Fragrant, beautiful bath salts make a wonderful gift, and are very easy to make right at home. Unlike store brands, these bath salts are inexpensive and can be customized to match a specific color or scent. Here are some quick ideas for your own homemade bath salts.
To begin, you will need to gather a few basic supplies. For mixing ingredients together, you’ll want a plastic bowl and large spoon. It’s best to have a bowl and spoon reserved just for this purpose - don’t use your cooking tools. If you plan to add color to your bath salts, cover your work area with a plastic tablecloth and wear old clothes to avoid stains.
You will also want a variety of glass or plastic jars in which to store the finished product. Glass tends to look more attractive and will not stain like some plastic containers do, but plastic is fine if that’s what you have. You can also recycle food jars or even purchase canning jars. For a lovely touch, have simple decorative items ready to attach to the jars. Ribbons, bows, silk flowers, and strung beads are some options. Finally, you may wish to add tags or labels to the jars. Self-adhesive labels are available that you can run through a printer if you’re computer-savvy enough to design your own.
Now, the ingredients. Of course, your main ingredient will be salt. Here you have three main choices: table salt, sea salt, and Epsom salt. Table salt is inexpensive and holds color well. Sea salt often comes in large crystals and is quite beautiful after color is added. Epsom salts are renowned for their therapeutic benefits and also have those large crystals. Choose which type of salt based on your personal preferences.
For color, simply use food coloring. There are alternatives, but food coloring is readily available, cheap, and safe. In the amounts you’ll be using, you won’t need to worry about staining. A pack of the basic colors (red, green, yellow and blue) will do.
With fragrances you need to be careful. Pure essential oils are recommended, although you may be able to find “scented body oils” to use as well. Fortunately, natural essential oils have become very popular and can easily be found at health food stores. A caveat: some essential oils can be very dangerous if not used properly. Extreme care must be used, especially if the salts will be used by children or pregnant women. Read the labels carefully! That said, there are a few wonderfully scented oils that are quite safe for most people. Lavender is one great choice.
There are a couple of other additives you can use to give your bath salts extra benefits. Liquid glycerin, available at drugstores, is a natural moisturizer. Baking soda soothes the skin and is good for poison ivy and other irritations. It also provides a bubbly effect!
Now for the fun part. Pour about two cups of salt into your mixing bowl and add food coloring drop by drop, mixing thoroughly as you go. You can go for one basic color or mix things up for a rainbow effect. You can also make two batches of different colors and layer them in the jars for a beautiful display.
Repeat this process with the fragrance oils. You won’t need much. Two to five drops of most oils will be enough for two cups of salt. Mix well. Optionally, add a tablespoon of baking soda and/or glycerin.
When you’re satisfied with the scent and color, simply spoon the salt into containers and seal tightly. Let them sit for a couple of days to allow the oils to permeate the salt. Decorate the jars, and you’re done!
Enjoy this creative gift idea... and while you’re at it, make some extra for yourself.
