Product Review- Rocky Mountain Soap Company Shampoo & Conditioner

Rocky Mountain Rosemary Mint Shampoo & Conditioner

Reviewed at 5 out of 5 stars (1080 total reviews for the Shampoo and 643 total reviews for the conditioner on the Rocky Mountain Soap Co. website) this shampoo and conditioner combo has become a staple in my hair care routine. But what makes this product such a good choice for your hair-washing needs?

Simple Review

Pros:

-Very Effective Cleanser

-Refreshing Scent

-Contains Rosemary Oil (Learn more here)

Cons:

-Can be irritating

-Not Colour-Safe

Long Review

My Experience

The Rocky Mountain Soap Company shampoo and conditioner have been my go-to shampoo and conditioner for years now. I grew up with a lot of scalp irritation and I am pretty sure that was due to the shampoo and conditioners I used when I was younger. They would be more affordable sure, but I would constantly be scratching my scalp because of how itchy I felt.

I definitely needed a change, and I had learned that some ingredients are just very harsh on the hair and scalp health. I was committed to finding something that did not include ingredients such as sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate(both can be very irritating to sensitive skin and dry out hair [1]) and wanted something that would use more natural ingredients as I felt that would be more gentle on my skin and hair.

Enter Rocky Mountain Soap Company, a brand that started in Canmore, Alberta that is committed to providing quality skin care products made from all-natural ingredients. Maybe it's because it's so close to home for me, or maybe because the brand philosophy is a simple one that promotes real ingredients for their products that are not tested on animals, but I already felt I would like what they had to offer.

Now, I have tried their bar soaps and those can be hit or miss for me, as well as a bit pricy. However, the shampoo and conditioner are where it is at for me, and I usually get the Rosemary Mint scent. I haven't tried the other scents, except for a cherry scent that they had for a while that was also nice but didn't have the same feel as the Rosemary Mint. So let's get into why I would suggest these products and why you may benefit from them!

Positives

Firstly, it just does a nice job of cleaning my hair and scalp which is the top priority of any shampoo. It needs to be able to wash away any product build-up, dead skin cells, and dirt from the day and this shampoo does just that. Secondly, it has a very refreshing scent. As I mentioned before, I get the Rosemary Mint which can feel very stimulating on the scalp. One of the ingredients of this shampoo and conditioner, without surprise, is rosemary essential oil which has the benefit of improving blood circulation and relieving an itchy scalp [2]. Some research even suggests that using rosemary oil can aid in preventing hair loss, and could be as effective as minoxidil (a well-known hair-loss treatment) [3]. Another ingredient in the shampoo and conditioner is peppermint essential oil, which has also been shown to increase hair growth [4] (though this study was done on animals and not humans).

In terms of public opinion sourced from the Rocky Mountain website reviews, there is an overwhelmingly positive reception to the shampoo and conditioner, with many simply stating that they love the product. Key points for why include, the refreshing scent, how clean the hair feels after using the shampoo, and how soft the hair feels after conditioning.

Negatives

Even though I think this product is great and recommend it strongly to almost anyone, there are a few caveats to consider if this is the right product for you.

The first is that although peppermint essential oil was seen to promote hair growth, it can also be an irritant for people with sensitive or dry skin [5]. I can't recommend this product for people that have a dry scalp as the peppermint oil may be too harsh for them and may leave them with an even itchier scalp. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) also gives peppermint oil a hazard score of 4 (1 being low and 10 being a high hazard) due to it being an allergen [6], so it goes without saying that people with peppermint allergies should probably skip this one. Some reviews have found that the shampoo can be quite drying, but when paired with the conditioner the hair ends up feeling soft and hydrated. I recommend always conditioning the hair after shampooing for this very reason, as any shampoo can potentially strip the hair of its natural oils, and a conditioner is designed to offset that effect by giving back oils and nutrients.

Another negative of this shampoo is that it is not colour-safe, which means if you've coloured your hair, then this product will strip that colour out and it won't last as long as you'd want. This comment comes from a 2-start review left on the Rosemary Mint Shampoo and I personally have had experience with that myself when I had coloured hair. At times, hair and scalps will have specific issues that will require designated shampoos to address, much like the case for sensitive skin, dry scalp, and coloured-hair. The Rosemary and Mint scented shampoos and conditioners from Rocky Mountain Soap Co. are meant more as an everyday shampoo and conditioner that suits a broader consumer base. Everyday shampoos and conditioners really just clean the hair and moisturize (respectively), and you may find you want other benefits to a shampoo, such as one that helps with volumizing the hair. The company has other shampoos meant for dry or fine hair, but those come in different scents and so you are limited when it comes to choosing a product that is for your specific hair type vs the smell you want.

How to use

In a future post, I will cover shampooing and conditioning in greater detail as there is a lot to consider when creating your own personal haircare routine. When it comes to how I specifically use the Rocky Mountain Soap Company Shampoo and Conditioner, there are a few things to note.

1- If it is your first time using a natural shampoo, you may find you do not get the same lather as you would get from drugstore brands. The more affordable shampoos tend to have ingredients (such as the sulfates I mentioned earlier) that create that lather [1] and it may make it feel like your hair is getting a better clean because of it. The natural shampoo is still doing the job, it may just take your hair and scalp some time to adjust to it. When starting off, I would actually shampoo once with a quarter-size amount (which would not lather at all), I would rinse it out, and then shampoo a second time with half a dime-size amount. I found the extra step would help create that lather and I definitely felt my hair was clean after rinsing it out again.

2- I suggest adding a quarter-size amount (you can add more if you have longer hair) of the conditioner after and letting it sit for about 5 minutes. Once it rinses out of your hair, it should feel soft, and easy to run your fingers through. I find that after washing my hair, it is very clean and soft, which can be harder to style as there is less grip for hair products to latch onto. Therefore, I will not be able to get the same hold or texture regardless of any product I use, compared to second-day hair (the day after washing). That's why I suggest planning your wash days on days when you know you won't have to style your hair the day after (like a Friday evening before a lazy Saturday).

Summary

I clearly enjoy this product and would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a quality shampoo and conditioner! Depending on the size of the bottle, you may be spending quite a bit on the products, $18 for their 240ml and $28 for their 460ml. That can appear very pricy, especially if you're used to getting drugstore brands for around $10. However, I would say it is very worth it in terms of the ingredients being natural, the lack of harmful chemicals, and some of the benefits of specific ingredients mentioned earlier. Shampoo and conditioners are the foundation for your hair and scalp health, and having a great, reliable product will ensure that everything will stay well-balanced for years to come. I find you also don't need to use too much of the product, nor do you have to use it very frequently to get the most out of it, so it can potentially last you a much longer time than you think.

That being said, this product is probably not the best for you if you have sensitive skin as the peppermint oil can be harsh and can cause an allergic reaction. This product is also not a colour-safe shampoo and will increase the fading of your coloured hair. So you may want to find alternatives if these factors apply to you.

References:

1- https://www.healthline.com/health/sulfate-in-shampoo#when-to-avoid-sulfates

2- https://www.healthline.com/health/rosemary-oil-for-hair#benefits

3- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25842469/

4- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4289931/

5- https://juicychemistry.com/blogs/skincare-blog/peppermint-oil-for-skin-benefits-and-how-to-use

6- https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredients/703839-MENTHA_PIPERITA_PEPPERMINT_LEAF/

Hope you found this helpful!

My name is Wesley, I am a Barber located in the city of Calgary helping my clients become more confident with all things related to their hair by providing customized haircuts that suit them best while demystifying all the complicated hair information out there!