Bath Bombs!
Bath bombs make for great, fun gifts for all ages, but can be pricey and contain a couple of suspicious ingredients. So why not make your own? They are so easy to make and are great holiday projects.
Bath bombs aren’t only for fun though; they also have wonderful health properties: Epsom salts are detoxifying and healing for skin conditions; for cold and sinus relief try adding rosemary, eucalyptus, peppermint and lavender essential oils; geranium and lavender are soothing on the senses and healing on skin; grapefruit is a toner, and lemongrass, eucalyptus and citrus oils are energising. Try wintergreen for pain relief. Tailor your bath bombs to your wellness needs with carrier oils and essential oils to turn your bath time bliss into a health tonic.
Another popular addition to bath bombs is powered milk, as this brings in lactic acid. Lactic acid is good for problem skin and also reduces the appearance of wrinkles and aging. Cleopatra was onto something when she bathed in milk to beautify her skin.
As many areas of the country are in the midst of a drought, we do realise bath bombs may not be the most practical of gifts, but that is where mini bombs come in! Instead of making large bombs only suitable for bathing, pack your fizzies into smaller molds which can then be used as foot soaks. Since the bombs contain Epsom salts and added essential oils, these mini bombs are perfect for detoxing the feet and relieving pain and inflammation.
You can make a bulk batch of bombs and then colour and flavour them differently. This recipe yields 12 or more, depending on how large you make your fizzies. Make larger ones to last longer in the bath or small ones for foot soaks.
Basic Bath Bomb Recipe
225g baking soda
115g Epsom salt
115g corn starch or arrowroot powder
115g citric acid
dried petals or micas
2 ½ T coconut oil
2 tsp essential oils of your choice
1 T water
4-6 drops food colouring or use a pinch of hibiscus powder and disperse in the dry ingredients. Also check out our blog on Natural Colourants as alternatives to food colouring.
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Mix the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl, then slowly add the liquid to the dry ingredients, whisking as you go. Don’t let the mixture get fizzy as you only want this effect in the bath later. You should end up with a mixture that barely sticks together, like slightly damp sea sand. Quickly transfer the mixture to your molds and let the fizzies dry out for a day. Remove from the molds and store in cool, dry packaging.
If you want multiple coloured or scented bath bombs, simply separate the mixture into multiple bowls and add a few drops of your desired food colouring and essential oil to each, then pop into molds. You can even mix and match and make swirly or marbled bath bombs!
Creative Bath Bomb Ideas
Grapefruit Tizer: hibiscus powder, dried hibiscus petals and grapefruit essential oil
Timeless Lavender: dried lavender blossoms and lavender essential oil
Breathe Easy: peppermint and eucalyptus essential oil
Coffee Lover: coffee bean oil and cacao powder
Toasty Cinnamon: cinnamon powder and cinnamon bark essential oil.
Rose Beauty: rose oil, geranium oil, dried petals, gold mica and hibiscus powder
Citrus Splash: sweet orange, lime and lemon
Vanilla Kiss: vanilla oleoresin
Soothing Chamomile: chamomile flowers and chamomile essential oil
Zesty Lemon: lemon and lime essential oil, dried marigold petals, grated lemon zest for topping
Cocoa Coffee Bath Bombs
1 c baking soda
½ c citric acid
1 T kaolin clay
2 tsp cacao powder
8ml coffee bean oil
For the chocolate sauce (optional):
27g raw cocoa butter
6g cacao powder
Mix the dry ingredients together with a whisk. Add the coffee oil and make sure it is dispersed well. Then spray some witch hazel and mix in with your hands. When you can squeeze a handful of the mixture and it sticks together, it is ready. Press into molds and set out to dry. Make the sauce by melting the cocoa butter and mixing in the cacao powder. Drizzle over the bath bombs and keep in a cool, dry place.
Beautifying Rose Milk Bath Bombs
1 c baking soda
½ c citric acid
½ c cornstarch or arrowroot powder
¼ c powdered milk
3 T Epsom salt
dried rose petals
1 tsp water or rose floral water
3 -4 tsp almond oil
15 - 20 drops rose oil
Whisk the dry ingredients and the rose petals together in a bowl. Mix the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl, then slowly add the liquid to the dry ingredients, whisking as you go.If the mixture holds its shape when squeezed together it is ready, otherwise if not, use a spray bottle of water to spray once or twice to moisten the mixture. Don't spray too much or it will fizz. Press the mixture into molds and leave to dry overnight.
