Do you mind sharing how you make the CA rinse?
Making Shampoo bars
- Thread starter Nonnie
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Why dothings havetobe so difficult huh? Lol
The first batch I made was with a moon cake press. Consensus I got was they look pretty but the side with the design can be kind of sharp the 1st few times. I'll have to try the cling wrap or arrowroot powder trick. Do you think cornstarch would work as well?
I now have a press that I got 3D printed by my sister. It will take a while before I can use it for shampoo bars for now I plan to test it with bath bombs/shower steamers. https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2701038
So true! It could be much worse though.
Cute! Love the heart.
Cornstarch might work, although I tried it before the arrowroot powder and it didn’t work as well for me.
Feelin' Soapy
Well-Known Member
I use one for all my shampoo bars and love the way they look.
I dust with corn starch and it works well. I dust inside the mold and also a light dust on each ball of shampoo before I put it in the mold.
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I’m curious. Are these shampoo bars made with butter, oils, fats and lye or are they made of surfactants? What’s the ph for these? I currently making mine with butters, oils, fats and lye but would love to try making them with surfactants just not sure where to start!
I use Costco's minoxidil (https://www.costco.com/kirkland-sig...lution,-2-fl-oz,-6-pack.product.11501138.html) for my fine thinning hair. You do have to use it every day but it works great! I use one dropper @ 10 mins before I go to bed and then wash my hair in the morning. It's only $18 and one box lasts me a year!. It takes about 3-4 months to start noticing the regrowth.
I have managed to make a great conditioner but have not been able to make a matching awesome shampoo bar (they always strip out too much and since I wash my hair every day (and I swim), I decided to put a pin in that project till this year and I focused on a cleansing conditioner/co-wash instead. I made the SwiftCraftyMonkey dupe for Hairstory New Wash, adjusted/changed the heck out of it and have fallen in love with this process instead. It never strips out too much from my fine damaged hair, leaves it soft and shiny and no need for two items in the shower. I also love that I can finally wash my hair w/o gloves (allergies) for the first time in 20 yrs!
I also used a messed up/fixed back up batch on my poodle (left the ph at 6) and was shocked that it cleaned her very dirty coat really well. Who knew!
Nonnie, I have the same white 3 piece mold as a shampoo press and I like it (I used seran wrap/cling film with it also).
It also looks like Lotioncrafter has the hemisqualane back in stock.
https://lotioncrafter.com/products/neossance-hemisqualane?variant=13079635689561
Making Cosmetics has C13-15 Alkane (same INCI) but it's more expensive.
I've also had success using NatraSil ( Lotioncrafter) and it's cheaper too! Some recipes, I did half natrasil/half hemisqualane.
https://lotioncrafter.com/products/natrasil?variant=13079635034201
Surfactant. Check out bodyhaven soapsfor her recipes. They are lovely
Also surfacant shampoo bars for me. My earlier bars had a PH of around 6, the last batch I adjusted down to 5.5. I posted my recipe here
Thread 'Shampoo Bar for Oily Hair'
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/shampoo-bar-for-oily-hair.94251/
My hair is very fine and my scalp is oily, if your hair is different you may want to check out Humblebee and Me. Marie has several recipes for different hair types.
It's a LOT of work, with some complex calculations involved.
If you feel up for giving it a try, here is my recipe and process:
Dissolve about 1 T of CA in about 1 cup of warm water.
Pour over hair.
Rinse.
Like I said, sooooper complicated. Don't hesitate to reach out for help!
You are hilarious! Thank you for the recipe and the laugh! Actually I winged it the other night and mucked it up so there! I can mess up even the easiest stuff.It's a LOT of work, with some complex calculations involved.
If you feel up for giving it a try, here is my recipe and process:
Dissolve about 1 T of CA in about 1 cup of warm water.
Pour over hair.
Rinse.
Like I said, sooooper complicated. Don't hesitate to reach out for help!
I used 1/4 t in about a cup of water. Already noticed a significant difference in my hair. Will try your version next.
With the difference I noticed in my hair I’m thinking that my shampoo bars PH is too high. Already made another tester and used CA to reduce the PH. Earlier bars were testing (with a meter) just under 6. I cut this one down to 5.5, just made it last night and haven’t tried it yet.
Glad I could make you giggle! And hey, if that small amount works for you, don’t feel the need to increase it. CA like everything has gotten expensive, so conserve where you can. I should try decreasing the amount I’m using to see if it is still as effective for my daughter.You are hilarious! Thank you for the recipe and the laugh! Actually I winged it the other night and mucked it up so there! I can mess up even the easiest stuff.
I used 1/4 t in about a cup of water. Already noticed a significant difference in my hair. Will try your version next.
With the difference I noticed in my hair I’m thinking that my shampoo bars PH is too high. Already made another tester and used CA to reduce the PH. Earlier bars were testing (with a meter) just under 6. I cut this one down to 5.5, just made it last night and haven’t tried it yet.
Feelin' Soapy
Well-Known Member
I'm glad my hair is dry, not oily, because that's way too much work!It's a LOT of work, with some complex calculations involved.
If you feel up for giving it a try, here is my recipe and process:
Dissolve about 1 T of CA in about 1 cup of warm water.
Pour over hair.
Rinse.
Like I said, sooooper complicated. Don't hesitate to reach out for help!
Hi, just wondering if you have tried Body Haven conditioner recipe. I have curly dry hair which needs moisture, and i haven’t found a conditioner bar recipe like that yet. The Body Haven looks promising.
I have checked out Humblebee for conditioner bar recipes, but she doesn’t specify if for oily or dry hair. I have messages her but have never received a reply. How do you tell which hair types her bars are for please and thanks.
I started with Swift Crafty Monkey. She has paid subscriptions for as little as $3 a month and her approach is to teach formulating. The information is good but it’s a LOT of work to digest all of the information and the website isn’t super well organized. She does provide formulas for different hair types. It might be worth purchasing one of her e-zines on the particular topic you are interested in.I have checked out Humblebee for conditioner bar recipes, but she doesn’t specify if for oily or dry hair. I have messages her but have never received a reply. How do you tell which hair types her bars are for please and thanks.
Another option is DIY Bath and Body on Etsy. I believe she has a conditioner bar recipe but I haven’t purchased/tried her recipe. I do have some of her bath and body recipes that I really like.
As far as HB&M, if she doesn’t specify, to determine if a recipe is for a specific hair type you would need to look at the ingredients and what they bring to the party.
Hi Tammyfarms i too started with SCM unfortunately i agree that nothing is organized and i felt like she thought everyone is a chemist. I have her Shampoos ezine and it gave me some ideas but i had a hard time following her.
I also have the DIY etsy formula but it doesn’t do well for my dry, curly hair so i am a little leary about purchasing her conditioner recipe.
I actually have a shampoo bar i like at the moment, but i am having trouble getting the idea for a conditioner bar together for my type of hair.
I'm not a fan of the DIY conditioner bars. I have medium length fine curly hair that tangles really easily. I find with the bar I can't get enough conditioner in my hair so that I can comb through it and I often get more tangles trying.
Well i use a wide tooth comb and my fingers to go through my hair, and i only condition my hair. I try not to let it go on my sxalp. Shampoo is for scalp and conditioner is for hair.
