A question we get a lot, so let's talk about what exactly makes our Solibars different?
Let's start from the beginning, [it's] a very good place to start. The first documented occurrence of liquid shampoo happened in the late 1800s by the Berlin chemist Hans Schwarzkopf (pictured via
Schwarzkopf). His liquid shampoo was a cheap and easy alternative to the expensive oils and harsh soaps of the time. It was a technological advancement that enabled the everyday person to have great hair.
Over the last 100 years, we had become a society addicted to washing our hair. Advancements in formulations meant that certain 'special' ingredients were added to shampoos to ensure that they continued to clean your hair. We know them as surfactants or more commonly referred to as detergents. These surfactants have one job and one job only - to strip your hair of dirt and natural oils, thus enacting the process of cleaning.
Surfactants are strong, and they're very good at their job. They have to be. But what happened as a result was that they also damaged your hair follicles and strands. So, Chemists got smarter, and polymers were added to shampoos to fill in the damaged gaps left by the surfactants.
Before long, silicones were added to shampoos so that the damaging effects of surfactants were continued to be masked. But it wasn't enough. The stripping power of surfactants removed all the hard earned moisture made by the natural oils on your scalp. Which meant there was now more room for more growth in the hair product industry.
Enter, conditioner. The new kid on the block. The miracle product. At last you could have the soft and luscious hair that you've always wanted. The two were inseparable. You could lather up with a surfactant based chemical shampoo and restore the effects of the shampoo with a silicone coated conditioner. The result was conditional on the two interdependent factors, shampoo then conditioner.
So, how do our Solibars fit into this equation?
When deciding on a recipe for our shampoo bars, we went back to our roots. (Pun intended). We wanted to change the way you washed by using natural oils instead of harsh chemical surfactants. Because our Solibars do not contain nasty detergents, they're simply not strong enough to strip your hair of essential natural oils. Which means that over time & after the transition phase (read more) your hair will simply adjust to a new way of cleaning.
Instead of being stripped back by sulphates and left to rebuild natural oils after each wash, your hair's natural oils will do the job they're intended to do by nature - to nourish and protect your scalp. Our Solibars just give you a little extra of the good stuff like olive, castor and coconut oil to help to enhance on the natural oils found at your roots.
And the best part - you'll notice that after washing with a Solibar your hair will feel nourished by the natural ingredients, and your need for a conditioner will diminish.
We do know that sometimes you will need a little extra moisture because your hair is dry; you've used heated instruments, you've been swimming, you've got loads of curls, you're a blonde or just because you like the way it feels. We get you. This is why we recommend continuing with your conditioner (hopefully it's natural) in the interim to get the look that you love. But because our Solibars are full of moisture, we highly suggest keeping it to just the ends only or you might end feeling a little dense or greasy.
The good news - we've got two conditioner bars available for those who need a little extra moisture. One for everyone and one for blondes. Check them out here.
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