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I have not come across eco friendly shampoo or shower gel before. I am sure that some one somewhere must have come up with some, but where can I get it?

Or are there any other ways to wash your self that don't use theses products. The romans used olive oil and a scraper but at £3 a bottle I don't think it would work out that cost effective over here.

The romans used olive oil and a scraper but at £3 a bottle I don't think it would work out that cost effective over here.

...but Andy, you live in Bath, and when in Rome do as The Romans and all that! *confused* That doesn't quite read properly but I know what I mean

Ecover do a shower gel that is also a shampoo, but I'm sure that there must be something based on soapwort or such?

Can't seem to find much at all, but don't really have many books on 'making your own'.....something to add to book list methinks

Anyhow, soapwort crushed in warm water is mentioned, as is Horse Chestnut leaves, apparently chickweed can be used too but is greatly inferior.

And thats about it!

Maybe worth a 'google'? Hopefully someone here will have something more helpful?

Yeah I have found a few make your own things. like a dry shampoo made with fuller's earth and orrisroot powder not the sorts of things that most people have lying around their house. Not the sort of things I have even heard of!

I also found a lemon hairspray made with 1 lemon, 300ml water and 2 tsps of Vodka. Never use hairspray myself I imagine this would be good for lightening hair too as it has lemon in it.

Fullers earth is cat litter, orris root, I think is some thickener you can get from healthfood shops, but sounds rather messy to me.
To search for a number of alternative homebrew recepies for cleaners, personal care etc. try
http://www.care2.com/healthyliving/
check out the link on each page of recepies for the printer friendly page

I thought that cat litter was attapulgite clay (non-clumping) or bentonite clay (clumping) - fullers earth I think is diatomite or diatomaceous earth also called kieselguhr. Orris root powder is also used to fix frangrance in things like pot pourrie (can't spell), so you can get it from some craft shops. I have come across this type of product before, it is sprinkled into the hair as a power and then absorbs the oil from the hair and is brushed out, taking the oil with it .

I still have some books left over from my chemistry days, I will see what formulations I can come up with (when I can get a spare minute!)

You can learn a lot if you can get access to a large library ( like out state library in Sydney) and see if you can get hold of the "Chemical Formulary" it may be available on line, but I haven't looked. Ben Selingers "Chemistry in the Marketplace" is also a ripper of a book if you want to know what goes into the products that you use!

Nev

Weleda do quite a nice range, Andy (http://www.weleda.co.uk/) and they are not so expensive they make you gasp (like the all organic range at Green People). If you have the time and energy, it must be best to make your own (lots of people make their own soap, I know, but I have never tried it - yet).

Chickenlady wrote:Weleda do quite a nice range, Andy (http://www.weleda.co.uk/) and they are not so expensive they make you gasp (like the all organic range at Green People). If you have the time and energy, it must be best to make your own (lots of people make their own soap, I know, but I have never tried it - yet).

cheers chickenlady

Won't hurt to try out welda next time I need some shampoo. As the sun is slowly comming out I think it is time to go for a nettle hunt to make some nettle shampoo. I will definetly write a page to chart my findings.

G'Day Guys,

If you want to make your own soap based hair shampoo, instead of using Caustic Soda (Sodium Hydroxide) to make a hard soap, you can use Caustic Potash (Potassium Hydroxide) which makes a liquid soap that can be used for hair!

my guess is that unless you have very short hair, getting enough soap latherred up to wash all of it, is probably quite awkward, a liquid is easier to handle. I have tried in the past to use Ecover washingup liquid, but it dulled my hair, was rather strong, and I would think bar soap would probably do the same. Short hair, again, is probably less affected by it, as its life from root to tip is relatively short, and has fewer washes than longer hair, which would probably become very brittle, and dull. Sure its a cosmetic problem, but few of us would like to end up looking like a scare crow. Still no real answer, I guess? Off to become a poletitian.

G'Dy Rhyddid,

It is one of those strange things about using soap on hair - the hair only goes green, then falls out once you questioned the use of the soap. Have you loooked in the mirror since you posted?

As far as I know, the only reason for using a liquid soap is ease of application to the hair. Any soap will clean the hair (although it is recommended to have a acid rinse with say lemon juice or vinegar to replace the natural acidity of the hair), but as all shampoos are liquid, so liquid soap was used first.

If you want to make your own soap I have some recipes for "shampoo bars"!

Nev

G'DAy Judy,

the more alkaline the material, the rougher it will be on your hair. You may wish to try the acid post wash or perhaps a milder soap.

Nev