottle for future use (up to a few weeks).
3. Follow up with an apple cider vinegar rinse (if necessary) for pH balance.

To make a Herbal homemade shampoo  for Oily Hair:

• 8 oz distilled water
• 2 teaspoons of dried rosemary                                   
• 2 teaspoons of dried rose petals                                   
• 3 ounces liquid castile soap
• 3 Tablespoon aloe vera gel
• ¼  teaspoon of jojoba oil
• 30 drops of pure rosemary essential oil

Fill the jar with boiling water and immediately place a lid over the jar.Let this mixture steep for a minimum of 30 minutes. Sometimes I just let the mixture stand until cool.  Strain the herbs. Let the remaining liquid cool to room temperature.  Place the liquid into a shampoo bottle. (You can buy a new shampoo-like bottle or simply store it in an old shampoo bottle that has been washed out).  Add the castile soap to the container.  Place the rosemary and rose petals into a jar. Then add the jojoba oil and essential oil.  And finally add the aloe vera gel.  Shake well and voila! You have your own herbal homemade shampoo. You'll want to shake this mixture each time before you use it. This shampoo should last for several weeks. If it will take you longer than that to use the whole content you may consider keeping a portion of it in the fridge to prolong the shelf life.If you don't have distilled water (you can buy it at any grocery store), you can use regular water – but this may lead to a shorter shelf life. The distilled water ensures that you aren't adding any bacteria to the mix.

Variations:
(Feel free to mix and match herbs.  This recipe uses about 3 teaspoons of dried herbal material.)
If you have blond or lightly colored hair you might use chamomile and calendula in your herbal mix.
For a dark blend you can mix nettle, sage, and black walnut hulls.
For dry hair try violet leaf and marshmallow root and possibly add more oil to your recipe.
To strengthen your hair, simmer horsetail, oatstraw, clary sage, and nettle for twenty minutes. Strain and cool. Use this as your herbal base.
Besides rosemary essential oil you might also enjoy chamomile, lavender, and sage essential oils. If you have an itchy scalp and/or dandruff you might try adding tea tree oil to the mix.
Adding organic sulfur in the form of MSM (methylsulfonylmethane, an organic sulphur compound) to help strengthen your hair.
You can add vitamin E by pricking a liquid capsule with a pin and squeezing it into your cooled mixture.
Add Honey to your Coconut milk. Both of these make your shampoo creamy and give a sweet scent. You also benefit from these two by getting soft, shiny hair.