We are glad you’ve found our blog and thank you for your interest in natural shampooing options!
The base for all of our Natural Castile Shampoos is our Olive Oil and Castor Castile Liquid Soap, to which we add hydrolyzed quinoa for extra conditioning purposes. The reason we have chosen to use our Olive Oil and Castor Castile Liquid Soap base in our formulation is because the addition of castor oil is extra moisturizing since castor oil acts as a humectant, helping to draw moisture to the scalp, in the case of shampoo, or to the skin when used for body or hand washing.
We currently offer our Natural Castile Shampoos in Unscented as well as 3 options scented with pure essential oils chosen for the benefits they can provide to the hair. For the unscented option, the ingredients are as listed on our website, those being: potassium olivate (saponified olive oil), potassium castorate (saponified castor oil), water/Eau, and hydrolyzed quinoa.
While castor oil provides extra moisturizing oomph, we’d also like you to know that our 100% Olive Oil Castile Liquid Soap can be used for shampooing purposes too, making it a great option for our most sensitive customers.
Speaking of sensitivities, we would like to acknowledge that the vast majority of Country Rose customers suffer from allergies and/or sensitivities which is why we are so committed to providing natural, gentle, and non-irritating cleansing options. Today, there are many products marketed as “Castile” soap products where the soaps are a combination of saponified vegetable oils, but Country Rose has made it our mission to provide high quality Traditional OLIVE OIL castile soap products, making our shampoos and soaps a viable option for those with allergies to coconut oil, for example.
Switching to a natural shampooing option can be a bit of an adjustment. Depending on one’s hair type, it can take a couple weeks, to a month for one’s scalp to adjust to not having the natural oils stripped away during shampooing. There are also NO ingredients in our Natural Castile Shampoos that will help to prevent colour fade for colour treated hair, but this is a small trade-off for those that may have been plagued with red and itchy scalps from shampooing options that trigger allergies and/or sensitivities. That being said, the biggest, most important thing to remember when switching to natural shampooing option is to avoid using too much shampoo/soap which can happen since castile soap does not significantly foam up and many of us associate “foam” with cleaning!!
Although the Natural Castile Shampoos and/or the liquid castile soap options are designed to be used as is, straight out of the bottle, many people will opt to dilute the soap, using a foam pump bottle for shampooing purposes. This is especially helpful during the transition phase and to avoid using too much soap for shampooing. As an added bonus, the soap is dispensed as a nice foam which is perfect for shampooing. We talk about diluting our soap in a separate blog post, entitled Tips for Diluting Your Liquid Castile Soap, so please refer to this post to read more.
As mentioned, all of our castile liquid soaps are very gentle and moisturizing, making them the perfect choice for shampooing and body cleansing. We do not manufacture a pure olive oil conditioner, but most individuals will not find it necessary since our olive oil castile liquid shampoos and soaps are non-drying. In general, a weekly apple cider vinegar weekly rinse is sufficient for conditioning purposes. For our customers that have less allergy/sensitivity concerns, we have added a solid conditioner bar. Should this be of interest, please follow the link to read more and view the full ingredient listing.
As mentioned, most people will require an apple cider vinegar rinse when using castile shampoos/soaps as an apple cider vinegar rinse helps to balance pH. Hair is mildly acidic, (pH around 4.5 to 5.5), while castile shampoo/soap is alkaline and has a pH between 7.5 and 8. Because apple cider vinegar has a pH of about 2.9, it helps to balance the overall pH of the hair. As well, the rinse will close the cuticle scales that cover and protect each hair shaft as the cuticles open during the shampooing process. Closing the cuticles will make the hair more manageable and also impart a wonderful shine since the hair will lie flat and reflect the light. A vinegar rinse also removes any feeling of residual build-up around the hair shafts while closing the cuticles. Removing this residual residue ensures the hair does not look dull, and by closing the cuticles the hair slides more easily, thus conditioning it and leading to fewer tangles. Generally, a weekly rinse is sufficient; perhaps more often if hair is on the oily side.
For this task, we have formulated our Rose Petal Herbal Hair Rinse CONCENTRATE which is a blend of apple cider vinegar herbs and extracts, chosen for their hair strengthening and conditioning properties. This is a concentrated rinse to which you add water before using. For customers preferring a pure apple cider vinegar rinse, we have included simple recipe options in our Recipe blog post. Making a rise is super easy and thankfully affordable. In our recipe blog post, we provide an option for a single use batch or a larger batch option that can be kept in the shower.
No matter your preferred option, the application is the same: apply the vinegar rinse after shampooing and then rinse it all out, or for extra conditioning, you can leave the rinse on your hair. Don’t worry about the vinegar smell after using as it will completely disappear by the time the hair is dry.
And there we have it, our tips and recommendations for a successful transition to Natural Hair Care!
