My tallow shampoo bar recipe is one that I absolutely love.
Tallow shampoo bar recipe
It took me a long time to come up with a truly natural hair washing solution. Believe me, I tried everything. There was the no poo method (yikes!), various homemade liquid shampoos, and different rinses. NOTHING got my hair reliably clean. And some of these things, like the no poo method, were harsh on my hair.
I also tried plenty of store bought options. However, no purchased shampoo met my strict criteria of being completely natural. They all contained ingredients that I didn’t love, like fragrances, hair coating compounds, and other things I wasn’t comfortable with.
What I really wanted was something I could make myself. I wanted have total control over the ingredients, so that I could ensure that they were completely safe and natural.
It had to be something that worked beautifully, not poorly, and not even just okay. I wanted clean hair, once and for all, with every washing. Lastly, I wanted something affordable.
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The bar saves the day
In my quest to test out various store bought options, I eventually stumbled upon some shampoo bars at my local health food store. I loved how they left my hair! Finally, it was clean, shiny, and manageable. However, the ones I had found were small, pricey, and didn’t last very long. They seemed to really melt away quickly with use.
Since I had already been making my own soap bars for a while, I decided to see if I could come up with my own tallow shampoo bar recipe. After lots of research and recipe testing, I finally nailed it.
I am still so enamored with these shampoo bars. They are literally everything I ever wanted in a hair washing solution.
What makes them so amazing
A shampoo bar is a wonderful way to wash hair. It is truly a mild soap, but that’s okay, and I’ll explain why in a second. They wash away oil and dirt, leaving hair completely clean, soft, and manageable.
Also, they leave behind just the right amount of conditioning, so hair doesn’t get dried out. They are a very gentle and completely natural hair washing solution.
Anyone who is ready to ditch toxic, commercial shampoos (but still wants gorgeous hair!) will fall in love with shampoo bars.
The ingredients
In my tallow shampoo bar recipe, I used a blend of oils and fats that are good for both cleansing and conditioning hair.
Coconut oil helps to provide lots of luxurious lather. A good lather while washing my hair was something I really missed during those times of using the no poo method and other homemade hair washes. I was so glad to have it back! Coconut oil is also great for cleansing.
Olive oil helps a bit with cleansing, but also provides wonderful moisturizing properties.
Castor oil is well known as a fabulous ingredient for hair. It contains ricinoleic acid and omega-6 fatty acids, which help to strengthen and nourish hair.
Grass fed tallow is another great fat for hair. It is gently cleansing and deeply moisturizing. Also, tallow gives soap and shampoo bars hardness, which makes them last longer and not melt away in the shower. This is why my health food store shampoo bars didn’t last very long: they contained only plant based oils, and therefore were prone to melting away and a short lifespan. For more info on all the reasons why I love to add tallow to my shampoo bars and other soap recipes, check out this post on why add tallow to soap here.
A variety of different essential oils can be used in this tallow shampoo bar recipe. My personal favorite is peppermint. I love how zesty and invigorating it is while washing my hair, and I like that peppermint has scalp and hair benefits.
Things to know
If you’re switching to shampoo bars from commercial shampoos and hair products, your hair is going to need to go through a detox process. You’ll definitely want to check out this post here on how to detox your hair with a DIY hair mask.
I mention before how shampoo bars are actually a mild soap designed for hair. One thing to be aware of is that hair needs a slightly more acidic ph than soap or shampoo bars can give. If your hair is really short, you probably won’t notice anything, and don’t need to do anything about this. Just wash, rinse, and you’ll be good to go.
But, if your hair is medium length or longer, you’ll want to do a ph balancing and shine boosting rinse after washing your hair with shampoo bars. It’s really easy. Just fill a 2 cup container with about 1/4 cup of lemon juice or vinegar (white or apple cider will both work) and fill the container the rest of the way with water.
After washing and rinsing your hair, simply pour the shine boosting rinse over your hair in the shower. You can immediately rinse it out. This resets the ph of your hair back to its happy place, which will leave it smooth, shiny, and beautiful.
Note: depending on your water type, you might have to adjust the amount of vinegar. I’ve noticed I’ve had to adjust this a little whenever I’ve moved or traveled. If your hair is seeming limp and dull, try reducing the vinegar. If your hair seems frizzy and rough, increase the vinegar.
The process
If you’ve made cold process soap bars before, it’s like that. If you’re new to the soap making process, I recommend checking out this post first, just so you’re comfortable with everything involved.
Ready to make some shampoo bars? Let’s get started!
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Get my full disclosure here.
Tallow shampoo bar recipe directions
Ingredients:
- 10 oz. grass fed tallow
- 10 oz. refined coconut oil
- 10 oz. olive oil
- 6 oz. castor oil
- 13.68 oz. water
- 5.11 oz. lye
- 2 tbsp essential oil (click the link to get my favorite essential oils)
Instructions:
- Weigh tallow, coconut oil, olive oil, and castor oil, and put into a crockpot on high, or a pot on the stove on low heat.
- Weigh the water in a heat safe container or sturdy plastic bucket, and weigh lye separately.
- Once oils are melted, check the temperature. You want the oils to be 100 degrees F. Let oils cool if necessary.
- Once oils are at 100 degrees F, take the lye and water outdoors. Wearing gloves and safety goggles, carefully and slowly pour the lye into the water. Stir gently.
- Once the lye water has turned from cloudy to clear, leave it to cool for 10 minutes.
- Carefully pour the lye water into the oil mixture.
- Use an immersion blender to mix the shampoo bar mixture. After a few minutes, it will grow creamy, and start to thicken. Mix until it has reached “trace,” the light pudding consistency.
- Add the essential oils and blend again to incorporate.
- Pour shampoo bar mixture into molds, top with wax paper, and wrap molds in towels.
- After 24 hours, remove soap from mold and slice into bars. Let cure in an area with good air flow for 4 weeks.
Tallow shampoo bar recipe video
More tallow recipes
How to Render Tallow with the Easy Crockpot Method
Tallow Lip Balm Recipe with Honey
Have you been looking for a truly all natural hair washing solution?
What all have you tried? Anything crazy? Let me know in the comments!
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Plant Therapy peppermint essential oil
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Tallow Shampoo Bars
My tallow shampoo bar recipe is one that I absolutely love.
Ingredients
- 10 oz. grass fed tallow
- 10 oz. olive oil
- 10 oz. refined coconut oil
- 6 oz. castor oil
- 13.68 oz. water
- 5.11 oz. lye
- 2 tbsp essential oil
Instructions
- Weigh tallow, coconut oil, olive oil, and castor oil, and put into a crockpot on high, or a pot on the stove on low heat.
- Weigh the water in a heat safe container or sturdy plastic bucket, and weigh lye separately.
- Once oils are melted, check the temperature. You want the oils to be 100 degrees F. Let oils cool if necessary.
- Once oils are at 100 degrees F, take the lye and water outdoors. Wearing gloves and safety goggles, carefully and slowly pour the lye into the water. Stir gently.
- Once the lye water has turned from cloudy to clear, leave it to cool for 10 minutes.
- Carefully pour the lye water into the oil mixture.
- Use an immersion blender to mix the shampoo bar mixture. After a few minutes, it will grow creamy, and start to thicken. Mix until it has reached “trace,” the light pudding consistency.
- Add the essential oils and blend again to incorporate.
- Pour shampoo bar mixture into molds, top with wax paper, and wrap molds in towels.
- After 24 hours, remove soap from mold and slice into bars. Let cure in an area with good air flow for 4 weeks.
