Make Your Own Nontoxic Dry Shampoo!

One of my favorite things lately has been replacing beauty products in my bathroom with DIYs that I make myself! I love knowing all of the ingredients that go into the products I use regularly, and I LOVE knowing that these ingredients are nontoxic and super beneficial!

Anyone else a dry shampoo girl?? Having cotton candy colored hair requires some upkeep, and one thing that I can’t do often is shampoo! Otherwise I’ll experience fade-out a lot sooner. Also, let’s just be real, if my hair was in its natural glory, I probably wouldn’t shampoo more often anyway. 😉 I do have thicker, curlier hair, so washing my hair weekly tends to work out nicely, but dry shampoo is definitely a staple to give me that gussied up va-voom that I need!

BONUS: Not only did I put together a wonderful dry shampoo that works beautifully, but I’m also going to share how to adapt it for your hair color! You’re welcome! *sings the song from Moana*
Supplies:
organic arrowroot powder
bentonite clay
organic cocoa powder
lavender, peppermint and rosemary essential oil

Step One: For light colored hair—in a small bowl combine 5 tsp of arrowroot powder, 2 tsp of bentonite clay and a pinch of cocoa powder. For darker hair—combine 3 tsp of arrowroot powder, 3 tsp of cocoa and 2 tsp of bentonite clay. (You can continue to add cocoa powder as needed to match the tone of your hair!)
Step Two: Add your custom dry shampoo mix to a blender and then add 3 drops of lavender, 8 drops of peppermint and 2 drops of rosemary. Blend! You can also just use a spoon to blend your mix if you want—it just takes a little bit longer.

Step Three: Pour your dry shampoo into a small container. I got these tin containers from Amazon and this sassy “Yas Queen” label here.

To Apply: Use a fluffy makeup brush to grab a little bit of product and add to the roots of your hair. Add a little at a time and blend in with your brush. Use your fingers to blend in the rest as needed. Layer your dry shampoo if your hair is a little extra greasy!
Awesome benefits! Arrowroot powder is mattifying and adds volume! Bentonite clay will actually help draw out toxins! Lavender, peppermint and rosemary essential oils help stimulate hair growth and hair health too. Such great ingredients with amazing goodness for your hair!

Enjoy your new fancy hair, girl!

Credits//Author and Photography: Savannah Wallace. Photos edited with A Beautiful Mess actions.
  • Yesss! I was hoping I’d be able to find a recipe like this! There’s been a lot of fuss going around that dry shampoo has been causing hair to fall out..so I’ve sadly been staying away despite my #gymhairdontcare. So glad there’s now an alternative that’s nontoxic and will keep my hair on my head, where it should be.

  • YESSSSSSSSS Thank you for sharing! I liked using dry shampoo but stopped because the natural stuff is SO expensive, and the non-natural stuff sounds just awful….. “do not breathe in, you could die”

    Super excited to try this!

  • I was JUST talking about this on Facebook yesterday – I need me some dry shampoo to get me through the week and I’ve never tried it! The majority recommended drybar but holy $$. PINNING THIS.

  • Checking Amazon for arrow root powder and bentonite clay right this minute! It’ll probably look better and be just as if not more healthy than the plain cornstarch I’ve been using as a sub since I heard about people losing more hair to the canned kind of dry shampoo — thanks!

  • Thanks so much for sharing this recipe! Can’t wait to try! I’m always looking for natural beauty solutions.

  • This sounds like a great mixture of ingredients! I’ve used cocoa powder in the past, as I have darker hair. I always thought the smell of the cocoa powder smelled kinda funky. Adding the essential oils should fix that! Thanks for the recipe!

  • I’m very happy about this. The aerosol dry shampoo i use literally makes my throat hurt all day, even spraying it on another room and thenrunning away. Dry shampoo seems especially toxic and gnarly and shoo I’ve started avoiding using it. I’ll def try this

  • Wow, when I clicked on this post I wasn’t expecting it to be so simple and straight forward but, it is. I really can’t wait to try this out, I love that the ingredients are non toxic and far more healthier to the hair than normal dry shampoo!! Thank you so much for sharing this post 🙂

    Have a great week and weekend!

    Chloe @ https://girllgonerogue.blogspot.co.uk/

  • Hi ! What a wonderful recipe ! I’ll try it very soon… but… clay and (any) metal isn’t a good combo as the contact with the metal “damages” the clay. That’s why I recommand you to not using a blender
    Love from France
    Salomé

  • As a girl with super thin and fair hair, greasiness is a problem. I like to know what’s in the product I’m using–and a DIY is certainly best. Am definitely going to try this!

    Thank you for sharing this recipe, Savannah!

    Jessica
    http://www.wattwherehow.com

  • Thank you for this, just what I’ve been looking for! Do you have any other recs for storage/application? LOVE the idea but me and loose powder can get messy.

  • Thank you soooo much Elsie + Emma! I’m 13 and this method was just so simple and straight-forward! It’s super natural and cute (which is just how I like DIY’s!) Honestly I’ve never tried dry shampoo, but this recipe did just the trick! Plus, it saved me having to go to all that effort to wash my hair for at least another day ??? I love you guys! Thanks heaps!
    Xxx Sum

    • Oh and also I decided to use corn flour/starch instead of the bentonite clay (as we didn’t have any bentonite clay around out house ? Worked like magic! I’ll definitely be recomending this to my DIY loving friends ????
      Xxx

  • This is a great alternative for those who prefer home made dry shampoo! Not only as it is a DIY, it’s also a nontoxic dry shampoo and I can use the scent I want. It’s a must try and recommended as it could also lessen our beauty expense. Great article!

  • Loooove this, but is it possible to replace the essential oils with something that has no smell at all?
    Thanks a million!

  • I just happened upon your blog, but you’ve now made my day with this tutorial! I have daily migraine, and hopping in the shower isn’t always an option. I haven’t found a spray dry shampoo I like (not to mention I cringe at the fact that I’m killing the ozone with an aerosol). I resort to baby powder in a pinch, but migraines come with smell sensitivities. Most essential oils, however, aren’t triggers the way other scents can be. Thanks so much for sharing. I can’t wait to try it!

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