In the hipster household, we value sustainability and are acutely aware of the issue of single use plastic packaging.  While trying to help combat those evils, I decided to try a shampoo bar for the first time.

They are readily available from many companies now. However, as someone who diligently reads ingredients labels, possibly bordering on obsessively, I was looking for certain elements. I found them in Viori’s shampoo bar. Their product are centered around fermented rice water, and part of the proceeds support the Red Yao communities in China who have been using fermented rice water for centuries. I purchased both the shampoo and conditioner bars. 

First use:

I decided for my first wash to boldly not look up any directions and see if it was just intuitive. It is definitely a learning curve with the shampoo. I accidentally used more than I needed to, but it was definitely user error. There was not a lot of lather in my hands, but a surprising amount in my hair. My hair is wavy, very fine, and did not hold up as well with the conditioner. The ingredients in the conditioner, while definitely moisturizing, were a bit too heavy for my hair texture. Post shower, my roots felt very clean, and the ends were conditioned, but I couldn’t get my waves to show as much as they did with my normal wash routine.

Second use:

This time in order to get best results, I read the instructions. For the shampoo they suggested to use the bar to lather in my hands and then apply it to my hair. This definitely uses less product, but took a lot more finagling to get it in the right spots. The conditioner was suggested to apply the bar directly to the hair and run it through. This worked, but my hair was still left feeling heavy.

Here are my trial photos, the bottom is my old hair routine and the top is the routine with the shampoo bar after a few uses. For both, I did the same post shower care of drying in a microfiber towel, putting in a conditioning heat protectant, and doing a rough dry with my hair dryer. It looks silkier with the new routine, but looses some of the body l typically have. 

Final thoughts on the Shampoo and Conditioner Bars:

I would count this experiment as a success. My final routine for the shampoo bar is running through my roots and using that to create the lather for the first wash, and using hand lather for the second. It is really nice to have a solid bar to place the product, it makes it much more exact so I can do things like making sure the roots of the back of my head get the correct amount of shampoo. The conditioner didn’t stay as my routine conditioner, it would be great for someone with thicker hair and I do use it for my ends when they are feeling extra dry.

Shortly after this I bleached and coloured all my hair, and the conditioner bar is great for the fried tips, but I’m still using my regular colour safe conditioner on the mid length. I did notice that the shampoo bar isn’t colour safe. In my experience it fades colours just as fast as my non-colour safe shampoos. I definitely use it when I’m not feeling like I need the colour to stay the exact same shade. I use non-permanent hair dyes, which tend to be more sensitive. In all honestly the shampoo bar would be my only shampoo if I wasn’t on my current hair journey.

It does a fantastic job cleaning, is also amazing for travel, and would last 6 months with consistent use. That is much longer than regular bottle shampoo that only lasts about 3 months. So if you are interested in trying something new, green, and cost efficient I would highly suggest trying a shampoo bar of your own. Also if you like heavier conditioner, try that as well, it definitely does its job. 

Looking for more bath content? Check out our Escape and Unwind in the Comfort of Your Home Article to get our hipster tips to change your home bath into a spa.