In my pre-travel frenzy of research, I came across this piece of advice from a fellow traveller – Take a shampoo bar with you instead of a regular bottle. They last months and are so small so they save you so much money and space, and you don’t have to worry about replacing it! Well it sounds like a dream doesn’t it?
I think a few places sell them but I was recommended ‘Lush’ so I went to check them out. Well there were so many options, it was hard to not get carried away! Shampoo bars, conditioner bars, shampoo and conditioner bars, bars that smell like lavender, rose, coconut, chocolate, bars for greasy hair, dry hair, bars with petals in them… Ok I did get carried away… I think there’s something about Lush. The intoxicating smell of soap gives you some kind of mad product-buying adrenaline rush…
But anyway I’m getting off track here. I bought a shampoo bar was the conclusion to that story. I had been deliberating it, as it would mean more space for shoes, but wasn’t sure if I wanted to wash my hair with a bar of soap. But after the heady concoction of products in Lush, I just went for it. And even got a cute tin for it to live in.
I took it with me to Asia. I was not impressed.
Here’s why…
- You only get as much lather as a regular bar of soap so washing your hair is hard work.
- In terms of haircare, it’s down there with 2 in 1 shampoo and you really don’t want to spend an unnecessarily long time detangling your hair when you could be scuba diving or exploring a temple instead.
- And the thing that annoyed me most, was that you were meant to wait for it to dry completely before putting it back in its tin and packing it. That’s just not an option when you’re backpacking. Everything’s spontaneous and fun and you can’t be worrying about washing your hair in time for your shampoo bar to dry…
- …So you pack it anyway, and then at your next destination the tin has stuck to the bar and cannot be opened. Not cool.
Honestly, I really wish I liked the shampoo bars because they are super cute and space saving. But they’re just not practical for backpacking in my opinion.
I think I lasted a respectable 6 weeks with the shampoo bar before giving up and buying normal shampoo! So you see I did TRY to be a frugal, space-saving backpacker once upon a time… And it made me become a flash-packing princess that tells you to take anything that makes you happy!
Feel free to try them yourself but I would recommend trying them before you go. But seriously, don’t be swayed by the backpacking nazis, or the Lush sales assistants at that.
If you wouldn’t use a bar of soap to wash your hair at home, you’re not going to want to use it when you’re away. It’s as simple as that.
What one did you try? I bought one this week and have to say I actually thought it was great! I just left it on the side of the bath though so I guess I didnt have to worry about it drying lol
Wow! Your experience is so different than mine. I have used several of the Lush shampoo bars and they foam more than my regular shampoo. Perhaps you aren’t getting your hair sufficiently wet? I make 4-5 swipes across my head and then lather up. I don’t use the little tin as the shampoo seems to stay wet in there and becomes a gooey mess. I just use a small zip-loc instead and don’t bother to seal it. The bar eventually dries out. I use the Jungle conditioner in the same manner.
As an aside, I have used the shampoo bar to wash my clothes too – it works very well. I have used the conditioner bar to shave my legs – it is very slippery. So both bars are dual use for me.
I do agree with your advice about trying things out at home. On the road is *not* the time to figure out that the new thing is not working for you. You don’t have many options for recovery at that point.
Wow mine is clearly contrary to popular opinion! Haha!
Gosh I can’t remember what mine was called but it was the pale green one if that helps?
Good point – I guess it could’ve been because my hair wasn’t wet enough – I was in Thailand and Cambodia at the time when the shower was a cold dribble so it took a lot of effort to put my head underneath it! But my hair was long at the time so I just found that it was hard work to lather up all of my hair and then it was hard to detangle… But that’s just me. I know others swear by them!
I’m glad you had problems with the tin too! The zip lock’s a cool idea, but if it’s open didn’t it get all over your clothes?
I use shampoo bars at home but not the ones from Lush. The shampoo bars from Chagrin Valley Soap and Salve online and I adore them. I go for the Neem soap and for a while stopped conditioning all together, or using only leave-in. I’d give their stuff a good look.
