While this was a much-viewed (and tried) idea...judging by the comments...it was met with mixed reviews. Even my own initial opinion of the mixture changed the more I used it. I found that I couldn't use it every time I shampooed because it left my hair feeling too "coated".
For the last several days I haven't been able to get this out of my mind. While I don't expect every single one of my posts to be a "homerun"...this one had enough people that weren't satisfied with the results that I knew I had to do some more research. That's how much I love you guys! ;-)
Saturday I spent HOURS searching for an answer. It wasn't proving as easy as I thought it would be! My suspicion was that the castile soap might be the culprit in this recipe...but almost EVERY SINGLE homemade shampoo formulation I found had castile soap as the base.
Many, many recipes later...I have come up with the following semi-homemade version of Coconut Milk Shampoo that while not completely "natural" is still a vast improvement over typical grocery store brands.
Semi-Homemade Coconut Milk Shampoo
1/4 cup coconut milk (you can either make your own [see below], or use store-bought)
1/3 cup organic baby shampoo/wash (the closest I could get to organic was Aveeno brand)
1 tsp vitamin E, olive or almond oil (I used olive oil because I was out of almond oil and didn't have any Vit E oil)
10 to 20 drops of your choice of essential oils (I was going to use Lavender because I thought it would go best with the baby shampoo...but there were only a few drops in the bottle...so I used Lemon instead.)
Since I was anxious to try this new formulation and was out of canned coconut milk...I decided I might as well try my hand at making my own. After seeing how easy it was to make Almond Milk last week, I figured I could handle coconut. And I just happened to have a whole bag of shredded coconut that I recently purchased to use in my sister's homemade granola recipe. So I was set. I turned to Crunchy Betty's instructions and got started.
As I suspected....it was super easy!
1/2 cup shredded coconut
Into the blender (or food processor) with 1 cup HOT water.
PULSE approximately 20 times. (Don't run continuously.)
Strain "milk" through a fine sieve or some sort of cloth. 
Push down on the
coconut to make sure you get all the liquid out.
Put coconut back in the blender with another cup of HOT water
and repeat 3 more times.
You will end up with approximately 4 cups of lovely coconut milk!
. . . . . .
NOW we are ready to make the SHAMPOO! :-)
Add 1/4 cup coconut milk and 1/3 cup baby shampoo to bottle of choice.
Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil, vitamin E oil or almond oil.
Add 10 to 20 drops of your favorite essential oil.
Shake bottle to combine ingredients.
Go jump in the shower and try it out!
Personally, I like this version a LOT better than the first. Unfortunately, the castile "soap" in the first recipe reacts with the minerals in the water we wash our hair with and can form a film or residue. That is why some of us experienced a "coated" feeling on our hair....and why most shampoo is made with "detergents", because detergent reacts less to minerals in water and doesn't leave this residue. Of course detergents contain OTHER ingredients that are less than desirable. But that's another post for another time.
Hopefully this will be a better alternative for those who tried the first version and decided it was a no-go. I can't wait to hear what you think! Make sure and let us know. :-)
"If at first you don't succeed...try, try again" is today's rallying cry and also is today's.....
Is the essential oil important to the recipe, or is it only for scent? Could it be left out for an "unscented" version?
ReplyDeletewould you suggest using the castile soap version every so often? I saw different all natural and organic soaps when I was looking for the castile. Maybe one of those would work better.
ReplyDeleteI use leftover coffee (cooled, of course) as a rinse and finish off with apple cider vinegar. I have coveted "hollywood" hair with its shine and sleekness. No more! :) AND not a split end in sight.
when your hair is feeling "coated" with any chemicals you apply or a shampoo gone wrong- make a paste of baking soda and water, apply to your wet hair, rub all through and rinse, then shampoo with correct ;-) shampoo, and rinse again. Hair will be squeaky clean and no residue left in hair.
ReplyDeleteWhen you say olive oil...would EVOO work? It just happens to be what I have in my pantry.
ReplyDeleteI have done the coconut milk it my hair and let it soak, I just used the kind in the can. It left my sister's hair so greasy looking, but mine looked perfectly fine. Would this shampoo make it look to shiney that its greasy? Or just plain greasy?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Marva, I either sprinkle baking soda in my hand with the shampoo or I rub it into my hair after rinsing the shampoo out. Either way I haven't had any trouble with your original version... Thanks! =)
ReplyDeleteCoconut Milk with Dr Bonners Castile Soap works amazing as well. Then do an apple cider vinegar rinse after.
