Use this simple natural shampoo recipe to make your own chemical-free hair care! With just 3 ingredients, you can make a healthy shampoo that won’t strip your hair of its natural oils.
A while back I shared how to make your own herbal shampoo bars, and wow – they were a hit! I am so amazed at the interest in simple, natural products!
However, some of you were cautious about using lye and hesitant about the soap-making process as a whole.
I totally understand!
It took me quite a while to be confident in making soap and shampoo bars before I was ready to share with others. Even now, I am very particular with my measurements and handling of raw soap.
So, for those who still want a simple, natural hair care solution but aren’t quite ready to dive into soap-making, I have the perfect solution: Homemade Herbal Shampoo!
IS NATURAL SHAMPOO GOOD FOR ALL HAIR TYPES?
I will state up front that this particular homemade shampoo does not work very well for my hair type, nor did the previous liquid shampoo I tried.
You see, I have very oily hair and have gone through quite a process to figure out what works for me. When it was all said and done, my hair needed a slightly more aggressive soap like these Herbal Shampoo Bars. Check out my method here and avoid these mistakes when washing without traditional shampoo!
But I’m sure you’ve gone through a similar process, too, with commercial shampoos, right? You try one out; it may or may not do the job, so you try another?
Homemade shampoo isn’t any different. There are formulas for normal hair, oily hair, curly hair, fine hair, frizzy hair, color-treated hair, and dry hair. We are all created differently with a variety of skin and hair types, and that is a beautiful thing!
So regardless of your hair type, use this recipe as a starting point if you want a natural option. You never know – this shampoo may work really well for you!
DIY HERBAL SHAMPOO
For this recipe, we have liquid Castile soap to help get your hair clean, and herbal water to help nourish your hair. That’s it!
The whole process of making your own herbal shampoo takes just a few minutes of hands-on time, plus the steeping time for the herbs. You’ll have your own homemade natural shampoo ready in no time!
HOMEMADE SHAMPOO RECIPE INGREDIENTS
This homemade shampoo recipe has just 3 natural ingredients plus water, and you can try different combinations depending on what you have and what you discover works best for your hair!
- 2 Tbsp dried herbs (see suggestions below)
- 1 cup hot water
- ⅛ cup liquid Castile soap
- 5 drops of vitamin E oil or jojoba oil
HOW TO MAKE SHAMPOO
Step 1: Pour gently simmering water over the dried herbs in a jar and cover. Let steep for about an hour.
Step 2: Strain the herbs out and pour the water into a bottle (an old shampoo bottle would be perfect.) Add the liquid Castile soap and drops of oil.
Note: when you add the Castile soap to the herbal water, it will change colors! I used lavender, and my water was a beautiful purple color. When I added in the Castile soap, it turned green! I’m not sure what the chemical reaction that occurred is all about, but it was pretty neat to see the change.
Step 3: Gently swish to mix.
To use this natural shampoo, pour it straight onto your hair and massage it into your scalp. Rinse, and you’re done!
If desired, follow up your shampoo routine with a Homemade Conditioner. Conditioner can be as simple as a small drop of argan oil, or a fancy mix of kitchen ingredients like honey and coconut oil!
Since the goal of natural shampoo is to avoid unwanted ingredients such as paraben, fragrances, silicone, and sulphate, the textures of your shampoo will be quite different.
Realize that this natural shampoo is not as thick as commercial shampoo, because it doesn’t have all of the added thickeners and emulsifiers. You also won’t get as much of a lather with this chemical free shampoo as you would with a store-bought version.
But you will get naturally clean, fresh-smelling hair!
BEST NATURAL SHAMPOO HERBS
There are quite a variety of herbs that will benefit your hair. Most of them have vitamins and minerals that help to strengthen the hair and nourish the scalp. Plus the delicious scent of fresh herbs is fantastic!
Here are some of the best natural shampoo herbs that would be perfect to use in this homemade shampoo recipe:
CALENDULA
The calendula flower contains many minerals and antioxidants, promoting strong, healthy hair by increasing the production of collagen and circulation around the hair follicles.
HIBISCUS
Full of vitamins and antioxidants, hibiscus will increase scalp and hair health. It may even prevent premature graying and dandruff.
LAVENDER
Lavender is a powerful anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and anti-microbial flower that’s great for all skin and hair types. It is soothing and nourishing to the scalp, which helps balance the natural oils and increase circulation around the follicles.
