How to Make Dry Shampoo

True confession: I do not wash my hair everyday. Another true confession: I do not wash my hair every other day. And I don’t feel weird about it either. Now I do get some funky looks when I tell people that I go up to a week without washing my hair. (Not like I go around telling people, but…) After years of spending way to much money on store-bought dry shampoo, I now make my own at a fraction of the price – and using natural ingredients. Read on to learn how you, too, can make dry shampoo!

How to Make Dry Shampoo

I know what you’re thinking.  A WEEK?! Yes, I really do go about a week on average between hair washings. My hair is halfway down my back and washing every day not only makes my naturally wavy hair super dry and coarse, but the thought of blow drying my hair every. single. day. makes my eye twitch.

Sometimes I’ll go four or five days, sometimes six. The thing is that when you wash your hair everyday you are stripping away the oils that your scalp has produced since the last time you washed, forcing your scalp to produce more oils to compensate. When you wash your hair less frequently, you are training your scalp to produce less oils. The longer your hair goes between washings, the less oil your body produces (and the less greasy it looks). WIN-WIN-WIN!

If you are blonde, you’ll find this recipe even easier. If you are a brunette like myself, you may want to add the optional ingredients so you’re not a walking powder puff.  Try it without the optional ingredients first, and add into the recipe as needed.

Dry Shampoo Recipe

1/4 cup Arrowroot (any brand)
1/4 cup Baking Soda
Cocoa powder or Cinnamon (optional, for brunettes)
Essential oils (optional)

Using a container with a lid (such as an old chili powder shaker/seasoned salt shaker) add in your arrowroot and baking soda. Replace the lid and give the canister a good shake to mix. If you are a brunette, add in about a teaspoon of cocoa powder and mix again. If this isn’t dark enough, add a bit more (just be careful not to go crazy with it) until you get a nice warm brown shade. You might use the dry shampoo a time or two before adding more and more cocoa.

If desired, add in a few drops of essential oil. Use tea tree oil for flakes or to repel lice, lemon for an invigorating scent, or lavender for its calming effects and other qualities. And you just made homemade dry shampoo, my friend. Wasn’t that easy?!

How to use homemade dry shampoo

On day two of your hair care routine, shake a bit of the powder mixture into the lid of your container.  Working from ear to ear, apply dry shampoo in sections with a large makeup or powder brush directly to your scalp (this will soak up the oil your hair naturally produces).

Apply your dry shampoo in the morning, or during your nightly ritual before heading to bed. When you wake in the morning give your hair a good brushing and you won’t be able to detect your dry shampoo – or the remnants of your greasy hair – at all! I love how easy my hair is to style when I haven’t washed it in a few days, and I love how much money I save by making my own dry shampoo, and I really love that I’m not spraying this list of chemicals on my hair (ingredients of arguably the most popular dry shampoo brand; Batiste)

Butane, Isobutane, Oryza Sativa, (Rice) Starch, Propane, Alcohol Denat, Parfum (Fragrance), Coumarin, Eugenol, Limonene, Butylphenyl, Methylpropional, Linalool, Distearyldimonuim Chloride. 😮

If you’d like to make your container exactly like mine, here is the text image that I converted to svg for my vinyl cutting machine. Size the file down if needed, and this is the container I used.  Works perfectly! Will you try your own homemade dry shampoo? I’d love to hear your results!

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Homemade Butter (and Buttermilk!) Using a Kitchen Mixer
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Homemade “Cream of” Soups (Chicken, Celery, Mushroom)
How to Make Homemade Baby Wipes
Homemade Glass Cleaner Recipes – Regular and Super Strength for Spring Cleaning