ReplyDeleteI know this is going to sound a bit out there but I had made your previous recipe for myself and I went to give my dog a bath and forgot to grab his shampoo so I grabbed the next closest thing which was the previous coconut milk shampoo recipe and WOW! I have tried a lot of dog shampoos and my chiweenie would still stink after going outside once. Over a week later he still smells great even after being outside AND he has a VERY shiny coat. more so than any other time I have washed him! I will be using this recipe for our chiweenie as well. My hair did feel coated slightly but I contributed that to adding coconut oil to the mix. Even a small amount of coconut oil seems to just make my hair greasy so i will try vitamin E oil next time. Does anyone know where I can purchase vitamin E oil for a reasonable price? Whole Foods prices are ridiculous, I don't have a good earth or Sun flower market here and Trader Joes unfortunately doesn't have it at their store.
ReplyDeleteI tried your original recipe for shampoo, too. It did leave my hair feeling coated but I've used it as body wash and love it! I don't even need to use lotion after I shower.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the post!
Walgreens or CVS has bottles of Vit E oil
ReplyDeleteabout how much does the recipe make? Just wondering so I can go and get some bottles. :)
ReplyDeleteI tried your original recipe and used it for the first time this morning. My hair is DIS-GUS-TING. I didn't have time to wash it again before work though, so I put it up in a pony tail. I feel so nasty, I'm showering first thing when I get home. Ick.
ReplyDeleteSo now I'm curious, because I went out and bought a huge bottle of Dr. Bronner's. When you say it reacts with the minerals.. Wouldn't that kind of put the sales of Dr. Bronner's to a stop? Or was it a reaction with the oils? I also bought lime essential oil and don't know what I'm going to do with the rest of it :(
I'm a bit wary of trying this new shampoo... It's really just taking shampoo and adding other things to it. I think it would be easier to just buy regular shampoo and leave all the guesswork to the professionals. I don't know, maybe I'll give it a try. We'll see.
I also noticed a sticky "coating" on my hair after the first use of your original recipe. At first I thought it was the Castile soap as well, but then I looked at the ingredients in the coconut milk and the second ingredient was "guar GUM." I went back to the store and found a canned milk without the gum in it. This was the trick for me. In my opinion, the oils in the Castile soap can cause your hair to feel "coated" a little, however, I find that a good rinse with vinegar takes care of that. The next batch I make, I will make my own coconut milk.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, I was unhappy with how runny the shampoo was and researched how to thicken it up a bit so it doesn't run through your fingers. I tried cornstarch which made a huge mess, then my brother, who is a chef, recommended using carrageenan. This works GREAT, but you need a blender to mix it with which causes your shampoo to get very frothy and more than triple in volume. After blending, I recommend waiting an hour or two for it to settle, then pour it into your squeeze bottle. I used a 1tsp to 1 cup ratio, but that may vary depending on the product you buy.
Perhaps I'm uneducated here, I love me some DIY, homemade cleaning anything stuff and have reveled in my laundry soap, cursed the clumps in dishwasher soap, and am now on the Oxy/dawn/vinegar regime. But can someone please tell me the benefits of homemade coconut soap?? I live in az where the water is so hard that when my grandma visits from so cal she can't bathe too often for it cracks her skin, and I have two big stinky itchy INDOOR dogs, and a two year old on the way (adopting) someone educate me!
ReplyDeleteAfter doing some online research, Dr. Bronners is made out of vegetable oils, so it seems that adding any additional type of oil is overkill. I also dislike how runny it is, it's hard to make it to my hair before it all sloshes out of my hand. I could use the squirt bottles like you have pictured, but it's hard to control how much is used. Maybe I'll try the tip Amanda Rose gave. In any case, eventually we'll all figure this out! Trial and error :)
ReplyDeleteA few years back I was using straight up Bronner's. I had pretty short hair that was not dyed. My only problem was it left my hair a little dry which was okay after I used conditioner. I'd also do a weekly vinegar rinse. After about two months I stopped using it because my hair was just so brittle. I can't say I recommend using castile for hair cleansing.
ReplyDeleteI tried the original version ealier this week and got the negitive result. :( There was this icky coating. I used canned coconut milk with the "gum" in it so I though that was reason. I did let it air dry and after it dried it wasn't so "sticky". My hair felt thicker, but not gross anymore. Yesterday I tried the recipe without the coconut milk and added baking soda. My hair was even worse. Air drying it didn't help. I think it is the castile soap for me.
