[Csears]

ketchito said:

@Csears If you’re using cationic guar, then it needs an acid pH to completely swell….but decyl glucoside actually makes pH more basic, and that might explain the clumpping. I’d add cationig guar at the beginning, and after some mixing, add either citric acid or edta (they both help bringing pH down). This will help cationig guar to swell properly. Then, you can add your surfactants.

@Camel I don’t think it’s always a waste to include fatty alcohol (or other type of oils) to cleansers. There are actually few nice patents (and research) from P&G and L’oreal using this type of technology. Sometimes, a cleanser is not just a cleanser. 

Thank you so much! This is very helpful. I will definitely be giving this a try. I do want to retain some oils because all of the commercial products that I have used contain some oils in the shampoo. 

[Csears]

Syl said:

@Csears, reducing the thickeners like the clay will help. Keep in mind that you need to adjust the PH to 5, I also recommend a chelator. Last, silicone is not natural, but I read that it performs well for Afro-textured hair.  

Thank you. I used apple cider vinegar to adjust the ph in my trials. But I will be purchasing some citric acid. Thank you so much for your suggestions. 

[Csears]

Camel said:

Here’s my opinion:

Remove the oils and clay from the formula. The job of a shampoo is to remove oil and dirt from the scalp and adding oils to a shampoo will only reduce the efficacy of the surfactants. 

Remove the glycerin, panthenol, and oat protein. These will simply be washed off and rinsed down the drain. They will not have an effect on your hair in a shampoo.

Remove the cetearyl and cetyl alcohols. They are making your shampoo too thick and are also not necessary in a shampoo. 

Your revised formula would look something like this:

• Water - 68%
• Decyl Glucoside - 20% (might consider a better option)
• Coco Betaine - 10%
• Optiphen - 1%
• Guar Gum - 0.5%
• Tea Tree - 0.25%
• Lemongrass - 0.25%

Active Surfactant Matter: around 13.6 

Also, when sharing your formula, I recommend using percentages, rather than grams. 🙂

If you want to add a conditioning element to your shampoo, consider polyquaternium-10 at 0.5%.

I also recommend swapping out decyl glucoside for a different (perhaps anionic) surfactant, as I personally did not like using it in my experiments. See how you like it, first. 

Thank you so much for your response. I will try these suggestions. ????

[Csears]

SashaHayz said:

I’m thinking the cetearyl alcohol and cetyl alcohol may be whats making your product super thick. With only 1.5 % oils do you need that much emulsifier / stabilizer ? You can also try dropping the guar gum to 0.3 % … Also what is your process for incorporating the guar gum?  

Hi! Thanks so much for responding! I mixed the guar gum with the glycerine before adding it to the water phase. 

[Csears]

Hi! Thanks so much for responding! I mixed the guar gun with the glycerine before adding it to the water phase.