Gift Special: Make Your Own Bath Bombs

Ok, so for Hester's 4th birthday, it was Party Bag challenge time again.  Those of you who follow me know I'm a right old stingemeister when it comes to party bags, for 2 reasons.
1: They're expensive once you add the cost to the rest of the party
2: They're usually full of plastic tat made in places by poor b***ers with few or no worker rights, working horrendously long hours for very low pay.

So, we sit and wrack our brains each birthday, for production line antics giving us homemade goodies to fob off the kids with.  See our spectacularly fantastic meltable crayons for an idea on the stuff we've done in the past.

And this time it was the turn of the Bath Bomb.  So, if...
a) You've got a party for kids or grownups coming up and want something to give them
b) You're on the school fund-raising committee, you lucky thing (heh heh), and are looking for Christmas Fair stall ideas you can rope a load of unsuspecting parents into doing (although watch out here - you need to make sure you don't fall foul of public liability insurance, and if these are being sold, will need the recipe tested by a qualified chemist!)
c) You have 87 children with between them 453 teachers and you're looking for their end of term Christmas and thank you pressie
c) You're looking for some Christmas present ideas...


Then this is the fella!

And if it's even remotely possible, these were even more fun to make.  We based our recipe on the delicious and medicinally herbacious James Wong's Grow Your Own Drugs recipe; and this is a book I urge you to buy - because if you think Bath Bombs are fun to make, then you'll love getting down and dirty with beeswax and porridge oats and almond oil and....I tell you, there is nothing like using your own homemade moisturiser for a whacking great dose of smugness.


Wanyhoo...here's what you'll need (I'll give you a lovely supplier at the bottom too, from whom I religiously get all my stuff, without fail, and am always shocked at how fast she manages to deliver it to me.)

3 tbsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp citric acid powder
Up to 10 drops Essential oils
1 tsp flower petals, dried fruit peel, herbs (optional)
Half tsp edible/non-toxic glitter (optional)
1 tsp vegetable based oil, such as Sunflower Oil or other, such as Almond/Avocado/Coconut oil

1 mixing bowl
Spoons
Fork
Small mould trays or moulds

A Word about the Moulds...

We used a chocolate mould, but you could also use different shaped cookie cutters placed on a baking tray with baking parchment/greaseproof paper on, which works well because you can ease then 'pop' them out easily.

I would advise you use fairly small moulds, because we made large hearts and to be fair, the bath was a little overrun with oils and petals and glitter, much to my amusement, but my clean and tidy friends' disgruntlement....chortle.
Bendy type baking moulds are brilliant if you have them.
If using a soap mould, check it is one suggested for use with bath bombs - we actually found our seashell shapes soap mould too stiff - we couldn't get the bath bombs out without breaking them. 

Right.  Ready, what do I do?

1. First things first - KEEP ALL WATER AWAY!  Dry your hands, dry your kids' hands.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients in the bowl, ensuring you break up the lumps with your fork and mix the ingredients well
3. Drizzle the oil into the mixture and stir in with the fork, so that the oil is well distributed
4. Add the essential oils and stir well
5. Now spoon the mixture into your moulds and pat down well
6. Leave overnight so that the oils can evaporate, leaving a nice hard tablet for your bath bomb.
7. To use, simply pop in the bath and watch it fizz!

And I'm guessing you're very creative people so I leave it to you to wrap and gorgeous 'em up - we wrapped ours in greaseproof paper and ribbon; and sometimes we illegally steal transparent packaging bags from OriginalStitch to put them in.  But don't tell Bizzo Partner Amanda Moneybags or she'll 'ave me guts for garters. Look out for little baskets in charity shops, and line with tissue paper or fabric before laying your wrapped bathbombs in them.  Hey, you could wrap them in fabric.  Cover them in pretty stickers; make labels; wrap in garden string for a rustic look; add a sprig of herbs in the outside packaging; oooooh I mean, you must be full of ideas!

So, where to buy?

I get all my stuff from the lovely Summernaturals.  They stock all but the edible glitter (and she may well have that too if you ask, I wouldn't be surprised!). I make all my own cleaning products, and a fair few toiletries, and Summernaturals is my No.1 supplier - she has a fantastic range of products, and does them in hilariously massive bulk sizes too, if you so desire.  Plus she's extraordinarily helpful if you need a hand, or aren't quite sure what you need.
Say hi from me!

A Manly Punch, or One For the Ladies?

We had a load of fun with our essential oils, trying to choose ones we thought were for ladies, or ones which would make a very masculine manly sort of fragrance.  And of course, the daughters said that for the man ones blue glitter should be used.  I'm thinking actually, girls, maybe NO glitter in the man ones?  They're not all like your father you know.  Snigger.

It's entirely personal of course, and fun experimenting - but I would recommend using no more than 3 different oils in one mixture, and using one as a 'main' oil, with 6 drops or so, and the others to complement.

Manly Essential Oils: Clary Sage, Basil, Thyme, Eucalpytus, Tea Tree, Rosemary, Peppermint, Pine, Sandalwood, Sweet Orange, Lime, Lemon, 

Ladies Indulgence Oils: Lavender, Rose, Geranium, Sweet Orange, Tea Tree, and actually - anything floral or fruity.

Anyhoo, so here's some suggestions on scent combos you could use for men's bath bombs:

For a robust, liqourice scent: Basil, Thyme, Eucalyptus
For an after sports special: Eucalyptus, Tea Tree, Basil
For a refreshing zing: Tea Tree, Lime, Peppermint
For a fruity, lively bath: Lime, Sweet Orange, Lemon
For a relaxing soak: Lavender (1 drop) Sweet Orange (3 drops) Clary Sage (6 drops)

Of course, these are all lovely, and don't only have to be for blokes, for goodness sake. Geezers however might be fussy about too feminine a scent, and certainly the herb based oils are really very masculine.  For ladies' bath bombs, the bath is your oyster, but here are a few if you're looking for a shopping list!

Pure Relaxation: 7 drops Lavender, 2 drops Sweet Orange Oil, and 1 drop of either thyme, basil, or clary sage
Bright and Zesty: Tea tree, Lime and Sweet Orange
Deep-Breathingly Floral: 6 drop Geranium, 4 drops Rose
Balancing and Deep: 7 drops Geranium, 1 drop Tea-Tree, 2 drops Basil
Exotic and Warm: 6 drops Jasmine, 2 drops Geranium, 2 drops Rose

And well, I could go on, but if you're strapped for cash, my two essential Essentials are Lavender and Tea-tree, which serve a multitude of purposes round the house, and can be the staples of a Lady or Man Bath Bomb.

Like this bowl? Go check out her wares at http://woolboutique.blogspot.com

Once you're all done, you might want to add labels to your bath bombs, with ingredients, and instructions, especially if you're selling them at fairs, or giving as gifts, just to be on the safe side.  Just click below to download my example sheet, and if you're editing them, keep within the lines so you can print onto A4 sheets, which have three columns of stickers 63.5x38mm in dimension.
Bath Bomb Label Ideas

Go, bomb, have fun!