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Introduction to Shampoos for Beginners - Exclusive

Updated: Jul 31



What Ingredients are needed to Make a Liquid Shampoo


There are 3 main ingredients that you can’t skip, when making a shampoo. These 3 ingredients are in every single liquid shampoo on the market!


Distilled Water 

The first ingredient you need to make a liquid shampoo, is Distilled Water. Distilled Water is always the base for any aqueous products. This is because it works as the diluent for all your other ingredients. Because most ingredients can’t be used at 100% on our skin and hair, it needs diluted. 


Obviously this rule doesn’t apply to solid products, like shampoo bars, but that is not what we are talking about. We are talking about Liquid Shampoo. 


The reason we need distilled water and not any other type of water, is because distilled water has been ran through a process that eliminates any microbes or minerals that might be in the water. So distilled water is free of any contaminates that will mess with your formula. 


Instead of distilled water you can use things like aloe vera liquid, hydrosols, essence waters, but this usually brings up the cost of the product too much and often times when these are used they are used at around 50-10%.



Surfactants

If you aren’t new to my content, chances are you already know what a surfactant is, but just incase you don’t, that’s okay! I have a post explaining everything about surfactants. So I recommend reading that post before continuing on this one. 


When choosing surfactants for a shampoo we want to pick the ones that create lather and foam. 


Also, when choosing surfactants we don’t just want to pick one, we want to pick an anionic surfactant -as these typically make the best lather - and pair it with either an amphoteric surfactant or a non-ionic surfactant. You could even blend all 3 kinds together. 


Always remember, surfactants work best when paired with other surfactants. 


Quick list of Foaming Surfactant


Anionic Surfactants


Amphoteric Surfactants 


Non-Ionic Surfactants


Some of the anionic surfactants I’ve listed can come in either powder or liquid form. Which one you choose is up to you. In the formula I will be demonstrating today, it will include only liquid surfactants. But if you want to see how you would use a powder surfactant instead of a liquid surfactant, check out this video here.  (Short explanation, you need to dissolve the powdered surfactant into a liquid surfactant which sometimes requires heat)



The benefits - in my opinion - to using a powdered surfactant over a liquid surfactant is,

  1. They have a longer shelf life

  2. They thicken the product way better than liquid surfactants. So I can skip out on the added thickener usually. (Only certain anionic powdered surfactants)

  3. You can also use them to make fun bath products like bubble bars.


The down side - in my opinion - to using a powdered surfactant over a liquid surfactant is,

  1. You need to wear a respirator while working with them. They are not okay to breath in at all! So you need to take more precaution with these over the liquid kind.

  2. They require heat sometimes to get them to dissolve 

  3. They are messier to work with. 


So you might be thinking, “there are so many surfactants, which do I choose?!”

And yeah I get it, it’s overwhelming at first.


Start with picking out your anionic surfactant. Decide if you want liquid or powder. I recommend starting with a liquid anionic surfactant.

Find a shampoo you currently like and see if you can purchase the same surfactants they are using. Don’t just use an anionic surfactant. Anionic surfactants can be a bit harsh when used on their own. Even if you use a gentle anionic surfactant, it will still perform best and create the best lather when you pair it with another surfactant. 


You may often times see shampoos use 2 anionic surfactants, 1 amphoteric and 1 non-ionic. Or maybe, 2 anionic surfactants with 2 amphoteric surfactants. You can do any combo. 


I also recommend picking surfactants with a lower pH level. Your hair is similar to your skin and has a pH between 4.5 - 5.5 

So to make the formulating process easier, pick surfactants with a pH closer to there. Non-Ionic Surfactants often have a high pH. So if you include that in your formula expect to have to lower the pH. If you want to avoid pH adjusting pick surfactants with a lower pH.


The main thing I recommend is not skipping the anionic surfactant, get surfactants with a low pH, and do not skip the addition of a second surfactant. 



Some of my favorite combinations are;

But honestly, those are the only combinations I’ve tried. Lol


Hopefully I offered enough advice that you have at least picked out 2 surfactants you want to try together. 


If you are on a budget, 2 is all you need, but if you have the money to spend, I recommend buying a few different ones to try out. Especially if you have picky hair. My hair is not picky at all. All it needs is a GOOD conditioner and its fine. Like literally, I’ve used dawn dish soap on my hair as Clarifying Shampoo. It can handle anything. Lol 


I know some people have really picky hair. And for those people, I really recommend buying surfactants similar to a shampoo you already have. I do want to mention, even if you do use the same surfactants as your favorite store bought shampoo, it still won’t turn out the same. There are so many other ingredients in that shampoo effecting it’s performance. But I still feel like it’s a good place to start.


Preservative

The last most important ingredient to making a shampoo, is the preservative. This is the ingredient that is going to keep your product free of growing mold yeast and bacteria. You want to make sure you are looking for a water soluble preservative. 


If using…

Liquid Germall Plus add in during any time of the formulating process. I like to mix it right in with the distilled water. 