I loooove my Lush shampoo bars! I haven’t had any problems with lathering and it’s the shampoo I use when I’m at home too! yeah I just place it on the tin lid while I’m going other things and then pop it back into the tin. 🙂
I’m with you on this one. The shampoo bar I used from Lush was ok, but my hair definitely had way more tangles (like, comparable to a rats nest) and was way drier. I guiltily tossed it a month or two into my trip and bought a bottle of my preferred shampoo.
I totally agree with you on the soap tin front…they’re a nightmare! After just a week, mine had dents in it from me throwing it on the floor in frustration trying to open it (it worked, but meant closing it again was pretty tricky!) I do think the bars lather up well and they last ages but next time I might go for the ziplock bag route! 🙂
I just bought a solid shampoo and conditioner from Lush for an upcoming trip. I want to try them anyway because I like the idea of not having packaging. I’m going to stay in one place so I don’t have to worry about letting it dry, but I was also thinking that it would be a problem if you were moving around. I haven’t tried it yet, but I know some people cut of little pieces instead of wetting the whole bar, so that might be the perfect solution.
I think the main problem was them not drying and sticking to the tin so you might be ok. Let me know how you get on!
I just bought a solid shampoo and conditioner from Lush for an upcoming trip. I wanted to try them anyway because I like the idea of not having plastic packaging. I’m going to stay in one place so I don’t have to worry about letting it dry, but I was also thinking it would be a problem if you’re moving around. I haven’t tried it yet, but I know some people cut off little pieces instead of wetting the whole bar, so I think that would be the perfect solution.
So glad I’m not the only one! I’m backpacking at the moment and I pre-wash my hair with real shampoo, then I take a tiny piece from the squishy morrass inside a zip lock bag and rub it, and rub it. then over my hair – ad nauseum.
Ahm, just to let you know, the lush shampoo bars are “real shampoo”. They are not soap at all as actual soap contains different ingredients. The bars have the same washing detergent (sodium laureth sulfate) in them like the liquid shampoos you’re used to from the high street, which means they do bubble up pretty much just as much and wash just as well.
Some of the bars are pretty hit and miss, some are superb like the New bar which you can’t go wrong with.
I agree with the tin, it’s not good for travelling if you can’t air dry the shampoo because it will get a bit gooey and stick. I prefer to cut the bar up into smaller chunks and put it into a bigger box. (or store the other half somewhere dry until you use it)
If you got trouble with tangly hair, honestly, you got the wrong shampoo for you.
I’d recommend natural bars anyway as the sulfate based detergent dries your hair and scalp and you will need a conditioner when washing with them.
Just stumbled across this article whilst looking for tins for my own shampoo bars.
THANK YOU! Nothing worse than people describing shampoo bars as soap! Soap is a totally different thing (with a much higher pH), and syndet shampoo bars, like those from Lush, aren’t that. For a starter they don’t contain lye and haven’t gone through saponification (which is what makes them ‘soap’).
Hey- I keep my lush shampoo bar in a “hubba bubba tape” case.
You know the plastic circle that opens in half and there is a super long roll of chewing gum in it?
It works a treat, it was practically made for a round lush shampoo bar.
Sheer brillance! Great tip! x
Definitely sounds like you use them incorrectly. Just because somethings doesn’t lather doesn’t mean it’s not doing th job. We are so used to suds and bubbles that if a produst it’s sudsy we feel like its not working. Also pat it dry with a towel to prevent it from sticking. I traveled for years with shampoo bars and never had a problem?
Hey! I completely understand that not all products lather but it didn’t actually do the job either, completely tangling my hair. And of course I tried to pat dry the shampoo bar but it still stuck. Since this review I’ve actually read countless reviews online that say the same thing about it sticking in the tin. It seems the only way around it is to allow it dry completely before packing it away. Which isn’t always possible with spontaneous travel! Appreciate your view nonetheless, just wasn’t the same as mine. Safe travels x
If you don’t have time to let it dry you just need to wrap in a bit of greaseproof paper before you put it in the tin and then it won’t stick. Problem solved! You can keep reusing the same piece of paper too. I love shampoo bars – for home or travel. Haven’t use liquid shampoo in years. Sounds like the one you tried wasn’t right for your hair type.
