All about solid shampoo
Exploring Solid Shampoo: Everything You Need to Know
What is a solid shampoo?
A solid shampoo has the same functionality as a liquid shampoo: wash the hair and leave it clean. It comes in solid form, like a soap, and must be wetted and rubbed on the scalp (or hands) to produce foam.
In both cases, whether solid or liquid, shampoo contains one or more surfactants that allow the product to foam and clean the hair by catching the particles and carrying them away in the water when rinsed.
What is a solid shampoo made of?
One or more surfactants as mentioned earlier, but also powders, water or hydrosol, active ingredients and sometimes essential oils. A solid shampoo allows to wash the hair, and can be adapted to all types of hair. But it can also correspond to such or such type of hair by its composition.
The most common surfactants in solid shampoos
- SCI: Sodium cocoyl isethionate (used by itself for a thin foam or associated to SCS to soften it)
- SCS: Sodium coco sulfate (strong foaming power)
- SLSA: Sodium lauryl sulfoacetate
- SLMI: Sodium lauroyl methyl isethionate (gentler than other surfactants)
SLMI has a better biodegradability than other surfactants. The fact that the surfactant disintegrates properly in water and soils was a major concern for us at Ayda. That’s why we wanted to take up the challenge of offering a solid shampoo without any surfactant. Yes, without any surfactant! But how is this possible?
Washing hair with soap
Did you know that you could wash your hair with cold-saponified soap? Soap naturally produces foam, without adding surfactants. Soap is a surfactant by itself, but a 100% biodegradable surfactant due to its composition. This is why we have chosen to offer you a “soap” shampoo rather than a solid shampoo with surfactant. It is much gentler on the scalp and more easily biodegradable for the environment.
Our soap shampoos contain classic soap-making ingredients (olive oil, castor oil, babassu oil), but also the precious argan oil to nourish the hair and rhassoul which contains natural saponins. Saponins enable you to gently wash the hair, and rhassoul is often used for the “no poo” method, the famous no-shampoo shampoos.
Cold-saponified soaps have a basic pH, unlike liquid shampoos which have an acidic pH. However, it is this acidity that the hair needs to close the scales and facilitate styling. As with solid shampoos, it is therefore advisable to use an acid solution to naturally close the scales and rebalance the pH of the hair after washing hair with a shampoo soap. The recipe is just below!
Recipe for a solution to balance the pH of solid shampoo
Mix in a bottle:
- 10 ml of cider vinegar
- 200 ml of water
After rinsing your hair one last time, pour this preparation on your hair without rinsing. Your hair will be smoother, more disciplined, brighter & softer. Unlike what you might think, vinegar has no negative effect on your hair. It does not attack or damage it. On the contrary, its pH is close to the natural pH of the hair. For this reason, it is important to respect the recommended doses here: 1 dose of cider vinegar for 20 doses of water.
The more water there is, the more this vinegar solution will be suitable for frequent use. Here, the dosages are suitable for washing hair twice a week. And don’t worry, the vinegar smell will leave after a few minutes.
The transition from liquid to solid shampoo
The transition from liquid shampoo to solid or soap shampoo can be a little tricky, just like the transition from conventional to organic shampoo can be. Your first attempts may not be successful: dry hair, tangled, etc. Ideally, it is important to analyze the composition of a solid shampoo before testing it. If you have a sensitive scalp, it is best to avoid SCS and SLSA and opt for SCI and SLMI surfactants, or even opt for a soap shampoo.