Euxyl PE 9010 you can mix this with the glycerin/propanediol/propylene glycol, then pour into the distilled water, or mix in with the surfactants. (Not if they are being heated though) Adding it right into the distilled water would probably work too, but you will notice it doesn’t mix in completely. 


Euxyl K 903 mix with glycerin/propanediol/propylene glycol and then pour into distilled water. Could also be mixed with the surfactants. (Not if they are being heated though).


Tristate Eco mix with glycerin/propanediol/propylene glycol and then pour into distilled water. Could also be mixed with the surfactants. (Not if they are being heated though).


Geogard ECT aka Preservative Eco mix with glycerin/propanediol/propylene glycol and then pour into distilled water. Could also be mixed with the surfactants. (Not if they are being heated though).


Optiphen Plus mix with glycerin/propanediol/propylene glycol and then pour into distilled water. Could also be mixed with the surfactants. (Not if they are being heated though).



Make sure you keep pH in mind when choosing a preservative. Each preservative is active in a specific pH level. So make sure your Shampoo is within that pH level. 



Distilled Water, Surfactants, and a Preservative are technically the only things you need to make a shampoo. But most likely you are going to want to add a few more ingredients to this to make it feel more like a professional store bought shampoo. 


Also, as of right now, the shampoo might be water thin. Sometimes you can blend the right surfactants together to get a gorgeous thick gel viscosity and you won’t need to add in a thickener. Like this Body Wash formula for example has no added thickener, but is super thick. 


Other Commonly used Ingredients in Shampoos


Thickeners 

Salt (table salt) - Source 

Salt is probably the most common way big brands thicken shampoos. It is a cheap ingredient and salt usually thickens the surfactants big brands use in shampoos. 


I do personally find this method of thickening to be a bit more advanced. This is because only certain anionic surfactants thicken with salt. I noticed, that a lot of the anionic surfactants home crafters use don’t usually thicken with salt. This is because home crafters often use Natural surfactants and those don’t have any reaction to salt at all. 


Keep in mind that no non-ionic surfactants or amphoteric thicken with Salt. Only anionic surfactants do and an amphoteric surfactant can help build on that viscosity. 


List of some Anionic Surfactants that thicken from Salt;


According to yeserchem.com it’s Alkyl Sulfates, Alkyl Ether Sulfates, Fatty Acid Isethionates, Fatty Acid Taurides, and Acyl Sarcosinates thicken from salt.


Have fun experimenting with some of these anionic surfactants and thickening them with salt. Don’t add to much salt or else it will become watery thin.


You will also notice that when you mix these surfactants that thicken with salt, with certain amphoteric surfactants like Cocamidopropyl Betaine they will also thicken up. They can sometimes thicken up enough to where you don’t need to add in any salt or additional thickener to thicken it. 



Crothix

This is one of the most popular thickeners I see home crafter use -well besides xanthan gum- Let me know if you want to see a tutorial on how to use crothix.


All you do is add in 1% crothix at the end of your formulation and mix. Wait a few minutes before adding in another 1% crothix. Sometimes it can take a while for crothix to thicken, so be patient. Just add in 1% at a time. You can use up to 8% crothix, some suppliers have it listed up to 5%, but if you have to use that much it is not a good choice of thickener for your shampoo. Also, it might help to heat the crothix before adding it into your formulation. Just depends on how warm or cold your climate is. 


Crothix doesn’t thicken every surfactant, so if you find yourself needing a lot of crothix in order to see any increase in viscosity, switch to a different thickener for your shampoo. 



Xanthan Gum

I’m mentioning this one because this is definitely one of the most popular thickeners for home crafters to use, or maybe it’s just me. Either way, I personally don’t like using xanthan gum in shampoos. There is just something about it, but you try it out for yourself. If you want to use xanthan gum mix 1-2% xanthan gum with glycerin/propanediol/propylene glycol first then slowly pour into water while mixing.


This is my personal favorite way to thicken a shampoo. I find it easy to use because it thickens all surfactants - in my experience - and it is actually Cationic.


Okay, wait, I thought Cationic ingredients weren’t compatible with anionic surfactants. You are totally right, BUT!!!! 

There are some Cationic surfactants that do work with anionic surfactants. It will mention in the ingredients description if it’s okay to use with anionic surfactants. This is why you always need to be reading your ingredients descriptions/formulating guidelines.


Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride can be a bit tricky to work with at first though. This is because if you add Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride directly into distilled water & mix it until it dissolves it probably won’t thicken. This is because Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride is only active in a pH between below 7. 


How to Use Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride

Add Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride into the distilled water and mix until dissolved. Make sure you are only dissolving it in distilled water first. Adding in things like DL Panthenol or Botanical Extracts into the distilled water first might alter the pH. Distilled water has a natural pH around 7. Which is perfect to dissolve the Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride in.


Once the Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride is dissolved in the distilled water you can add in any other water soluble ingredients and then the surfactants and preservative. If your shampoo still hasn’t thickened then you will need to lower the pH with a 50% citric and 50% distilled water solution. If you don’t know how to adjust pH watch this video here. 

