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Rub a dub dub

This week I’ve been focusing on bathroom products.

It’s not until I really looked around my bathroom that I realised just how much plastic packaging there was. Shower gel, shampoo, toothpaste, mouthwash, even my razor. This was going to be a big challenge.

Hand soap was an easy switch with plenty of solid bars available. But did you know, you can also get solid shampoo bars? I thought I’d give a few a try and see which came out tops.

I found them all easy to use and I think they’re something kids would enjoy too. They’re fun, colourful and they all smelt great. Also perfect for travelling, and no spillage!

1. Lush Godiva Shampoo Bar - 4/5

Godiva soap

This was a nice, easy high street option. Buying it from the store also meant I could save on unwanted packaging and postage cost.

There were plenty of choices at Lush so I went for Godiva which had a wonderful floral smell of jasmine. At £7.50 a bar it’s a pricey purchase, but one bar of solid shampoo should last as long as three bottles of liquid shampoo so you’re getting your monies worth.

It’s easy to use and you don’t need much, just three strokes through wet hair is enough. It promises to condition and soften the hair although I found I still had to use a little conditioner to help tease the knots. I have previously coloured my hair though so it may work better on fresh ends.

Overall it’s great, easy to use, smells lovely, but just doesn’t condition as I’d like it to. I want to go plastic-free but I also don’t want to compromise on having shiny locks…

2. Printed Peanut Solid Shampoo Bar - 3/5

Peanut soap

I went for the lavender and rose geranium shampoo bar which cost £5.95 plus 95p postage. Very reasonable. Printed Peanut is a company from Yorkshire who produce mainly prints and illustrations with the aim of using eco-friendly materials wherever possible.

When this one arrived through the post I was very excited. The packaging is beautiful and made from 100% recycled paper. The only problem was it arrived in a plastic postage bag, but I can re-use this. I’m sure if you got in touch an alternative could be provided.

Once the packaging was off, the bar smelt great. Lots of rose, not so much lavender. Following the instructions it said to rub between your hands and then massage your soapy fingers through your hair. It went on nicely, but once washed off felt quite squeaky clean. I needed a good amount of conditioner, it seemed to dry out my hair quite a lot. The sweet smell also faded and left a classic soap bar scent.

So top marks for appearance, it would make a great gift, but I just don’t think it did the job. Might work better for different hair types - thick or curly hair.

3. Lush Sugar Daddy-O - 5/5

Conditioner bar

To compliment my other shampoo bar bought earlier in the month, I decided to give a solid conditioner a go as I was still using a small amount of conditioner with my current shampoo bar. I went for Sugar Daddy-O at £6.75, again from Lush.

It smelt like parma violets and was easy to use. Similar to the Printed Peanut shampoo, you rub it through wet hands before applying to your hair. It says a little goes a long way but I used quite a bit extra on my ends.

So pleased I found this as my hair has got it’s shine back. It’s definitely something I would continue to buy, and I know it’s going to last me. The only thing I would recommend, with all of these bars, is to put them on a dish or in a pot. Left in the shower then can start melting away, and on the side of the bath can leave a difficult stain.

I have seen a few other alternatives available to buy online (see links below) but if you can buy from your local high street retailer and not fork our for postage then why not!

Now to invest in a nice ceramic soap dish or two...

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