Shampoo Bars

Natural shampoo in solid form. A bottle of shampoo is mostly water; a bar contains only the active ingredients. Our bars are made with plant-based oils, coconut butter and essential oils, and are pH-balanced, making them mild for your scalp.

Wet both your hair and the bar thoroughly with warm water: properly soaked, not just damp. Rub the bar directly over your wet hair and scalp for five to ten seconds, put it aside and massage with your fingertips. That is where the lather forms. Then rinse thoroughly.

With very short hair you can also lather the bar between your hands first and apply only the lather. If you have just switched from shampoo in a bottle, feel free to lather twice during the first few washes: the first time removes silicone residue, the second time really cleanses.

Find the bar hard to hold? It lathers more easily in an organza bag or an old pair of tights. View the soap bags and soap dishes.

Choose based on what your hair needs, not on fragrance. The bars are grouped into Daily & Mild, Fresh & Clean, Volume & Bounce, Hydration & Nourishment, Repair & Strength and Shine & Protection.

If you have no specific needs and your hair is in balance, Daily & Mild is the logical choice: it contains no extra proteins aimed at one particular hair type. If in doubt, a Trial Pack is the cheapest way to find out.

View all Shampoo Bars or start with a Trial Pack.

One bar lasts about as long as three bottles of shampoo. That is because you only pay for the active ingredients and not for the water in a bottle. Exactly how long depends on your hair length, how often you wash and whether you let the bar dry properly between washes.

That is part of it. Allow for an adjustment period of two to four weeks. Your hair is missing the silicones that normally coat it in a smooth layer, and your scalp needs to readjust its sebum production now that harsh sulphates are no longer involved.

During that period your hair may feel rougher, greasier or flatter than you are used to, while old product build-up slowly washes out. Feel free to wash more often than usual; it will not slow the process down.

Two things speed up the transition: lather the bar twice in the same wash, and rinse for longer than you are used to, especially at the scalp. Use the conditioner on the lengths only. After the adjustment period, hair usually feels fuller and healthier.

Store your bar in a dry spot that is not too warm and out of the stream of water: on a soap dish that can drain or in a soap bag. You will find both among our accessories. A bar left sitting in a puddle of water goes soft and wears out much faster.

No, that is how it should be. Our bars contain no sulphates such as SLS or SCS, and those are exactly what create the mountains of foam you are used to from a bottle. Less lather does not mean less clean; you actually need less product than you think.

If you would still like a bit more lather: wet both your hair and the bar really well with warm water, and try an organza bag or a pair of tights. The fine mesh helps a creamy lather form more quickly. Hard water can also hamper the lather a little.

Yes, although limescale can hamper the lather a little and make your hair feel rougher. In that case rinse extra well and use a Conditioner Bar. A final rinse of a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water closes the hair cuticles and helps a lot; you simply rinse it out afterwards.

Have you just had a water softener installed? Then shampoo lathers more strongly and your hair gets cleaned more thoroughly, which can make it feel drier, duller or frizzier at first. Use a little less product, wash slightly less often and add extra care with a hair mask or a few drops of oil on the ends. Your hair needs a few weeks to get used to the softer water.

Not necessarily, but it does help. A Conditioner Bar closes the hair cuticle and makes your hair easier to comb through. With long, dry or coloured hair you will notice the difference most clearly.

Sulphates such as Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Coco Sulfate (SCS) produce lots of foam, but are strong degreasers. They penetrate the skin and strip the natural oils from your skin and scalp, which encourages itching and dandruff.

Instead, we use Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate (SCI), made from fatty acids from coconut oil. That is a lot milder: most of your natural oils simply stay in place. Many customers notice that their scalp feels calmer as a result.

The downside is that our bars lather less abundantly than you are used to from a bottle. But foam and clean have little to do with each other; lots of foam is mainly a feeling the big brands have taught us.