Shampoo bars

[tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz]

Switched to these at the start of this year after trying some travel size Ethique ones from a beauty advent calendar. Really impressed although irritated that after a few weeks (using 4ish times a week and keeping in a soap tray away from water flow) they started to break up meaning they became fiddly to use. I put this down to them being heart shaped (just, why?!!) and bit the bullet spending £24 on full size versions of the shampoo and conditioner. The full size are a sensible rectangle.

The shampoo has just broke after about 5 weeks use it cost £12 which is waaaay more than I've ever spent on a bottle. I can still try to use it but it's so fiddly and messy and is hard to prevent it breaking further. Plus I'm sure since I've had them my shower drain has needed more cleaning, as if it doesn't quite break down properly (the irony).

Suffice to say I'm not buying bloody Ethique again ... any recommendations ?

Buy shampoo in a bottle. I have just started using an ethique shampoo bar (50p in clearance section) and I like it.

I tried some from Lush a few years about but I find they’re quite expensive.

I’m waiting for a Gruum shampoo bar to arrive, they have a trial at the moment so only pay postage, I’m also waiting for some from Pebble to arrive however they seem to be for body and hair so not sure how well they’ll actually work on hair, but again they’re currently running a trail where you just pay postage.

Foamies look really good but I haven’t ordered any yet.

Bath Bubble and Beyond Shampoo and Conditioner Bar Set (I Should Cocoa) www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08586DK8J/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_TA8V55DHYC8HR1TFNPGG?psc=1&_encoding=UTF8&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

I’ve been using this shampoo bar for two years, started the conditioner this year. I’ve got bra straps length very very thick natural coloured hair and one bar lasts me 5 or 6 months washing twice a week. Foams nicely, washes out easily, leaves hair soft, shiny and clean.

I use these to store them:
www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000DZFA66/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_VGZTAAN2MDJ0KYZZRVWJ?psc=1&_encoding=UTF8&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Sorry for ugly long links.

I love the Lush Montalbano one, it’s lemon scented in a really lovely way (not like DP’s citrus shower gel that smells like toilet cleaner!) and lasts me ages

I like ethique and find they last about a year!
My friend really likes foamies and has been hunting them down in tkmaxx for ages.
Garnier do a cheap one, but haven't tried it. I also like the friendly soap one you can get gor about £4 from boots/ waitrose.

I use faith in nature and minds been in use for over 6 months and is still a solid rectangle.

A year! Crumbs. It was cheap because it was on it's BB date. I'm sure it will be ok for a few months. I was pleasantly surprised a how easy to use it is.

I've tried a few different shampoo bars recently (mostly because my nearest Sainsbury's stocks a variety and they've been on offer).

In my personal ranking:

First place: Eco Warrior Shampoo Bar (the orange coloured box)
www.littlesoapcompany.co.uk/shop/eco-warrior-soaps/

I got it in Sainsburys and have seen it in Waitrose. I wait until it's on offer in Sainsbury's (£3.50 instead of £4.50) although it's worth it at full price. This is the best one I've found: it foams well and doesn't leave noticeable residue in my hair. It's the only one I've tried that comes close to a liquid shampoo and I would be happy to use permanently.

Second place: Foamie Shampoo Bar
www.foamie.co.uk/collections/shampoo-bar

Again I got it in Sainsbury's when it was on offer. It left some residue in my hair but I was happy with it and bought it a second time. But that was before I tried Eco Warrior and that has now taken first place.

Third place: Grum (can't remember which one - might have been shine enhancing).
www.gruum.com/shop/?v=79cba1185463#hair-range

I got it on offer via MSE and only paid for postage. I absolutely hated the perfumed smell but I think they've brought out an unscented one now. The first time I used it I was extremely impressed: produced a lot of foam with little effort and didn't leave much residue in my hair. I thought it might be better than Eco Warrior (apart from the awful scent). But I used it a second time and realised it did leave residue, that was building up each time. So now I'm just using it occasionally in between washing with other shampoo, just to use it up. I wouldn't buy it again.

The worst, which left so much residue in my hair I didn't even use it a second time (and I'm reluctant to even use it as hand soap) was Love Beauty and Planet.
www.lovebeautyandplanet.com/us/en/hair/products/shampoo-bar.html

It was the Coconut Water and Mimosa Flower, which is now labelled as a 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner. It was so bad I wondered why Unilever even bothered bringing it to market. But some people have given it good reviews on line.

So I don't know if the amount of residue depends on hair type or water (I'm in a hard water area). I'm not prepared to use a vinegar rinse so I'll only use shampoo bars that don't leave residue in my hair.

I haven't tried any conditioner bars.

I really like the ethique one which didn’t break up for me, but I only get a month out of it (with two people using it). Their conditioner bar is lovely, the best I’ve used.

Friendly Soap Company, I especially love their conditioner bars.

Bain and Savon. They are good size cubes and I find that better for staying in shape. Absolutely lovely.

I use these and they’ve been great. Never broken up and reasonably priced.

I also second the recommendation for the I Should Cocoa shampoo, but I didn’t get on with the conditioner. Faith in Nature shampoo bar great, doesn’t break up and lasts ages.

I used the Kiwi Ethique bar by the way, in case different ones are crumbly (mine wasn’t).

Cut the large rectulangar bar into smaller cubes.

Might be a stupid question but where do you keep it? No soap dish in our shower so I'd struggle to keep it dry

I have a Gruum shampoo bar. The brightening one. It's great! I'm going to order a conditioner one too next term.

I keep mine in a soap dish. It has drainage slats on the bottom and it attaches to the wall with suction pads.

Small bamboo soap dish with bars, on a shelf in the shower.

@goose1964

I use faith in nature and minds been in use for over 6 months and is still a solid rectangle.

@goose1964 May I ask please , How does the bar vary from their bottled shampoo? What conditioner do you use ?

I use faith in nature too and find them really good.

@DareIask

Might be a stupid question but where do you keep it? No soap dish in our shower so I'd struggle to keep it dry

I use ones from my little eco shop. They come in a tin (which you can omit from future purchases) I use it in the shower, then pop it back in the tin to dry out for next time.

I've tried a few shampoo bars. Garnier bars were ok - not much lather so found hard to use on my long hair. Hair was quite greasy the following day but not too much of a problem as I wash my hair every day.

Also tried Gruum bars which foam up really well but as a pp mentioned they definitely leave a film on my hair (hard water area) which is worth knowing if you're having any hair treatments or highlights. My hairdresser said they are a bit of a pain for that reason as it affects the processing time!

If you don't get on with solid shampoo, it might be worth seeing if anywhere locally does refills - my local health food shop has just started doing this.

I have used the friendly soap company bars for ages with no problems, but recently they have started leaving my hair really waxy. I don't know if they've changed something but I'm so disappointed. Bought an ethique bar today to try.

I have a coconut shampoo bar from ecovibe.co.uk, having tried a few others I'm very impressed with it. Also loving the conditioner bar I got from them, it's the first conditioner bar I've been able to get on with! With any of them, make sure you don't leave them sitting in water after use, let them dry.

The only shampoo bar I've tried is by Mella - they have an Instagram page and also sell online. Handmade and although I found it much harder work than liquid shampoo my hair is looking great!

I also really like the Ethique ones, I've been using them for years (since back in the days they were a tiny local company called Sorbet).