DIY Dry Shampoo Recipe (2 All-Natural Ingredients)
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Jump to Recipe Watch VideoHomemade DIY Dry Shampoo recipe is easy, takes about 5 minutes to make, and has just two ingredients. It’s also vegan and gluten free, making it a great natural hair care option!
I’ve included 3 recipes below for light hair, medium hair, and dark/black hair so you can find the best recipe to match your coloring.
This easy homemade dry shampoo lifts your hair and eliminates oil from the roots – I use this every single week. It’s made with simple ingredients (which you may already have on hand). So grab a jar and get mixing!
This homemade dry shampoo recipe has been the most helpful beauty product for me this past year. With more video meetings, being on camera, and not wanting to wash my hair too much, I’ve been using this dry shampoo every week. It’s great on greasy hair especially at the roots.
I used to buy expensive commercial dry shampoos in aerosol cans, but I found that I went through the spray so quickly. The cost adds up, and who knows what kinds of harmful chemicals are in the spray. We don’t love having aerosols around the house, so I made this DIY recipe as a better way to refresh my hair and use natural products bathroom.
This Dry Shampoo Recipe Is
- Easy to Make & Use
- Cost Effective
- Great for Removing Oils out of your Hair
- Amazing smelling
- Hair Stylist approved (I told my hair dresser, and he loved this idea!)
With just 2 ingredients this dry shampoo is quick to make a batch of and keep in your bathroom for hair emergencies. Is especially perfect for the weekends when I’ve been doing a ton of yard/wood work and then have to grab a few things at the store (and want to run out without taking the time to wash my hair).
What Is Dry Shampoo?
Dry shampoo is a powder-based or sometimes aerosol-based product you can use instead of traditional wet shampoos to keep your hair looking clean and fresh. It’s meant to be used outside of the shower, so no water is needed.
Using dry shampoo is great for a quick hair refresh, if you don’t want to completely strip your hair of excess oil and use regular shampoo. Apply a small amount to the roots of your hair with a makeup brush. It can lift, gives volume, and is great for styling on the go.
This simple recipe works great on fine hair (like mine), medium course hair, or thick hair.
What’s In Homemade Dry Shampoo Powder?
- Corn Starch –the main ingredient of this recipe. absorbs all the oil in our hair, leaving a soft silky finish. I keep corn starch in my pantry because it’s my secret ingredient for the crispiest oven baked fries. I like to use a good corn starch just to keep the chemicals out of my face/hair…. so treat yo self and your hair.
- Unsweetened Cacao Powder or cocoa powder – I also like to use organic cacao powder for the purest ingredients for my natural beauty products. The cacao gives a darker color to the dry shampoo, which is perfect for darker hair. If you have blonde hair, you can skip the cacao powder and just use the corn starch… but for all of us brunettes, or anyone who has black hair, red hair, or grey hair, I’d recommend using a little cacao to match your color. It’s great for light or dark hair colors.
- Cocoa powder works just as well, but make sure you use an unsweetened version.
Equipment You’ll Need
- Latch Jars for Storage – I love these little latch jars, which make it really easy to apply the dry shampoo. You can use any clean container you have on hand, I like these little airtight jars.
- Large Makeup Brush – I like to use an old fluffy makeup brush, specifically a powder brush from this set to apply the dry shampoo directly into my roots. You can grab a pinch with your hands and apply it to your hair, but I found that was too messy and I kept getting dry shampoo on my work blouses. So I switched to a large powder brush and have been keeping my shirts clean!
Since I have thin medium brown hair, I use an equal amount of cornstarch or arrowroot powder and cacao. If you have lighter hair, then use less cacao for a lighter color shampoo. Also, note that this smells amazing. Your hair will smell like dessert, so be prepared. If you want to a few drops of your favorite essential oil (like tea tree or peppermint) that adds a nice scent too.
How to Make This Recipe
This recipe is super simple to make, and is ready in about 1 minute.
- To a clean, small jar (you can use a mason jar or an empty spice shaker), add the corn starch or arrowroot powder, and the cacao or cocoa powder. Mix well to combine.
- Apply or sprinkle to oily roots or other greasy parts of hair and work into the roots with your fingers by using a clean makeup brush.
- Allow the shampoo to sit in your hair for 2-3 minutes, then and brush hair normally.
How Do I Use Dry Shampoo?
You can use an empty spice jar to make this, and sprinkle it on your hair and work it in with your fingers. I use an old make up brush like this one, to apply it from the jar right onto my roots. I then work it in a bit with my fingers, and brush it out after a few minutes.
The result? Super full and fluffy hair every time. My hair is so fine, but right after I brush out the shampoo it’s full and voluminous.
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If you made this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you!
DIY Dry Shampoo (2 Ingredients)
Equipment
- 1 4 or 5 ounce mason jar see note below
- 1 powder make-up brush note below!
Ingredients
For Light/Blonde Hair
- 3.5 tablespoons corn starch
- .5 tablespoon unsweetened cacao powder
For Medium/Brown Hair
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- 2 tbsp unsweetened cacao powder
For Dark Hair
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cacao powder
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
Instructions
- Mix ingredients into a small jar. I like using little latch mason jars, but you can use regular mason jars or even an empty spice shaker.
- Apply with a brush, or sprinkle to oily parts of hair and work into the roots with your fingers. Wait a few minutes then and brush hair normally.
Video
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Really easy to make and use
What about really dark brown hair? I mixed it as written but it’s still noticeably lighter than my hair color. Anything darker than cocoa powder that could work in this context?
Haven’t used this recipe before but I was wondering, because I’m in the UK, would I be able to use cornflour instead of cornstarch? (I can’t buy cornstarch here)
Thank you for this recipe! I have fine hair and a lot of it. I have been trying to train my hair for 3 months by washing every other day and on my non wash days my roots look like week old spaghetti. My stylist mentioned looking for a natural dry shampoo and I stumbled across your article. I mixed it up and used this morning and my hair looks amazing!!! I cannot believe the grease literally disappeared immediately. I also am transitioning from blonde to my natural color of light brown and so I used the 2/2 mixture. I am so happy I do not have to go back to washing daily as I did not want to use store bought dry shampoo and damage my roots by using it. I cannot thank you enough for this receipt and will be sharing it with everyone ❤️
This works awesome!!! Thanks for the cheap but easy recipe!
Worked like a charm! I did 2 TBS corn starch to 1 TBS cocoa. Using an old make up brush was the perfect way to apply.
This works great , especially on my daughter’s wavy brown hair. Smells nice, too.
So glad you and your daughter enjoy it – it’s a favorite at our home as well 🙂
It’s my hair wash day and feeling lazy but ran out of my regular dry shampoo. This worked like a charm! Thank you!
This is awesome! I’ve been trying to stay away from using products in aerosol cans so I’ll have to try this out!
Awesome! It works so well too – does the job just as well as the commercial stuff 🙂