PEPPERMINT
Mint will help stimulate follicles and may heal chemical and environmental damage. It is anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory, promoting growth and scalp health.
ROSEMARY
Rich in vitamins and antioxidants, rosemary is one of the most popular herbs for promoting hair health and growth. It is especially helpful in re-growing prematurely thinned hair and may help prevent graying.
SAGE
The antiseptic and antibiotic properties of sage may help heal skin issues that stunt hair growth. There are many vitamins and minerals contained in the healing herb.
ALL NATURAL SHAMPOO FAQS
How can I customize this all-natural shampoo?
You can add beneficial ingredients like apple cider vinegar for oily hair, tea tree oil or aloe vera for dandruff, coconut milk for dry hair, or other organic ingredients to find the perfect shampoo blend for your hair.
Does natural shampoo have a rich lather?
Because natural shampoo doesn’t contain any sulfates like traditional shampoos, it won’t lather nearly as much. However, that doesn’t mean your hair isn’t getting clean!
Many shampoo manufacturers add lathering agents to give you that sudsy feel, but the lather doesn’t necessarily get your hair cleaner. It’s purely for effect.
MORE NATURAL HAIR AND SKIN CARE RECIPES
- DIY Face Serum
- Homemade Body Lotion
- How to Make Shaving Cream
- Benefits of Goat Milk Soap for Body Wash
Hello!
I recently made tea out of fresh sage leaves. Could I use this, since it is already made, as the herb ingredient? If you think yes, how much should I use? two tbs?
Thank you so much, this is exactly the recipe I was searching for. 🙂
I really want to try this! It definitely sounds like it could be amazing for my hair, and I have no doubt that it will save me money. Does it smell okay? I imagine that it has a light, earthy scent, which is fine by me, but it could also be less than pleasant, and scent is important to me. Thanks!
Would this shampoo work on color treated hair? Yes, it is definitely bad for you to color your hair so I’m looking in to options like herbal coloring like you get at the health food store. And yes, I’m just a little too vain to go completely gray yet! Any suggestions ? Thanks so much!
Thank you for this post- I am going to try it- I have been having a really hard time finding a recipe for shampoo that works for my hair. It either makes it too oily or feels unclean. Can’t wait to try this one!
I hope this works out for you Gina!
love your blog. i would love to follow, BUT, as im reading a post it jumps back up to the top. why?????
Susan – it’s some conflict with the browser and a particular ad in the sidebar. I’m working with my ad network to get it fixed! 🙂
I made this with dried sage and lavender. I found my hair to be a bit dry with it so I decided to add some honey to it. My ratio was about 1/4th cup honey to 1 cup shampoo. I have been finding that works great for my hair. I was only using a glycerin spray-on conditioner after showers, but I’m going to continue with the shampoo and try a lecithin-based conditioner in the shower. Fun to play around with ! Never quite as good as those chemical products, it seems, but very acceptable and I’ll keep refining the process. Thanks so much for sharing your information!
Hi and thanks for the recipe. Is there a substitute for the castile soap? This soap works nicely on my children’s hair, but makes my hair really waxy and unpleasant feeling. Do you know of a liquid soap other than castile? Thank you.
Hi, I was wondering if you thought I could get away with using herbal teas from a trusted source. I can’t afford to buy herbs at the moment, but I have some nice Traditional Medicinals teas, like their chamomile with lavender. I have been itching to make my own shampoo for my extra long hair, as buying shampoo and conditioner I trust adds up. Thanks for any feedback and for this great site!
Hi,
Can you use essential oils in place of dried herbs? For instance, adding lavender oil and water in place of brewing the dried lavendar in water?
What part of the hibiscus would you use in this? Just the petals?
Hi Torre! When I’ve used Hibiscus it’s parts of the whole flower. Dried of course!
I saw some of you make your own castile soap. Can you share a preferred recipe/technique? I’ve never made it and am intrigued. If it’s not too complicated, I’d love to make my own. Thanks!
Thank you for the info. I did see where I could order it but I will look at Target and done of the other local stores. I am looking forward to making my own shampoo. I love all the great DIY ideas!
Thanks for the feedback Patty!! I hope you can find it locally! 🙂
Where do you buy liquid castile soap?
One of the best brands to use is Dr. Bronners. You can find it in the beauty aisle of several grocery stores and even Target. OR you can click on the link in the recipe and get it from Amazon. It’s good stuff that you’ll find lots of uses for!
