There’s a quiet joy in making things from scratch—especially when those things care for our bodies, our rhythms, and our routines. But here’s something I’ve come to appreciate even more: we don’t have to make everything up ourselves.
Sometimes, the best recipes come from someone else’s hard work. And when we find something that works, we can gently adapt it—tweak it, stir it, thicken it—to fit our needs. That’s what I did with this lovely Rosemary and Mint Shampoo, originally found on Herbco.com, and now it’s a staple in my herbal home care routine.
🌱 Why Rosemary & Mint?
These two herbs are more than just fragrant additions to the garden—they’re herbal powerhouses for hair and scalp health.
- Rosemary is known to support circulation to the scalp, reduce dandruff, and promote hair strength.
- Peppermint has a cooling, tingling effect that can help reduce itchiness and stimulate hair follicles.
Together, they make for a fresh, invigorating shampoo that’s especially welcome in the warmer months or after a long day in the garden.
My Version of the Shampoo Recipe
I followed the original Herbco.com recipe with one small but meaningful tweak: I added ¼ teaspoon of xanthan gum. It thickens the texture, making the shampoo feel closer to what you’d expect from a store-bought version—without compromising any of the natural goodness.
I’m not trying to take away from their business, so I’ll let you get the exact recipe for their site as I’ve linked it above. Some other notes:
- I put the mixture in an old pump style shampoo bottle so that I am reusing and guests never know the difference!
- I make new batches every 2 -3 weeks, which means I never double the recipe. As there are no preservatives in the recipe, I don’t want it to go bad on me.
- We find this is best for straight, non textured hair. I’m the only one in my house with this type of hair, so we’ve developed other formulas on our own for other types of hair. We’ll share those too.
🌿 Tip: Give the bottle a gentle shake before each use. Since it’s all natural, some settling may occur.
Borrowed Wisdom is Still Wisdom
There’s this pressure sometimes—to invent, to be original, to make it all ourselves from the ground up. But truly, we’re part of a long tradition of borrowing, blending, and evolving. Herbalism especially is rooted in shared knowledge.
So if you find a recipe online that lights you up, use it. Tweak it. Love it. Credit where credit is due—and joy where joy is found. That’s what we hope you’ll do with our recipes too.
That’s how we build a more generous, grounded way of doing things.
—
Jennifer at Sage + Seed