Today we’re making a lovely solid conditioner bar starring exotic passionfruit oil and richly conditioning BTMS-25! When you run this solid bar over wet hair, it transforms into creamy, slippy hair conditionerâleaving your hair soft and silky, taming flyaways and improving comb-through. It’s quite simple to make, and one bar can last up to a year depending on how often you use it!
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The biggest difference between this conditioner bar and other conditioner bar formulations I’ve shared in the past is that it uses solely BTMS-25 as its solid conditioning ingredient. I’ve heard from lots of readers and viewers that they can only get BTMS-25 where they live, so this formulation is accessible to those people!
BTMS-25 contains 25% Behentrimonium Methosulfate (the active conditioning ingredient), while the other 75% is cetearyl alcohol. In contrast, BTMS-50 contains 50% Behentrimonium Methosulfate, with the remaining 50% comprised of cetyl alcohol and butylene glycol. That means BTMS-25 contains half of the active ingredient, but far more thickening/hardening ingredients. That means if you replace BTMS-50 with BTMS-25 in an emulsion, the BTMS-25 version will be thicker, but less conditioning.
This blue silicone mould is actually one half of a Death Star 😂 It’s perfect for 30â40g conditioner bars!
This conditioner bar formula (and last year’s Cranberry Orange Conditioner Bar) grew out of a sample formulation from Dow for a âZen Conditioner Barâ that I found on UL Prospector. I’ve been riffing on that formulation since summer 2019, and at this point, the only thing I haven’t changed at some point is the Behentrimonium Methosulfate concentration (15%)âthough I’m sure that’ll happen soon! One thing I really like about this formulation is the inclusion of a small amount of water. I use a lot less than the sample formulation does, but it’s still enough to dissolve water-soluble solids like panthenol powder and prevent that funny wavy top completely anhydrous conditioner bars develop as they cool.
In addition to 60% BTMS-25, these conditioner bars also include some luxurious passionfruit oil and virgin coconut oil. You’ll also find another 17% cetearyl alcohol for further hardening. I find one of the biggest characteristics a conditioner bar needs to nail is the melting point; it needs to be hard enough to survive being rubbed on heads on dropped in the shower, but it also needs to melt (just enough) when rubbed on wet skin and hair. Too hard, and it’s like running an eraser over your hair. Too soft, and you get way too much product in your hair, the bar breaks down far too quickly, and you might get a “splat” instead of a “thunk” when you inevitably drop it!
For scent, I’m using the ultra-juicy passionfruit natural fragrance oil from Essential Wholesale, but you could easily use any sort of fragrance or essential oil you love! You could also leave the bar unscented if you prefer; simply replace the fragrance oil with more water or passionfruit oil.
The finished conditioner bar is beautiful; it easily deposits an even coating of conditioner over hair (and skin, if desired), leaving it feeling richly conditioned and easy to comb through. Shelf-life wise, I’ve had a few of last summer’s experiments living in my shower for close to a year now, and they’re all doing brilliantly. Enjoy!
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Passionfruit Coconut Conditioner Bar
Heated phase
30g | 60% BTMS-25 (USA / Canada / UK)
8.5g | 17% cetearyl alcohol (USA / Canada)
4.5g | 9% passionfruit oil
2g | 4% virgin coconut oilSecondary phase
0.75g | 1.5% hydrolyzed oat protein (USA / Canada)
0.5g | 1% cetrimonium chloride (USA / Canada)
0.5g | 1% panthenol powder (vitamin B5) (USA / Canada)
0.5g | 1% passion fruit natural fragrance oil
0.5g | 1% Optiphen⢠Plus (USA / Canada)2.25g | 4.5% distilled water
Optional: Red mica and yellow mica, to decorate
Preheat your oven to 200°F/93°C. You’ll need three heat-resistant beakers or glass measuring cups for this project.
Weigh the heated phase ingredients into a small heat-resistant glass measuring cup or beaker. Pour some distilled water (I used about 40mL for a 50g [1.76oz] batch) into a second beaker or heat resistant glass measuring cup. The amount of water isn’t really important as we’ll be weighing it out later once it’s hotâjust make sure you have enough water in there that it’s not all going to evaporate in the oven while you heat it up.
Place both beakers on a baking tray and pop that in your preheated oven for about 20 minutes, until the oil mixture has melted through and the water is nice and hot.
While the heated phase is heating up/melting, weigh the secondary phase ingredients into that third beaker. At this point, it’s also a good idea to get your mould ready and clear out a spot in your freezer that is large enough for the filled mould to rest flat.
Once the heated phase is melted/hot, we’re ready to combine everything. We want to move quickly at this point, so be sure you know exactly what you need to do and you have everything at hand before you remove the tray from the oven. REMEMBER! The things that were in the oven will be hot. Make sure you are wearing oven mitts whenever you touch them!
