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Susteau’s Moondust Hair Wash – a unique powder-to-liquid shampoo – is the latest innovation fuelling the trend for waterless beauty products. But is it any good? Stylist investigates.
Fun fact: the regular bottle of shampoo contains around 80% water. The same can be said for conditioners, shower gels and a hell of a lot of skincare products too. More filler than function, water is used to ensure a smooth blend of all the other ingredients. Remove it and you don’t only save on precious water usage but you also cut down on the energy it takes to produce and ship the products too.
It’s that exact theory that has led to the recent and notable rise in waterless beauty products, solid or powder formulas to which you simply add your own water. At the solid end of the spectrum, there’s everything from shampoo bars to Parla’s toothpaste tablets, Forgo’s dilutable handwash to SBTRCT’s solid skincare. And as for powders? Nowadays, so much of your beauty regime can be swapped for powder versions, from vitamin C ‘serums’ to face masks and even shower gel (see: new zero waste brand, Plus).
But what about hair? Well, that’s about to get the powder treatment too, thanks to the new sustainable haircare line, Susteau.
Its key product, Moondust Hair Wash, is a clever powder-to-liquid shampoo that does everything a good shampoo should (clean the hair, lift dirt and grease from the scalp…) but is made completely without water – you simply add your own. All you do is sprinkle a little onto wet palms, rub them together to emulsify the formula and then use like you would any old shampoo.
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The bottle itself is (of course) recyclable and made from around 95% recycled plastic that might otherwise have ended up in our waterway and better still, you can expect one tiny bottle of Susteau Moondust Hair Wash to last ages: it contains the hair-washing equivalent of four 225ml bottles of regular shampoo.
The thing is, for sustainable beauty innovations like this to properly catch on and make the difference they set out to, they have to work. To find out, I put the new powder shampoo (and matching conditioner) to the test.
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Susteau Moondust Hair Wash review
My biggest concern with powder shampoo was that it would be a faff to use, but it really isn’t. The bottle tells you to sprinkle a small amount onto your wet hand. The term small is annoyingly ambiguous, but if it helps, three tips of the bottle was more than enough for my shoulder length hair.
I found that the remnant water on my wet hand wasn’t enough to really emulsify the powder, so added a little more and very quickly, it turned into a cream consistency, not too dissimilar to a body lotion. As I massaged it into my scalp, it began to loosen up even further, but if you like your shampoo to produce big billowing clouds of frothy lather, then this one probably won’t be for you. Although the suds are fairly modest, it cleanses really well: after one lather and rinse cycle, my hair felt clean but not squeaky, just the way I like it. And for that reason, I’ll definitely be using it again.
Shop Susteau Moondust Hair Wash at Cult Beauty, £25
Susteau Moondust Hair Conditioner review
I usually like a rich and creamy conditioner (hence my love for Dizziak’s Deep Conditioner, £22) so as I looked down at the emulsified conditioner powder in my hand, I did worry that this one just wasn’t going to cut it. I was wrong. It added just the right amount of nourishment to my perfectly clean hair, without being even in the slightest bit greasy, sticky or heavy. If you have particularly dry hair, you might want something a little richer, but otherwise, Susteau’s is a good all-rounder.
Shop Susteau Moondust Hair Conditioner at Cult Beauty, £25
Images: courtesy of brand
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