How to make dry shampoo (that's also body, baby and shoe powder)

Arrowroot powder is fine in texture and white in colour and comes from the manioc plant. (Credit: Forest and Kim Starr via Flickr)

Before you could buy dry shampoo, many people used baby powder. But that contains talc and fragrance...

Parfum (a.k.a. fragrance) is one of our Dirty Dozen ingredients to avoid. It's any mixture of smelly ingredients used in a variety of cosmetics. And they stink!

Some fragrance ingredients trigger allergies and asthma.
Some link to cancer and neurotoxicity.
Some harm fish and other wildlife.

Talc is a made of magnesium, silicon, and oxygen. Once it also contained asbestos! It has two human health concerns:

Respiratory toxicity: The reason you DON'T sprinkle baby powder on infants. Physicians sounded an alarm over inhalation risks and recommend against it.
Cancer: A Missouri jury awarded US$72 million in damages to the family of a woman who died of ovarian cancer after decades of using talc-based powder.

The good news? You don't need either!

Dry shampoo recipe

This recipe has at least four uses. It absorbs excess moisture, prevents chaffing and soothes skin. (For external use only. Avoid inhaling.)

Time needed: five minutes

Shelf life: approximately six months

62.5 ml (1/4 cup) cornstarch

62.5 ml (1/4 cup) arrowroot powder

15 ml (1 Tbsp) white clay (found at health food stores)

Optional: 6 drops of essential oils

For dry shampoo: Try lavender, rosemary or ylang ylang essential oils. Brunettes can add 5 ml (1 tsp) fair trade organic cocoa powder.
For baby powder: Add 3 drops of sweet orange, 2 drops of ylang ylang and 1 drop of geranium essential oil.
For athletic gear: Try antibacterial and antifungal essential oils such as tea tree, lemongrass or eucalyptus.

Mix ingredients together. Store in an air-tight container.

How to apply:


Dry shampoo: If you're keen to shampoo less, apply mixture to oily parts of your scalp with an old makeup brush. Comb through.
Body powder: Sprinkle between toes and under arms.
For babies: Ingredients are non-toxic and food grade. To avoid risk of inhalation, dab on babies, do not sprinkle. Note: Cloth diapers made from organic cotton, hemp or wool allow the skin to breathe. This reduces the need for creams, salves, etc. Plastic disposables are more likely to cause diaper rash.
Athletic gear: Add to running shoes, hockey gloves, etc.

What will you try this recipe? Share your review in the comments below.

Sincerely,

Lindsay Coulter, a fellow Queen of Green

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