Homemade Coconut Milk Shampoo

Today is the third consecutive day of beautiful weather here in Philly, so naturally it’s time to start thinking about summer. Whenever I do, the summer scents are always at the forefront of my mind: the sweet smell of the summertime air when you open your windows, the scent of fresh flowers as you walk through the garden, and, of course, coconut everything. Nothing brings about that summer feeling more than the delicious smell of coconut, and today I have a recipe that will lock that glorious summertime scent in your hair: homemade coconut milk shampoo.

What you need:

Coconut milk shampoo ingredients

1/2 cup coconut milk (this can be found in the international aisle at most supermarkets)
2/3 cup castile soap (this can be found at health food stores like Whole Foods. I always stick with Dr. Bronner’s because it’s made of pure, fair trade ingredients)
1 tsp vitamin E oil
1 tsp coconut oil

Like many beauty products, the ingredients can be altered to fit your scent preference, as long as these two stay the same: coconut milk and castile soap. As for oil, you can use vitamin E, coconut, almond, or olive. You can also add a few drops of essential oil if you like. I think next time I will go with lavender or vanilla.

What you do:

If you’re using coconut oil, place it in the microwave for about 30 seconds or until it’s fully melted. Combine all ingredients in a container with a lid, and shake. To use, shampoo your hair as you normally would. Use 1-2 teaspoons of the shampoo, depending on hair length and thickness. You can store one batch in your shower for up to a month.

Homemade coconut milk shampoo

I can already tell this is going to be my go-to shampoo for the spring and summer. Not only does the mixture smell delicious, the castile soap makes it an excellent hair cleanser, and the milk and oils help to lock moisture into your hair, while simultaneously keeping you free of frizz. That’s really all I could ever ask for in a summer shampoo.

Coconut milk shampoo recipe

I love the way the shampoo looks in this teeny vintage milk bottle.

If you decide to make your own coconut milk shampoo, let us know how it turns out!

Homemade coconut milk shampoo

Photos by Jemma and Brigette

See our recipe for homemade coconut lavender conditioner!

More homemade beauty products on BLDG 25.

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10 years ago

most def plan on trying this asap…and i am on the last squirts of my current hair wash, so excellent timing might i add :)

10 years ago

Will try this tonight. What about a conditioner? Is there a homemade one you would recommend?

Amberallan
10 years ago

Loveeee can’t wait to try it! What conditioner do you recommend to follow?

Eva
10 years ago

Thanks for this…my hair is super curly and dry and oh so frizzy. I buy so many product and nothing really helps…will be doing this mixture tonight and we shall see the results.

10 years ago

Great!

Meghan
10 years ago

This awesome!
I went to Thiliand last year and have been obsessed with coconuts ever since.
There are so many uses for it.
Can’t wait for my hair to smell like a fresh coconut!

http://happinessiscreating.com/

10 years ago

I love coconut anything, so I’m definitely up for trying this!!
xo

Jules
10 years ago
Mia
10 years ago

Is there something I could substitute for the Castile soap? I’m in Australia and have never seen this before. I might have to source some online. I have super curly/ringlet hair, so I’m hoping this tames it a little! Thanks for the recipe :)

Zoe
10 years ago

I adore coconut, the smell takes me straight back to my Thailand travels. This is going to be made at the weekend I cant wait to try it out.

Zoe
http://gypsiesister.blogspot.co.uk

Jessie
10 years ago

I just made this over the weekend and unfortunately it is WAY too oily. When I washed my hair with it on Saturday, I wasn’t sure if it was the shampoo that made my hair greasy since I did use a couple other products but this morning I only used the shampoo (no conditioner either!) and it really looks and feels like I have not washed my hair in days. I’m totally bummed out about it! I followed the recipe exactly but I still wonder if I maybe screwed something up because the shampoo itself is runny and not a typical shampoo consistency. I wonder if anyone else has had this problem!

Jessie
10 years ago

Thanks for the tip, Brigette! I’ll try making the shampoo again this weekend! :)

10 years ago

Just made this now. A tad watery, so it’s chilling in my fridge. The coconut milk I bought was pretty solid, so I’m hoping this helps it to solidify a bit.

I’m italian, so my hairs a bit on the oily side to begin with. So I added more castile soap and less oil. I also added a bit of teatree oil to it as well.
I’ll let you know how it turns out :)

Jessie
10 years ago

I’m a different Jessie, and this worked so well for me!! Just washed my hair with it for the first time and it feels great, not too oily :) I may actually add more coconut oil, but I’ll wait till the next batch.

The smell is so wonderful. I really hate the strong smells in most shampoos now-a-days and this is so mild – sweet and summery. The only con is that it is runny, I may put a small hole in the top of my lid (I made it in a plain Ball Jar with a screw-on metal cap) so that I can pour it out easy.

Overall, this may be my favorite shampoo to date.

Thanks so much!!

Trish
3 years ago
Reply to  Jessie

What if you put it in a squirt bottle (like a condiment bottle)?

10 years ago

Hey, same Hillary from yesterday!

Tried out this shampoo and it’s GREAT. My hair feels and smells amazing :)
I would recommend shaking it around a bit before every use- all of the oil tends to rest at the bottom of the jar.
Also, it’s oily enough that I did not need a conditioner. I just ran a bit of argan oil in my hair when I stepped out of the shower and I was good to go :)

10 years ago

i made this about a week ago and i also found it left my hair a little oily and thus stringy, but i solved the problem by adding it to half a bottle of nature’s gate awapuhi volumizing shampoo and now its the best shampoo ever :) i’ll continue to make it this way and maybe use half the coconut and vitamin E oil… i think with stuff like this you really just have to play around to figure out what works best for you :) thanks!

Alexandra
10 years ago

I just tried this for the first time and it worked wonderfully! I’m a huge coconut oil fan, and after reading all the horrible things shampoo does for your hair I was really excited to find out about this (via Pinterest). I know you said you can store it for up to a month in the shower, but does the coconut milk really last that long without going bad? Either way, I will be using this from now on – it’s a way cheaper option, too!

Valerie
10 years ago

The good thing about these ingredients is that they’re already so moisturizing that you may not even need conditioner and coconut oil smells amazing itself. Perfect for the summer time! I’ll be trying this next weekend.

Lena
10 years ago

I made this over the weekend and it has made my hair really oily:( not sure if it’s because I naturally have quite silky hair that never goes dry, or if it’s because my hair is adapting to not being stripped of its natural oils by shop bought shampoos. Can you help?! I did think of using it for a week and seeing if my hair gets used to it, but I don’t know if I want to walk around with oily hair for that long!

Valerie
10 years ago

Hey, Lena! I have a couple of suggestions that may help you (:
If you make another batch, you can add a little less oil and play around with the castile soap to coconut milk ratio or you can you a dry shampoo! I recommend FP’s natural dry shampoo over any store bought dry shampoo.

Ali
10 years ago

Wow, I have suoer thick dry curls. I often straighten though. I use coconut oil everyday as pomade , and I’m never greasy just to put into perspective. This has been the best shampoo I’ve ever used. So moisturising. No frizz and not greasy at all for my hair. I love it!!! Thanks so much for posting this.

rho
10 years ago

Love been making this for awhile , use as body wash too

Faiza
10 years ago

Does it matter what type of castile soap I use? Like if I use lavender castile soap, would that work?

Lena
10 years ago

Will try varying the ratio of coconut milk and oil. I must be getting it wrong somewhere as you all seem to love it! Will keep trying! thanks for your help!

Stephanie
10 years ago

I made this today and I am so excited to try it! Thanks, girls!