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How do I choose my solid shampoo?

How do I transition from liquid to solid shampoo? Why use solid shampoo? What solid shampoo should I choose? We’ll answer all your questions in this article!

Let’s start with the basics:

What is solid shampoo?


Solid shampoo comes in a wide variety of shapes that might include that of a pebble, a bread roll, or a tube – and there are lots of different colours and preparations too. Unlike liquid shampoo, solid shampoo is hard and dry and its formula contains no water. It is used just like conventional shampoo, and therefore needs water to be added for it to foam.

Solid shampoo works just like liquid shampoo: it cleans the scalp gently and effectively.

Even so, there are many differences in the way shampoos are formulated and in the ingredients used that impact directly on its effectiveness and benefits. Generally speaking, you can be confident that solid shampoo blocks have a simpler composition, and a limited number of ingredients.

Why use solid shampoo? What are the benefits of using solid shampoo?

First, it is worth knowing that opting for a solid shampoo means that you have opted for a product that is environmentally friendly, easy to use, and economical.

Solid shampoo is also lighter and easier to transport when you’re travelling for work or for leisure. No more leaky products in your wash bag! Our solid Hydraboost shampoo travel kit variant will become a must-have for item, so you can take you solid shampoo anywhere and everywhere.

Environmentally friendly

Certain solid shampoo blocks are made primarily of natural or organically grown ingredients, and these are, of course, good for your hair and good for the planet. Solid shampoo also reduces plastic waste as the blocks are very often sold loose, or with recycled and recyclable packaging.

Here at ZiZAN!A, our Hydraboost Hair Revival solid shampoo comes with just a recycled and recyclable cardboard pouch – no plastic wrapping.    

Its formula is vegan and it contains no water or preservatives, meaning that the solid shampoo has a much higher concentration of active ingredients.

What’s more, our solid shampoo is made of a plant-based flax flower grown and enhanced at our organic gardens at Le Valais that has also been Cosmos Organic certificated. It also contains sweet almond, shea butter, and castor oil. 


    Hydraboost Shampoo Bar

Practical

Solid shampoo is compact, so it’s handy to use and easy to carry around. It’s also simple to apply – rub onto the hair using a circular motion.

A little extra bonus for our solid shampoo is that its hexagonal shape makes it easy to hold in the hand, and it’s the perfect shape for hanging up in the shower

Tip: add a little cotton rope to the soap

Economical

One of the many benefits of using solid shampoo is that it is cheaper than liquid shampoo, as it lasts longer.

A 90g to 100g solid shampoo block can be used for 60 to 80 hair washes on average - the equivalent to two 200ml bottles of standard shampoo, on average. 

 

Which solid shampoo should I use? What about different hair types, and different compositions? 

Let’s get down to business!

When you’re deciding which solid shampoo to use, it’s important to bear in mind a few things -  including your hair type, and the shampoo’s composition.

Define your hair type

First of all, you need to know your hair type – you should, of course, be opting for specific ingredients that correspond to your hair type.

Let’s take a quick look at the hair types out there:

Normal

    ● You have hair that is naturally shiny

    ● You only wash it every 2 or 3 days

    ● Your hair is soft to the touch

Lucky you! Your hair is ‘normal’, so all you need to do is to opt for a gentle pH-neutral solid shampoo. As it happens, our Hydraboost solid shampoo is pH-neutral to the scalp and has a bio-degradable base composition.

Our formula is carefully designed for normal hair, though it is also great on all hair types. If you have curly or frizzy hair, we suggest that you apply an oil mask before using our solid shampoo.

Dry hair

    ● Your hair is brittle and fragile

    ● Your hair is difficult to untangle 

Your hair needs some hydration – sorry! Go for solid shampoo with a shea butter or plant oil base such as: coconut oil, Argan oil, or almond oil. Those ingredients are great for nourishing and softening dry hair.

Our Hydraboost solid shampoo contains gentle almond oil and shea butter, which are vital for this kind of hair. 


