Sweet Creek Herbs - Eucalyptus Mints Vegan Shampoo bar

I batch publish my posts, hence proved! Today I shall also speak of my impression of Sweet Creek Herbs' Eucalyptus Mints Vegan Shampoo bar. This is the second shampoo bar I have tried of Sweet Creek Herbs. A couple of months ago, when the lady who runs this shop offered a deal to ship for free, I ordered a lot of samples. I know, I go crazy when I see a discount or coupon. I am the kind of customer all these deals are made for! So essentially I have a lot of samples to get through, a point I made in my previous post too.

The ingredients for this soap are:

coconut oil, sunflower oil, babassu oil, sodium hydroxide in H2O, hemp seed oil, jojoba, eucalyptus tea, avocado oil, natural oil of eucalyptus, natural oil of spearmint

This soap does not smell like eucalyptus or mint. It smells pleasant, that's all. It is a sliver about 16-17 grams in weight, white to off-white in color. Also to note is that this is a vegan soap. This soap is suitable for Oily to Normal hair types. I used a little jojoba oil on my hair everytime I used it on my hair.

I would like to think that I am through with the transition phase. Because consistently when I wash, I no longer feel like stripped clean feel or gummy or waxy. It does not feel like a commercial-shampoo clean either. Just that the shampoo bar lather has been through all my hair and feels clean. I use a decent amount of ACV rinse and that does the job.

Back to this soap : it lathers well, not a very rich lather but a light quickly-formed lather that can be used for cleaning. And I am really surprised at how quickly I can wash with this shampoo bar. I have used it thrice so far and every time the ritual of washing my hair gets done really quick! But as I mentioned previously, this is a mild soap too. So my hair still has some oil on it after it dries.

The thing I do not like about this soap is that it seems to not clean my scalp well. That is after I am done with washing, in a day's time, I can see some deposits on my comb every time I brush my hair. My scalp does not itch terribly when I use this soap, because of what it leaves behind, but does not feel very clean either. It has been a consistent pattern every time I used this bar. I do not know if the shampoo bars have brought my scalp to a condition where sebum production is in overdrive or that this bar is not as effective as the others I have used.

In essence, I do not like the fact that my scalp does not feel very clean. I will not be investing in this soap any longer.

Chagrin Valley Soap and Salve - Ayurvedic Herb Natural Shampoo bar

Today, I shall review the Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve - Ayurvedic Herb Natural Shampoo Bar. This sample bar was in my first order at Chagrin Valley. I was truly excited as soon as I heard, or rather, read the word Ayurvedic! As previously mentioned, I used soapnuts, shikai, hibiscus flowers and other such natural products on my hair for years. And the idea of getting all the goodness of these natural products in one bar seemed like the best thing possible. 

I ordered for this bar once I saw the website. This was the first bar I tried of Chagrin Valley's. Oh, before I jump to the end of this review, here is the description of this shampoo bar on the website:

A rich oil infusion of Ayurvedic hair care herbs creates a nourishing all natural shampoo. Shikakai, increases bounciness and silkiness. Bhringraj, considered the "king of herbs" for hair growth, helps strengthen the hair shaft. Amla promotes stronger, healthier new growth. Hibiscus flowers help in the treatment of dandruff and hair loss. Aritha cleans hair without drying and helps create a fabulous lather.

The list of ingredients is given as:

Organic Coconut Oil; Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil Infused With Organic Herbs (Bhringraj, Shikakai, Hibiscus, Amla, Tulsi, Fenugreek, Jasmine, Yashtimadhu, Neem); Organic Avocado Oil; Organic Jojoba Oil; Organic Soapnuts (Aritha); Water; Organic Mango Butter; Organic Babassu Oil; Sodium Hydroxide*; Organic Castor Oil; Organic Neem Oil; Organic Canola Oil; Organic Coconut Milk; Organic Aloe Vera; Organic Essential Oils Of Tulsi, Cypress, Juniper Berry, Lavender, Lemon, Basil, Black Pepper; Organic Rosemary Oil Extract

First things first, the list of ingredients is ah-mazing! No doubt about that. The organic herbs, castor oil, neem oil, tulsi, olive oil, it is truly the list of tried and tested products for hair. So, why does it sound like the results were not as impressive? you may ask. 