ReplyDeleteI have very long, fine, but a lot of it, red hair. My hairdresser says I have "glass hair". Not even hair dye or a perm will stay in my hair. It all just washes right out. It was weird these stayed in my hair.
I'm trying different recipes of this myself. I'll let you know if I come up with anything useful!
As with many of the other reviewers here, my experience with the original recipe wasn't what I hope. My hair felt very strange and tangled beyond belief. I am looking forward to trying this new version and will write once I do. OAN, I LOVE making my own coconut milk and have become addicted to it. Thank you for all you share :-)
ReplyDeleteWe make our own shampoo with dr. Bronners, castor oil, jojoba oil, aloe vera juice and thicken it with xantham gum. My oldest daughter swears it gave her back her mermaid hair (she damaged it so badly with a straightening iron) and my 2nd is no longer an oily haired mess! As for my "maturing" hair, it has grown 3" in two months, gotten it's wave back, and most of my grays are GONE! There is a transition period when your hair is a oily, yucky mess, but it passes!
ReplyDeletePlease tell what your recipe is! Thanks! Or email me- skibummum@live.com
DeleteMandy
Could u please email me your recipe as well?? Thanks in advance. Jybond306@hotmail.com
DeleteJenn
i would love to try the recipe that used Dr. Bronners, castor oil, jojba oil and aloe vera juice! Could you email me your concoction PLEASE!! pikemusicmom@gmail.com
ReplyDeletenow if we can find a natural fix for dandruff I'd be set!
ReplyDeleteI have a friend who makes her own shampoo bars, I'm not sure if she still sells them or not but she noticed a build up with them as well, so she started doing a vinegar rinse and it made all of the difference. http://http//www.etsy.com/shop/MysticHollowFarm Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteThe WATER PEOPLE!!
ReplyDeleteIt's about the water you have. If you have SOFT water you can do all kinds of nice natural stuff with your hair.
If you have HARD water, FORGET IT! Hard means you need chemicals to get it to actually clean your hair.
The only thing I've read to address this was using distilled or water boiled for ages and sieved, in the shampoo but I haven't tried it yet.
I have tried all these natural ideas for AGES and my water is SO hard I'm almost bruised when I leave the shower. No chemicals, or at least dealing with the water, it will not clean your hair nicely.
Castile soap in your hair requires an apple cider vinegar rinse. No two ways about it. They even sell rinses on the Dr. Bronner's website. I think the ratio is one tablespoon of ACV to one cup of water. Don't mix it in the Castile soap bc it will make a whole different mess, just rinse your hair after and then rinse that out. I put mine in a spray bottle so I can have a whole batch at a time.
ReplyDeleteWhile I haven't tried your shampoo, I have recently started using an all organic and natural shampoo (green valley farms). I have been using it for a week and have experienced a gross sticky straw like feeling in my hair. It is my hair detoxing. Regular chemical shampoo coats your hair and when you switch, your help begins to strip all that chemical stuff out. They say only 2% of people who do the switch experience this with their hair, but it is only temporary. Here is how I have been combatting it:
ReplyDeleteACV rinses after I shampoo (2 tsp per 1 cup hot water)
Club soda rinses (leave in hair for 30 minutes)
Mayo deep cleanse (leave in for 30 mins and shampoo out - may take 3 shampoos to get all oils out)
After about a week my hair is starting to feel healthy and less greasy, less sticky, less straw and ratty like. You just have to wait it out, detoxing doesn't happen overnight! Be patient and it will be worth it.
Sorry, I meant green valley naturals !! :)
DeleteI'd be wary about using too much Lavender oil in your shampoo. Studies have shown that Lavender and Tea Tree Oils get absorbed in skin and act like estrogens. Boys started growing breasts when using products with these oils in them. As women, you may not think it is as harmful, but anything that messes with the natural balance of your hormones can be very bad. Just be aware. I'll be interested to try this recipe. I have a lot of kids organic shampoo from my son's supply, so I'll have to take a bit to try this. I did use some of the canned coconut milk with a half an avocado as a mask in my hair and while my hair has never been so shiny, it was a disaster in a lot of ways. 2 days later, I still don't have all the oil out and it is clumping together in a greasy mess. I've tried everything, and tomorrow am going to have to pull out the big guns - clarifying shampoo. I love a good natural product, but it is very frustrating when you try them and they make you look crazy for days.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like the shampoo for my hair (well maybe because I tried to use it right after I DRENCHED my hair in OLIVE OIL thinking it would be a good thing. NOT SO MUCH! My hair was a greasy mess for days!!) Anyway, I have been using my "shampoo" as a body wash and I really do like it!
