You may have heard a lot of buzz surrounding shampoo bars lately, but what are they?! Shampoo bars are a solid tablet, made with natural ingredients, and no water, and are designed to work like a conventional shampoo, yet in solid tablet form.
Shampoo bars can be used as shampoo once held underwater, and they’re designed to wash away dirt, oil and impurities from the hair and scalp, without stripping away any natural oils, like conventional shampoos can.
What Are The Benefits of Shampoo Bars?
Shampoo bars are a convenient, eco-friendly and cost efficient alternative to traditional shampoo. They’re sold in a solid form and come in a variety of shapes and scents, with different variations to suit different hair types and textures.
Some people find conventional shampoos to be irritating, especially if they suffer from skin sensitivities, sensitivity to fragrances, or have allergies. By using shampoo bars, you can avoid using harsh chemicals, but they’re more gentle on the hair and scalp. People who suffer from allergies can use a shampoo bar as it contains no synthetic materials or preservatives.
Plus, shampoo bars tend to work well for individuals who have more of an oily scalp or hair type because of their natural ingredients which help cleanse the hair without stripping it of its natural oils.
What Are Shampoo Bars Made With?
Shampoo bars are composed of soap, which is usually made with coconut oil, olive oil, shea butter and cocoa butter. Sometimes they also contain additives like essential oils or other ingredients that can be beneficial to hair.
These bars are very easy to use and don’t require any additional help like shampoos or conditioners do. The big difference between a shampoo bar and a conventional shampoo, is the sulfates, which many try to avoid, especially if they have curly hair, as sulfates can be very drying and stripping on the hair.
How To Use A Shampoo Bar?
Shampoo bars are solid blocks, and they need to be wet before using on the hair. To create a lather, people recommend dampening the bar, and then rub the bar between your palms, to create a gentle lather, before massaging into the scalp and hair, and rinsing away like you would with a conventional shampoo.
Popular shampoo bar brands like Lush, sell their shampoo bars, but also sell special tins or cork containers to store the shampoo bar between uses. As they have no outer packaging, they can disintegrate when damp, so it’s important to store them somewhere air-tight when not in use, so they don’t get wasted.
The rise of shampoo bars in the beauty world is no secret; we can see them in most high-end and mainstream drugstores and grocery stores. Shampoo bars are easy to pack, travel with, and use. And they leave your hair feeling squeaky clean with less build-up than traditional shampoos.