As mentioned previously, this was the first bar I tried. I was very very excited as soon as I received it. As with the other bars, this bar has no distinct smell. The first time I tried this bar, it was when I was still in the transition period (or so I think). It felt like this bar always caused some build up on my scalp. No matter how much ACV mixture I used. I tried this bar mixing it with other bars too. That is, if I found the build-up getting worse, I would some other bar to clear it up and then try this bar again - in the following washes over the week or so. I did this multiple times.

One thing to this bar's credit, it lasts long. It lasted at least 6 washes on my long hair. There were instances when I used more of this bar to scrub away the build-up too. 

But nothing, NOTHING worked. The build-up only got worse. In between washes, I would find some build-up on my comb too. Yikes! I have not been able to isolate the cause of this build-up though. My scalp looked flaky, but I was still able to get the comb through my hair, unlike with the Extra Beer and Honey bar when I found it difficult to comb hair through.

Also with this bar, my hair did not look shiny after I washed it. It looked dull, not lifeless but the hair strands did not have any of the shine I usually notice after I wash my hair.

Long story short, I did not like this bar. I may order another sample of this after I am done with all my samples, only because I cannot believe that something Ayurvedic failed so miserably on me *sigh*! But for now, I  think I have given this bar its fair share of attempts and it still failed to impress me.

Beauty and the Bees Tasmania - Lemon and Chamomile shampoo bar

So today, I shall give my review of Beauty and the Bees Tasmania - Lemon and Chamomile shampoo bar. 

This bar is meant for blonde/silver hair. But since I had it in my sample box and do not know anyone currently who has blonde hair, I decided to try it on myself. 

From the website, the following is the list of ingredients:

Mountain spring water, chamomile infusion, olive oil, coconut oil,soy wax,castor oil, Leatherwood beeswax and honey, seaweed extract,essential oils (Lemon)

And the description is this:

Everyone – especially blondes and silver hair,perfect for people with dandruff, eczema or dry scalp too. Users tell us that their hair is subtly enriched and brightened by the chamomile infusion and natural lemon oil.

This bar smells pleasant. It is light yellow in color, a beautiful lovely color :) It lathers very quick and very well too. Like the other Beauty and the Bees bars. But for me, that is where the good things about this bar end. 

It lathers well in my hair too. The first time I washed my hair with this bar, my hair and scalp felt washed and cleaned. After my hair dried, I usually use a couple of drops of argan oil at the ends. But that day, my hair looked super oily that day. Even after drying, even the next day. I did not wash my hair the next day since I was too tired to do it. Went greasy haired for a couple of days and used the same bar the following time. My hair felt cleaned and not as oily but looked limp :( It was like all shampoo bar transition was condensed into my usage of one bar over a week. And I used so much of them hoping to get rid of the greasy feeling that the sample bar lasted me 2.5 washes. 

It could be that I should not have used a bar meant for gray/blonde hair. It is so strange that a shampoo bar has left me with greasy hair. A first for me since Dr Bronner's I must say. Many others do have really good things to say about this bar. But for me, this bar does not work. Will not repurchase anytime soon hopefully!

Chagrin Valley Babassu Marshmallow shampoo bar

This review is for the Babassu Marshmallow bar from Chagrin Valley. 

The list of ingredients is:

Ingredients: Organic Babassu Oil; Organic Sunflower Oil; Organic Coconut Oil; Organic Avocado Oil; Organic Jojoba Oil; Organic Mango Butter;  Water; Organic Shea Butter; Sodium Hydroxide*; Organic Marsh Mallow Root; Organic Castor Oil; Organic Walnut Oil; Organic Aloe; Organic Essential Oils of Ylang Ylang, Lemon, Ginger; Organic Rosemary Oil Extract 

And this product is defined as:


A natural shampoo bar made with nourishing babassu oil, a great hair care oil for thick, coarse or kinky hair. Babassu oil moisturizes and restores hair strength and elasticity, for shiny, healthy-looking hair. Marsh mallow root softens, soothes and hydrates the hair and scalp, providing relief from scalp irritation. A natural moisturizer, marsh mallow helps detangle hair for increased manageablilty.