Note; Non-Ionic Surfactants often have a high pH. So if you include that in your formula expect to have to lower the pH. So if you want to avoid pH adjusting pick surfactants with a lower pH.



There are so many other thickeners out there. I have made plenty of other videos on different thickeners if you want more suggestions. 


Polyquaternium (Polyquats)

Polyquaternium’s offer amazing conditioning benefits that help provide slip to detangle hair and make it easier to comb through.

These are another example of Cationic Surfactants that can be mixed with Anionic Surfactants.

Examples of Polyquats:


DL Panthenol

Also known as Vitamin B5. DL Panthenol is an extremely common ingredient you will find in shampoos. DL panthenol is a humectant that can help hydrate, increase shine, help smooth fizz, help hair be more elastic, more manageable and over all healthier. I definitely recommend adding this into your shampoo.


Keratin 

Keratin is an extremely common ingredient to find in shampoos. This is because keratin is the main protein that makes up your hair skin and nails. Keratin is not vegan, but you can find vegan alternatives to keratin. Keratin can help strengthen hair, protect hair, and enhance elasticity.


Hydrolyzed Proteins

There is a lot I could say about hydrolyzed proteins and this is because there are so many different kinds.


Hydrolyzed proteins are an example of another cationic surfactant that is able to be used with anionic surfactants. I have listed examples of some down below. You can click on them and it will take you to the website that sells them so you can learn more about each individual hydrolyzed protein. 


Examples of Hydrolyzed Proteins



Fragrance

This is actually a category I forgot to talk about until I sat down and filmed this video. For the most part, most shampoos you see on the market will include a fragrance, but obviously it isn’t necessary to make a shampoo. Although, I think most people want one.

I’ve talked about this before in my Native Body Wash Video. When you add a fragrance oil to a product like shampoos, body washes, or even face washes, basically any liquid product that lather and foam, the fragrance oil could turn the product, yellow, brown, amber, make it turn watery thin, or just thin it out a little, make it thicker, turn a translucent shampoo into a opaque shampoo etc. Basically you could add a fragrance oil and then, BAM! It changes the way your product completely looks and feels. So that is what sucks about adding fragrance. My suggestion is to take a bit of your shampoo and test the fragrance oil first and let it sit over night before adding the fragrance into your batch of shampoo. After you mix your fragrance oil into your shampoo you need to let it sit overnight to see the final results. The fragrance oil could turn your clear shampoo opaque, but then after it sits overnight it could turn clear again. So be patient and do lots of testing when it comes to adding in fragrance oils. Personally I found a lot of luck with fragrance oils from morouge.ca 



And this post has gotten way too long, so I am going to end it here. These are all the main ingredients that comes to mind for me when making a shampoo. Let me know if I missed anything and what you like to put in shampoos. Disclaimer, There are so many ingredients out there. There is no way I can touch on all of them, but hopefully this gives a good example for how to make a shampoo for beginners. I really didn’t plan for this post to get so long.


Simple Shampoo Formula

Phase A


Phase B

Phase C


Simple Shampoo 700 Gram Batch

Phase A


Phase B

Phase C


Directions;

  • Combining both ingredients in phase A and mix until the Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride has dissolved.

  • Next add the ingredients from phase B into phase A and mix until the DL Panthenol has dissolved.

  • In a separate beaker combine all the ingredients in phase C and mix until combined. This will thicken up a lot! That is normal.

  • Pour phase C into Phase A/B and mix. This will not combine, but try to mix everything as much as possible. Cover with some Plastic Wrap and let sit overnight. 

  • The next day everything should be mixed together and you should have a somewhat clear gel. 

  • check and adjust ph to 4.5-5.5

  • Pour into desired bottles. I used these 13.5 oz squeeze bottles 

  • Also, here is a link to my video showing how I make my labels. 



Benefits/Purpose of each Ingredient


  • Distilled Water - Diluent 

  • Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride - Thickener

  • Glycerin - humectant (hydrates hair)

  • DL Panthenol - Also known as Vitamin B5. DL Panthenol is an extremely common ingredient you will find in hair care products. DL panthenol is a humectant that can help hydrate, increase shine, help smooth fizz, help hair be more elastic, more manageable and over all healthier.

  • Keratin - Keratin is an extremely common ingredient to find in hair care products. This is because keratin is the main protein that makes up your hair skin and nails. Keratin is not vegan, but you can find vegan alternatives to keratin. Keratin can help strengthen hair, protect hair, and enhance elasticity.

  • Rice Protein - said to help increase’s moisture retention

  • Sodium C-14 C-16 Alpha Olefin Sulfonate (AOS 40) - Anionic Surfactant

  • Cocamidopropyl Betaine - Amphoteric Surfactant

  • Optiphen Plus - Preservative



Substitutions;

substituting ingredients will change the final feel, viscosity, and overall effect of final product. percentages and formulating procedure may need to change with substitutions. these substitution suggestions are just suggestions and have not been tested to work.



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