Remove the heated phase from the oven. Weigh the correct amount of pre-heated distilled water into the secondary phase and whisk to combine. Once that mixture is uniform, add it to the melted BTMS/oils mixture and stir to combine. Once that is uniform, pour it into your mould.
To decorate, sprinkle some mica over the bar and quickly swirl with a toothpick or similar thin instrument.
Carefully transfer the mould to the freezer and freeze until solid (at least half an hour). When the bar is solid, gently unmould it and leave it to dry for at least two days before using it.
To use, simply glide the bar over wet hair after shampooing, leave it in for a minute or two (I usually shave my legs in that time), and rinse clean. That’s it! I recommend storing the bar somewhere it can drain and dry out between uses; I have a wire rack in my shower that works beautifully.
Shelf Life & Storage
Because this conditioner contains water and will frequently be in contact with water, you must include a broad-spectrum preservative to ward off microbial growth. This is non-optional. Even with a preservative, this project may eventually spoil as our kitchens are not sterile laboratories, so in the event that you notice any change in colour, scent, or texture, chuck it out and make a fresh batch.
Substitutions
As always, be aware that making substitutions will change the final product. While these swaps won’t break the recipe, you will get a different final product than I did.
- As I’ve provided this recipe in percentages as well as grams you can easily calculate it to any size using a simple spreadsheet as I’ve explained in this post. As written in grams this recipe will make 50g, which is a good-sized conditioner bar that will likely last a single person close to a year.
- To learn more about the ingredients used in this recipe, including why they’re included and what you can substitute them with, please visit the Humblebee & Me Encyclopedia. It doesn’t have everything in it yet, but there’s lots of good information there! If I have not given a specific substitution suggestion in this list (panthenol) please look up the ingredient in the encyclopedia before asking.
- I don’t recommend swapping out the BTMS-25 or cetearyl alcohol. If you do, you will be in re-development territory as the biggest challenge in conditioner bar development is balancing the melting point/hardness of the bar, and those two ingredients are 77% of the formulation and have a huge impact on the melting point/hardness.
- If you only have BTMS-50, I recommend this formulation instead.
- You could use a different liquid oil instead of passionfruit oil.
- Babassu oil will work instead of coconut oil; you could also use more passionfruit oil.
- You can use a different hydrolyzed protein instead of oat, like quinoa or rice.
- You could try polyquaternium 7 or honeyquat instead of cetrimonium chloride, or use more distilled water.
- If you’re like to use a different preservative, please review this page and read this. I selected Optiphen Plus because of its high heat tolerance; keep that in mind when choosing alternatives.
Gifting Disclosure
The passion fruit natural fragrance oil was gifted by Essential Wholesale. The passionfruit oil was gifted by Mystic Moments. The red mica and yellow mica were gifted by YellowBee.
This looks lovely Marie and I bet it smells divine too!
Thank you for sharing đ
Thank you so much, Mia! â¤ď¸
hi, the only option I have for preservative is phenoxyethanol for my shampoo/conditioner bars. Is that okay? And whats the measurement for 60g bars?
I haven’t tried it, but from the sample formulations I’ve seen from suppliers, that should be ok. If you click through to the one that inspired this bar you’ll see their usage rateâI’d go with that!
I was very happy to see this as it gave me a way to use up my spare BTMS-25 that had been lying around for ages. Happily, I also recently bought passionfruit oil, so I had everything for a change! (Tho I reckon argan oil would work too.)
The bars turned out lovely! I used one this morning and my hair is lovely and floaty (I have curly, very fine hair and itâs quite fussy.) I didnât do the mica thing as it seemed too extra for me. However, I totally wanna see the Death Star conditioner bar!
Thanks for another cracker recipe.
Best
Deborah
Hooray! I am so thrilled you’re enjoying this bar already đ It’s become a fast favourite of mine as well! Thanks for DIYing with me, and happy making đ
I have just made this conditioner bar and used watermelon seed oil and fragrance oil with a hint of mint. Itâs a wonderful recipe and leaves my hair feeling silky and smooth. Thank you for your detailed instructions and constant inspiration
That sounds lovely! Thanks for DIYing with me, and happy making đ
I LOVE this formula. I decreased the water by 1% to add in 1% hydrolyzed silk. It lasts forever since only a thin film is needed for great results
Hooray! I am so glad you’re enjoying it â¤ď¸ Thanks for DIYing with me, and happy making đ
Hello! I made the recipe and I have a question: When I mix phase 1 hot with phase 2 at room temperature (approximately 25 degrees) the mixture cooled and began to solidify (I put it in the microwave for a few seconds to melt again and I molded it) . I don’t know if this will modify the result much. I hope not Finally, my question: Is it normal that it starts to solidify so fast or my mixture was very cold and that made it solidify?
I remain attentive and thank you very much for sharing your knowledge.