I just bought a gallon of castile liquid soap from Amazon called Seven Minerals. This soap actually already has jojoba oil included in its ingredients, along with the other following ALL ORGANIC ingredients: purified water, coconut oil, potassium hydroxide, olive oil, castor seed oil, argan kernel oil, hemp seed oil, and vegetable glycerin. It contains no palm oil, no scent, is non-GMO and vegan, and all ingredients are biodegradable. And it’s less costly than Dr. Bronner’s! I recently bought a large bag of dried hibiscus flowers and want to try them in my shampoo. The label on the soap does recommend using an acidic rinse afterwards to restore the pH. So excited to begin using this. I’ve been washing my hair with plain water for months and love how my hair is responding to no products on it; however, I seem to need to shampoo it every month or so, but then that leaves my naturally curly hair in a dry frizzy state. Hoping to see an improvement now! Thank you for sharing your recipe with us.
About the mixture turning green: I read on another website where they were making toilet bowl cleaner using castile soap and baking soda. She said her mixture turned white. Just thought it was interesting to see these apparent chemical reactions from different people.
Hi Patty! I have some that I found at Costco, but to be honest, I’m not 100% sold on the Dr. Bronners brand. I’d like to find one that didn’t have anti-Christian beliefs, but I haven’t found one yet. 🙂
oh my, isn’t life funny. I don’t like Dr Bronner’s castile soap packaging because it has Christian stuff on it. Anyway, you can get it at almost any health food store, or you can make your own. I now do that, it’s cheaper and I know exactly what I’m getting 🙂
LOL, I think I’ll make my own too. I’d love to discuss this issue on Christian vs. non-Christina on the bottle with you further Cecily, but definitely offline. I’m not seeing the pro-Christian view, and want to be sure I’m not jumping to conclusions one way or the other. Can I email you directly? I have your email address, but just want your permission.
How do you make your own?
That’s interesting about Dr. Bonner’s. I d know that…will make me think twice for sure!
I love this recipe. It seems so easy and with a 2 year old is hard to get so much done.
Can’t wait to try it. Can you please tell me where you get your dried herbs and essential oils?
Thank you
Hi Claudia, I have lavender from my garden, however I have also seen the flowers for sale in my health food store. The rosemary is just my cooking supply which I buy organic, again from the health food store.
Hey Claudia! I use Mountain Rose Herbs for my herb supplies and some of their essential oils for body products. I know Tiffany has an affiliate link above for the various herbs suggested.
Just want to tell you that I’m always so thrilled when I see a “print” button on recipes!! Am in the process of steeping the lavender flowers and rosemary I have on hand. Will try your shampoo in an hour or so. 🙂
Woo hoo! We’re glad you like it! 🙂
How long does it last?
It really depends on how much you use or how long or thick your hair is. I go through a bottle pretty fast since my hair is fairly long. As far as shelf life goes, there’s no expiration.
thanks for the recipe! it worked great on my hair!
great recipe! Thanks for the inspiration. I might try some essential oils added in too. Cedar wood or maybe just simple lavender.
Thanks for the recipe! I made this with dried lavender, because that was the only herb I had on hand. I also used Tropical Traditions coconut oil soap instead of castile soap (have to use what’s available!). But then I added a couple drops each of raspberry seed oil & carrot seed oil for their hair helping benefits (as well as acting as a bit of a preservative), and a few drops of essential oils of peppermint, rosemary, clary sage, bergamot and lemon. I read up beforehand and these oils are supposed to also be beneficial for the hair and scalp. Just finished up making this so I’ll let you know how it turns out!
That sounds great Allison! I love that you use things you have on hand. That’s half the reason to DIY! Let us know how it works out for you!
How did you know I’ve been wanting an eeeeasy DIY shampoo recipe? I’ve gradually tried to replace more of our health and skin products with natural DIY versions over the past couple of years, but I’m having to accept that I just can’t make everything and still keep up with my efforts to feed us well too!
I’ve been so disappointed with all the ingredients in “cleaner” storebought shampoos. But mixing together 4 ingredients in 1 easy step? THAT I can do! Thank you!! 🙂
You are welcome! I understand the struggle! Simplicity and sustainability are key.
Heather, I love your DIY’s and emphasis on soap making!
Thanks! I love making things and we gotta stay clean. 😉
So I haven’t seen any recent comments so I hope someone comes 2 my rescue!!! Sooo I used 10 herbs!… I got a lil excited! 😁 so do I need to increase everything else by 10 as well or no???
I would increase it but you will have to do it by eye.