I’m a Zoologist, on top of surfing and scuba diving (sometimes they coincide) in my spare time, which can mean a lot of traveling and I’ve honestly never had a problem with the shampoo bars before. D: I’m really sorry you had such a rough go with it on your trip. They can be pretty nifty once you get the hang of it. I actually switched over because they’re small and don’t leak.
I’d definitely recommend giving them a second chance. Try each one out before you leave next time. Lush usually offers samples of their products, including hair care. I tend to use the “honey I washed my hair” bar at home when I want to be lazy. It actually does well enough that I personally don’t even need conditioner, but I’m also a guy so my hair is super short at the moment.
As for the lack of lathering… was the water hard? Lush bars are supposed to lather, but the company does say they might not lather as well in hard water. When I shower at the beach the water can be pretty hard so my bar won’t lather as much and it’s worse if there’s not a lot of water coming out of the shower head too. I’ve had better luck using the “seanik” bar at the beach than the others, but it has a little salt so that may be why.
A little trick I used with my tin was to take a thick sewing needle (like for leather work) and poke a few holes in the top. (heat up the needle if it’s tough) I have roughly three around the logo and it helps the bar dry out if it’s still a little wet when I put it in. I also carry around a wash rag when I travel, it looks like a mitten, and pat the bar dry just before I put it in. (wring it out as best you can though) I’ve never had them stick since I started doing that. If that still doesn’t work than you could try buying a little zippered/drawstring pouch to carry with you. My ex did that and it worked really well. They air out enough that the bar will dry (cloth is porous) and it won’t risk falling out like with a zippy bag. Plus they’re harder to lose than a zippy bag, which means less risk to the local environment.
Sorry for the long post! I wasn’t sure how to make it any shorter. :’D Good luck if you try it all out again. Finding the right soap can be a huge pain for anyone.
Hey I’m sorry that you didn’t get along with Lush’s bars whilst travelling. We use a competitor’s. The Solid Bar Company’s, and have never had any problems with their shampoo bars (definitely NOT soap bars!) and Eddie (my ‘worse’ half 🙂 ) love’s to use the conditioner bar to shave with – when used on the hair you can leave it in or wash out as you feel like. We find them to be great space and weight savers but more importantly they don’t come all packaged in plastic and are 100% vegan so suit us down to the ground! And as someone else has mentioned, we’ve also tried the ‘hubba hubba tape’ case – it works! Best of luck and enjoy your travels!!!
I’ve just bought the shampoo bar and a bar conditioner as I am trying to reduce my plastic waste, but so far my hair which is very thick, and dry, has needed washing alt days as it looks and feels horrible. Dull and greasy looking, maybe I don’t need the conditioner, maybe I’ve got the wrong type?
Any tips?
I’m afraid this was also my experience, which is why I gave up on them. I think reducing your plastic waste is definitely the appeal these days, so maybe try another brand/type?
If you line the tin with grease-proof baking paper, shampoo barx are likely to stick and easier to remove.
Anyway, I’ve done lush and find the shampoo bars too drying on my scalp. A more natural shampoo soap bar is my new favourite shampoo, wrapped in a small hand towel for storage.
Or use mesh soap storage bag for storage. Dry the soap by hanging the bag in the air, like outside your travel back pack when on-the-go.
When using the mesh soap bag when washing, it’ll also help to build up a good lather.
It took me a little while to love shampoo bars, but now I wouldn’t go back to bottle shampoo. I find it easier to wet my hair through and lather in my hands, then apply. Also with the tin, try cutting out a circle of greaseproof/baking paper and popping in the top & bottom – this stops it sticking to the inside.
I started with the shampoo bar immediately after 9-11 and the airlines were not allowing liquids of ANY kind to fly. I found them to be AMAZING and never had an issue with the lid being stuck on the tin. Two suggestions for you: 1. If you cannot let the bar dry, cut a small piece of green “Scotchbrite” and place it in the tin. It lifts the bar off of the bottom of the tin and prevents it from sitting in moisture in case you need to pack it straightaway. 2. Try a cork soap container – they don’t stick shut and help to dry the shampoo bar. As for the lathering, chances are, when backpacking, you are using EXTREMELY hard water. If you’re hung on loads of lather, then a liquid shampoo might be better for you.
I actually prefer them. But, totally get that its not everyone’s preference. At least you gave it a shot!