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There are a ton of different homemade shampoo recipes out there.  Lots of them are good, too…but most of them lack the foaming property that most of us have gotten used to with store-bought shampoos.  After months and months of failed attempts, I finally found a recipe that not only cleans like your hair like a champ, it foams and moisturizes at the same time!  I couldn’t be more thrilled!

So how do I get this shampoo to foam without soap, you ask? It’s a great question, one that took me a long time to figure out.  If you’ve been following this blog at all, you know I’m a huge fan of soapnuts.  They contain saponins that emulsify oils to clean your hair.  Alone they have a slight foaming action but when combined at the right concentration along with some guar gum, you get a shampoo that resembles a store-bought version…but much better for your hair!

First, you’ll have to make a soapnut concentrate.  Depending on how often you wash your hair, it can last up to 2 months in the fridge before you use it all up.  Then, you just use a 1/4 cup at a time to make your shampoo before every wash.

Soapnut Concentrate:

  • 50 whole soapnuts
  • 2 cups water, distilled or boiled (but cooled now)
  • jar

1. Fill your jar with the soapnuts and the water and let sit for 24 hours.

2. Pour both the soapnuts and the water in your blender and blend on high for a minute or so. You’ll get a very stiff foam with soapnuts in it.

3.  Then you just have to wait for the soapnut foam to liquify again. This can take up to 2 hours…all that foam means your hair will be getting squeaky clean!

4. Strain the soapnut liquid from the soapnut bits using a cheesecloth.

5.  Now your soapnut concentration is ready! Stick that in the fridge.

Homemade Foaming Shampoo:

  • 1/4 cup soapnut concentrate
  • 1/4 cup aloe vera (goo from the whole leaf,  or gel/liquid from store-bought brands)
  • 1 tablespoon raw honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon guar gum
  • 10 drops lemon essential oil (option but good for cleansing scalp)
  • 5 drop rosemary essential oil (optional but good for stimulating hair growth)
  • 10 drops lavender essential oil (optional but good for balancing scalp and providing an amazing scent)

1. Combine the soapnut concentrate, aloe vera, and raw honey in the blender and blend on low for a minute or two.

2. Add in the essentials oils, if using, and blend for a few seconds.

3. Add in the guar gum last and blend for about 30 seconds or so.

4. Transfer the (foamy!) shampoo to an applicator bottle and use like you would regular shampoo.

I usually follow up with an apple cider vinegar rinse for extra lustrous and shiny hair.

Normally my hair grows obnoxiously slow but I’ve noticed quite a bit of new hair growth this past month since I’ve been using this recipe.  Who knows if it’s the shampoo, a super healthy diet, the stress-free vacation I just went on, the fact that it’s spring, or just pure coincidence…but given how nice my hair looks after each shampoo, I’ll definitely be continuing to use it!