DIY: Homemade Natural Shikakai Shampoo Recipe

This homemade shikakai shampoo can be done very easily if you have the ingredients at home. This shampoo is made with natural ingredients and it doesn’t have any harsh chemicals in it. This shikakai shampoo cleans the hair really well. All the ingredients for this shampoo are already dried, so you can buy them in bulk, store and use it year round.

The ingredients for this homemade shampoo are shikakai, soap nuts and dried amla (gooseberries). We call dried amla “Nelli mulli” in Tamil. To make this herbal shampoo, take out the seeds from soap nuts and soak it along with shikakai and dried gooseberries, the previous night.

The next day boil them, till they turn soft and you will see foam forming on top. Strain this liquid, cool and wash your hair with this herbal shampoo. Soap nut is an excellent cleanser and shikakai has been used for centuries for hair wash in India.

Dried gooseberries condition the hair leaving it soft. This homemade shampoo will not lather like the regular surfactant based shampoos, but it will cleanse the hair well. I find that after using this shampoo, it does leave my hair a bit dry so I use a conditioner.

I would suggest the same to everyone who experiences dryness after using the shampoo. Update: I would suggest adding 1 tbsp pf fenugreek seeds to the mixture as it greatly prevents drying of the hair.

Homemade Natural Shikakai Shampoo Recipe

 METHOD:
1. Remove the seeds from soap nut.

2. Take dried amlas and shikakai in a bowl.

3. Soak soapnuts, dried amlas and shikakai in water overnight. Make sure they are completely immersed in water.

4. Next day, boil the mixture till everything gets soft and mushy.

 

5. Strain and use the liquid to wash your hair. This mixture shown in this picture is very thin and is perfect for washing hair that is not oiled, but for washing oily hair boil till very thick. I usually boil till there is only a few tbsp of the mixture left and it removes oil well. When you boil it till thick the color will be reddish dark brown.

NOTES:

• This amount of ingredients will be enough for one hair wash.
• Adding amlas helps to condition the hair so try not to skip it.
• Try buying the ingredients in bulk, sun dry and store them in an airtight container.
• Increase the quantity of the ingredients, if you have long and very thick hair.
• Make sure to condition your hair later, if you experience dryness.
• I would suggest adding 1 tbsp of fenugreek seeds and if you still experience dryness you can increase it even more.