It’s the best blog â¤
The water that you heat in the same water bath as the oil ingredients (in separate containers) should have been added to the powder/extra ingredients, stirred (making it the same temp as the oil phase), and then quickly added and stirred into the oil phase… Thats what Marie does in the video attached to this post. Hope this helps! I know you posted this a while ago so, If you haven’t figured it out yet, I hope this helps you to try again!
Have you ever worked with BTMS 80? Iâve just ordered some to experiment with conditioner bars (Iâve only really ever worked with BTMS 50). Curious to hear your thoughts on formulations with BTMS 80!
I haven’t, sorry!
Is there a PH listed for this?
No, you haven’t missed anything đ
I’m curious, have you tried making the Zen Conditioning bar? Or have you gotten a sample to try? The structure of it has me very curious to try…. Im just worried about the need to blend at approximately 800 rpm… I don’t think my immersion blender is up for that lol…. but I’m curious if that is really needed to achieve sufficient results..
This formulation is as close as I’ve gotten to it, and I definitely didn’t blend at 800 rpm đ
I am curious about how much the temperature will effect the heat-sensitive, cool phase ingredients like the hydrolyzed proteins. They all say to add them at or below 104 degrees, which is of course not possible with solid conditioners as the mixture would already be solidified at that temperature.
I also wanted to know if this is a concern.
Good Evening,
Thank you for always providing provocative formulations. I have learned some interesting combinations I would not have experimented with on my own. If possible, I would appreciate the hair type you recommend this for. Its the one item of information your shampoo and conditioner recipes donât share that would be extremely helpful in testing the formulation and custom tweaks we make. Thank you again for all your work!
I understand it is not recommended but I can’t find anywhere cetearyl alcohol, so ca I swap it for cetyl alcohol? Or the result may be completely different?
I can’t say any more than I’ve said here: “I donât recommend swapping out the BTMS-25 or cetearyl alcohol. If you do, you will be in re-development territory as the biggest challenge in conditioner bar development is balancing the melting point/hardness of the bar, and those two ingredients are 77% of the formulation and have a huge impact on the melting point/hardness.” It WILL be differentâyou’re changing 17% of a formulation. Just HOW different, how well it works, and if you like it is impossible to say. Happy making!
Hello Marie, I read this :”If you want to use cetearyl alcohol in place of the cetyl alcohol, have at it. Just note that cetearyl alcohol is a more waxy ingredient, so you might find the bar is a bit draggier on your hair and skin. If youâre using BTMS-25, donât use cetearyl alcohol as thereâs already enough in the conditioner.”
I would like to know what you think
I was hesitant to try a solid conditioner, but I’m glad I tried that recipe! It makes my long curly hair very easy to untangle while in the shower. It gives silkiness and no greasiness. I used argan oil instead of passionfruit oil. Thanks Mary!
I just used my conditioner bar today for the first time! My question is, the BTMS-25 I got has a very pungent smell is that normal? I thought the smell went away after the bar cured but I smelled it when I used it in the shower. Can it be offset more with a higher percentage of fragrance oil?
Hi Marie, I have the same issue as Shelby – the ‘fishy’ scent is really coming through from the BTMS-25 after trying this recipe, but I want to keep using the bar as it works great! I used essential oils to scent it (at 1.5%), but I think because I used lighter EOs (mint and sweet orange) they faded quickly in the shower when using this bar for a week. Do you have any EOs or fragrances you’d recommend to cover the smell, maybe stronger ones (up to the safe limit of course)? Thanks SO much for the great formulations!!
Bummer, and ick đ
Going forward, I would try ordering BTMS-25 from other sources as some batches are smellier than others.
For now, though, I’d look to fragrance oils rather than essential oilsâthey’re much stronger and longer-lasting. Usage rates vary, but look for the max for IFRA category 9. I’d think 1â1.5% would be enough for a pretty strong scent đ
Hi, I was wondering if you would recommend the Geogard Ultra as a preservative for this?
I wouldn’t; there’s not nearly enough solvent for it to dissolve and disperse.
I’d like to replace some of the liquid oil with dimethicone 350. What percentage would you recommend? 3%?
That sounds like a good place to start!
Dear Marie,
I hope this message finds you well. First and foremost, I wanted to express my deepest gratitude for your incredible work on Humblebee & Me. Your blog has been an endless source of inspiration for my DIY beauty endeavors, and I truly appreciate the effort you put into sharing your knowledge and creativity with us.
Recently, I came across your recipe for this conditioner, and I’m excited to give it a try. However, I had a question regarding the choice of preservative. I have a specific preservative called Benzyl alcohol-DHA (Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid) on hand, and I was wondering if it would be suitable for this recipe. I wanted to seek your advice and expertise before proceeding.
Once again, thank you for all the amazing content you provide. Your passion for natural beauty and skincare shines through in every post, and I’m truly grateful for the knowledge and inspiration I gain from your blog.