ReplyDeleteA dab of Dawn should fix that....
DeleteI make soap professionally and would just like to chime in on the castille soap/mineral reaction comments. A liquid soap (and even a bar soap) is a carefully balanced chemical formula made of water and oils and bound together with sodium hydroxide. When you add any extra oil to it, you're going to have shampoo + oil and therefore you're going to have buildup. On your skin, this can feel quite nice and there is even a word for it: emollient. In your hair, it's not as nice. Natural soap does not "react" with the minerals in your water. We've been using detergents so long we think of their reaction as normal and soap's reaction as "odd". What's left on your skin or hair is oil. When you use a detergent, the surfactants in the detergent whisk all the oils and all the dirt and all the minerals away...which is ok, unless you wanted to have some moisturizing properties left behind to nourish your skin. Sorry if I'm going on and on but this belief that soap somehow leaves "scum" on you is so irritating I sometimes get up on my "soap box". If you want to add coconut milk to your shampoo, try formulating a shampoo with coconut milk as the base in place of water.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't want to formulate (research about shampoos and develop a recipe) then a really easy way to doctor up your shampoo is to used powdered additives like silk, panthenol, honey powder, green tea, chamomile and many more. All are available from health food or soap supply stores.
I totally agree. If you regularly use a shampoo with sodium lauryl sulfate or the like, your hair gets completely degreesed. In turn your body scrambles to coat the hair and over produces oil. It will take a while for your body to not produce so much oil. This might be some of the people's problems.
DeleteAlso with hair, you need o balance the ph level. Hair at 7 (neutral) will have a smooth shaft. Hair that is a higher ph ( 8+) will be course and easily tangled. Castile soap has a ph of say 10 i think. If you look at a soap's ingredients and see an acid included, the ph is probably more like 7. I wash with a Castile based shampoo bar and need to use a acidic rinse such as vinegar or citric acid. It totally makes a difference. I do live in places with hard water and it seems like I need to use more acidic product to get the same result as soft water area. Also filtering shower heads can be purchased easily enough.
Good luck and I hope this helps some. :)
I tried the original shampoo but have yet to try the new version. I've been looking for natural shampoos as I've been worried about sulphates and parabins in shampoos. I've been doing a lot of research and I've found, natural shampoos will work a lot like no poo. It is my understanding, there will be an icky, greasy period for 2-6 weeks that you have to deal with while your scalp gets used to chemical free washing. I'm still trying the natural thing but it's hard. Not only is my very long hair greasy looking and feeling, it's become extra frizzy without any of my normal products. I'm not sure I can last the icky period.
ReplyDeleteI just used the old recipe (with castille soap)... and I love the coating feeling. I have not been using regular shampoo(detergent, toxic) for a year now. It has been hard to find that "detergent" scrubbed, clean feeling while washing you hair using non-toxic,natural products and that didn't make my hair feel like straw. The old recipe (with castille soap) made my head(scalp,really) feel closer to that clean,scrubbed feeling with out my hair feeling completely dried out! Amazing, very happy with the results!
ReplyDeleteI love this recipe. It was my understanding after doing some research, that our hair isn't actually suppose to squeak. That actually mean that our hair has been stripped of the oils that are meant to be there. I am so thankful to have found your recipe! :)
ReplyDeleteThe reason people rinsing with some sort of vinegar don't have a problem with a "coated" feeling in their hair does have to do with the way soap interacts with minerals in the water. If you have hard water, any soap will leave a residue of "salts" that are left in your hair (or around the sink, or bathtub, or whatever..). However, rinsing with vinegar, an acid, will get rid of the leftover salts, leaving everything squeaky clean. Hmmm, I think my chemistry professor would be proud. :P
ReplyDeleteI'm on Day 16 (about) of using your old shampoo recipe. LOVE it. It definitely does take some getting used to, but as others have now posted, it really does take time for that "greasy" feeling to go away. I read somewhere that it's akin to an oily face. If you strip the oil, your skin makes more. Once you quit getting rid of the oil, your skin will slow down oil production. (Was explained to me that it works kind of like breast feeding!) This transitioning period is your scalp recovering and getting used to being naturally maintained. Mine was yucky for about a week and then I noticed it started feeling a lot nicer and now I LOVE it. Just have the occassional problem with static. Been adjusting the formula as I'm going; now I add a little glycerin as I've done some research on that too. :) Keep up the good, natural works!
ReplyDeleteWill this strip color from hair color? I'm thinking the vinegar might but what about the shampoo?
ReplyDelete