The smell and such details: Out of the packet, it smells herbal. Nothing more distinct, just herbal. All of the samples smelled the same to me actually. But when I warmed it up in the shower, I could smell the rich coconut oil in the soap. And the other distinct smell, ginger! I love ginger, I use it regularly in my cooking, my tea. So I loved the smell of ginger in the shower. Ginger apparently promotes hair growth in balding areas. I cannot attest to that with my trial but I loved the smell. By my fourth wash from this bar, the smell of ginger was no longer that strong, but just a hint of it was left. It lathers rich, not as quickly as the Beauty and the bees bars do. The lather is good and cleans fairly well.

As for did I like this bar, not as much as I wanted to. I was looking for well moisturized hair but my hair didn't exactly feel so. I used quite some ACV mixture too to balance the pH. Somehow, after using this bar, the first day, my hair feels pretty smooth but by the second, it begins to feel dry already. I may have to try with a lot more of the acv rinse in my hair to see if that helps, but that has been my observation. Or should I be using much lesser ACV in the mixture? Back at square one looks like! My hair does not look frizzy exactly, but feels dry. Not that well conditioned feel any longer. By the fourth day, it feels quite dry. Like I need some oil on my hair to make it soft. Not the feeling I was hoping and looking for. So, I will not be using this bar again. Onto another bar then!

The first adventure - Dr Bronners

Three years ago, my husband and I decided to give shampoo bars a shot. My husband, Mr. T, went online, looked around and suggested Dr Bronners liquid soap. That it is all natural, no SLS, oil based soap looked like a very good starting point.

So the first time, I do my typical thing. I oil my dry hair, quite heavily, let it soak in before I shampoo my hair. I was genuinely surprised to see it so runny but lather quite well. I use it twice in one shower, that's how I usually shampoo and rinse it off well. It felt like all the oil had not washed away, but decided to let it dry before I gave the verdict. Well, after my hair did air dry, it looked like a greasy mess! Like I had not washed my hair at all! Like all the oil I had massaged it somehow managed to stay in my hair and with water on top of it, looked gross! :(

I was disappointed, honestly. Being a soapnuts gal for a long time, it was not my first oil-still-in-my-hair-after-washing moment. So, I decide to wash another time with the same Dr Bronners liquid soap, we used the peppermint back then. It was summer of 2011. Warm days called for peppermint, we thought. Anyways, the second time around was no better. It was still oily. Not just the scalp but along the strands all the way down my back. Arghh! I just did not like it. The worst thing was, every time I ran my hands along my hair, I felt more than a couple of strands coming out. And that did not stop all day along. Stressful!

Mr T, after seeing me so upset and hearing to my complaints, found this link: http://lisa.drbronner.com/?p=256 and we promptly ordered the rinse and the leave in conditioner. I persisted on with the liquid shampoo in the meanwhile. Looking like a greasy head at work :( Not my favorite moment.

Once we received the rinse, I tried it. Followed the instructions to the T. When I ran it along my hair and used my fingers to work it in, I pulled out quite a few strands! It helped with the greasy head situation a little but not a great deal. The leave in conditioner felt good for a second but very quickly looked greasy. I had to tweak the amounts and let my hair get used to it, I thought. And kept at it for another couple of weeks. I could not handle the dirty scalp for long. So I went back to my Giovanni tea tree shampoo and felt happier than ever! Some people opined that the shampoo bars were better than the liquid shampoo but I could not muster the courage to go through it all again. And decided to stick with semi-SLS and almost-no-SLS shampoos. Same old story, first couple of washes, find it great! Then it either would dry out my hair like crazy or weight it down by day 2. And the search continued without much practical application.

Looking back, I may have quit while my hair was yet to adjust to the new routine and turn into that movie star like tresses. But I freaked out, no other reason. I was struggling with hair loss and crazier looking hair freaked me out. That's all.

After much thought, time and browsing the net, I came across various blogs that discussed what would happen when switching to a more natural hair care routine. Some links: http://www.overthrowmartha.com/2014/03/shampoo-bars-are-they-better.html, a product website http://www.chagrinvalleysoapandsalve.com/idascorner/shampoo-hair/success-with-shampoo-bars/my-hair-is-having-trouble-adjusting-to-the-shampoo-bars and many others google would come up with. So I decided to take the advice and give it a more earnest shot.

And oh, Mr T stuck with Dr Bronners and discovers more uses for the liquid every now and then. But he has had a persistent flaky scalp. After much prodding, he has agreed to try some other products.