Greasy hair

    ● Your hair gets greasy quickly

    ● You feel like it needs to be washed all the time

You produce a lot of serum! There are all kinds of reasons for that, and they might include stress, hormones, or pollution. Opt for a natural and gentle shampoo, and most importantly space out your hair washes. As it happens, our solid Hydraboost shampoo is gentle, and contains 67% natural ingredients - with the remaining 33% being 4 gentle washing agents that clean the hair to remove dirt and impurities. 

Composition

Many different ingredients are used in solid shampoos – the top one to consider is surfactants. In some formulations, the surfactants can be aggressive, and the same goes for sulphates that are known to irritate the scalp.

What are surfactants?

These are substances that give cleaning power to products, and when used in shampoo they disperse the fatty element into the water to help clean the scalp. They are found in liquid and solid shampoo as well as in shower gels, body soaps, and dishwashing products.

There are 4 families of surfactants:

    - Cationic surfactants: these are the most irritating and are not used in cosmetics, only in dishwashing detergent products.

    - Anionic surfactants: these are often used in cosmetics as they have great foaming and cleaning capabilities. They are better-tolerated than cationic surfactants but are still a bit irritating, so they are best used in rinse-off products (for example: sulphate, isethionate) 

    - Non-ionic surfactants: these are used for organic cosmetics as they are gentle and can be of a natural origin. Our Hydraboost solid shampoo contains Coco Glucoside that is made from coconut sugar, and it cleans the scalp gently. It also contains Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate – a really gentle anionic surfactant that doesn’t irritate the skin or eyes. 

    - Amphoteric surfactants: these are the gentlest surfactants but they don’t foam much. They tend to be used for baby applications (an example is betaine). Our solid Hydraboost shampoo contains cocamidopropyl betaine – truly the ultimate gentle cleaner!

As you can see, we have elected to only use non-irritating surfactants. Our Hydraboost contains no sulphates, and will clean your scalp really gently without irritating it.

Opt for a formula that contains butters and vegetable oils – look out for them in the list of ingredients shown on your solid shampoo! Quick tip: the higher up the list, the more there is of it.

How do I use solid shampoo?


It’s really easy to use:

    1. First, wet your hair

    2. Delicately apply the shampoo onto the scalp, or put on your hands and rub them together

    3. Massage until you get a good foam

    4. Rinse thoroughly

After use, put the shampoo in a soap dish so that it dries in the open air - or hang it up in your shower using a piece of rope. A great thing about Hydraboost is that its octagonal hollowed shape makes the solid shampoo really ergonomic – it’s easy to hold and its shape works round the contours of the head, making it easy to apply. 

The shampoo bar is pH-neutral on the scalp

What about our Hair Revival Hydraboost solid shampoo? 

Our Hair Revival Hydraboost solid shampoo is vegan, first of all, and it also gives your hair a great clean thanks to the synergy of the 4 very well-tolerated cleaning agents.

It is made of plant-origin butters and oils that protect, nourish, and strengthen your hair. 

Hydraboost contains 4 key ingredients that deliver great hydration and are highly effective:

Extract of organic flax flower

Gathered from our gardens and bearing the Cosmos Organic label, this plant is acclaimed for the way it nourishes, strengthens and protects the hair from external nuisances

Shea butter

This hydrates and softens the hair

Sweet almond

Acclaimed for its softening and moisturising properties, it also stops the hair drying out as well as revitalising the scalp

Castor (or ricin) oil

This nurtures and encourages healthy hair growth and is known for being a great hair tonic that also accelerates hair growth.

What you said about Hydraboost solid shampoo

 
 

Alexandra has long, fine hair and uses our Hydraboost Hair Revival shampoo


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"I find that it untangles hair as well"
Kelly
"You love it the moment you start using it"
Philippe
“I have been using this shampoo for a year and I’m delighted – it’s really easy to switch from liquid to solid shampoo with such a great product.” 
Amarie
“I ordered it recently and I love it! It’s incredible and I’m amazed, it’s the first time I tried out a solid product and I am won over! It smells great too”
Olivia
“I have to say I again – it’s just unbelievable” 
Aurélie
“I love your shampoo” 
Lara

Conclusion

Wave bye-bye to liquid shampoo and to bottles that clutter up the bathroom. Now, you know all you need to know to choose your favourite solid shampoo!

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