Wash Day Project | DIY Cleansing Oil Shampoo

Healthy Hair
Cleansing oils have been all the rage ever since people got hip to the benefits of massaging the skin with plant oils.  Our worst fears were that these oils would clog our pores and leave our skin greasy...but instead, we experienced the exact opposite.

In actuality, the oils helped remove dirt while leaving the skin hydrated and moisturized.  Once the big companies got wind of oil cleansing, a bunch of commercial products hit the marketplace.  Oil cleansing became a legit thing.
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But then, brands decided to take things to the next level by expanding the oil cleansing experience to our hair.  Yes.  In case you weren't aware, there's such a thing as cleansing oil shampoo. Shu Uemura leads the pack with its Gentle Radiance Cleansing Oil Shampoo.  Ouidad also has a cleansing oil on the market.

My first thought was this, "I NEED a cleansing oil shampoo in my regimen!"  My hair adores oil and can't get enough of it.  If I were to incorporate an oil rich cleanser, this could mean less tangles on wash day and reduce manipulation related breakage during the conditioner application.  And perhaps, adding a little oil would somehow minimize the swelling that occurs when hair is saturated with water. My impatience wouldn't allow me to wait days for a product to arrive so I immediately sought to create my own oil cleansing shampoo.

This is the easiest DIY ever!  Basically, I grabbed a bottle of avocado oil from my product stash and set it aside. Then I put some Keracare Moisturizing Shampoo in my hand as I normally would.  But instead of applying the shampoo directly to my wet hair, I mixed in a little avocado oil.  I tried to avoid using too much oil and kept the ratio of shampoo to oil to about 70/30.

When I rubbed the shampoo/oil mixture in my hair, I couldn't detect any "greasiness."  In fact, the shampoo process went as normal.  Actually, there were a couple of differences.  First, my hair seemed to tangle way less. Secondly, after rinsing, my hair already felt highly conditioned.  This process is definitely a keeper.

My only regret is that I didn't use enough oil.  I have very thick, very course hair and I could probably get away with a 60/40 shampoo to oil mix.  I say this because, once rinsed, there was no trace of oil whatsoever.  Some people would prefer this but I wouldn't mind having a hint of oil remaining on the strand.

Oil cleansing on wash day is a must try if your hair responds well to oil.  Oh, as a follow up, I have to mention how I'm loving my DIY conditioning ACV rinse.  If you haven't tried this yet, you're falling behind. Time to catch up.

8 comments

  1. I'm going to try this. I recently tried shampoo/aloe mix but my hair still seemed dry. I may mix shampoo, oil and aloe my next wash and see if I like that better. Thank you for posting.

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  2. I was skeptical that this mix would remove the sebum from my scalp (I have scalp issues)but I tried it this morning. The first lather did not lather much. The second lather had more bubbles but not the same large bubbles of using 100% shampoo and I could feel the softness of the oily bubbles. After I rinsed the second lather, I did a patch test just using my fingernails to see if any sebum gunk was on my scalp. It was clear, nothing there and there was no oil on my scalp. My scalp was clean and my ends were not as dry. This method is a keeper. It almost seemed like it worked like 'cream of nature' shampoo from back in the day.

    I used olive oil but when I finish it, I will try the avocado oil. I used an applicator bottle with about 60% non-silicone shampoo, 30% olive oil and 10% aloe vera juice. I may add a smidgen of vegetable glycerin in the future. Thanks again for this post.

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  3. Yay Anon! Thanks for the update. I'm glad this worked for you. I may try your recipe by adding aloe vera. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Such a great idea!!! I tried it out today and wanted to thank you for this suggestion. I washed today using a sulfate shampoo and added a little Jojoba Oil. WOW... My hair was soooooo incredibly soft. The rest of my wash day was a breeze....this was the only thing I tweaked in this week's wash so I'm sure that's what helped. Thanks again :)

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  5. Hey Mallory! I love hearing about great results. Thanks for sharing. I suspect this method might also make wash days much easier during long stretches.

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  6. hmmmmm...looks like a shortcut. I have to do a hot oil treatment before washing or it's tangle city. thanks.

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  7. Excellent post thanks for sharing such a informative information with us.
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  8. I just have to say thank you so much for suggesting this! I found the perfect strengthening and moisturising shampoo(Organix Awapuhi ginger shampoo) whilst I lived in a soft water area and it did wonders for my hair. Since moving back to a place with hard water, it just stopped working for me I thought I was going to have to bin it :(.

    I read this, and tried it and I can't thank you enough for suggesting it! I used my staple grapeseed oil and mixed the two. Not only did the shampoo work again (tangles decreased and pain of detangling went away) but also somehow oil ELEVATED the power of my shampoo and conditioner. I have never gotten so many compliments before on how healthy, and thick and really nourished my hair looked before in one day! Definitely found a keeper technique and an improved shampoo in one,thank you Nadege!

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