So I got up and got started and luckily I just happen to have all of the necessary supplies around the house. Many ingredient are things that you might have at home, like cornstarch, oil, baking soda, Epsom salts and essential oils. The things that you might not have laying around are citric acid and the borax. That's pretty much it unless you add a coloring agent.
The hard part really is getting the mixture wet enough to hold together but not so wet that the baking soda and citric acid start reacting with one another and you end up with a fizzy mess. My first batch went well, pretty golden balls with an orange scent.
The green balls in the back are the vanilla scented ones, because green equals vanilla, right? I don't know why they are green, that's just what color I had. You might notice that they are starting to fizz, because I added too much vanilla extract. Even so, I can dry them under a fan and rub them with a cloth to smooth the surface and they should be fine. The other trick would be to use witch hazel instead of water but I have yet to try that.
Usually I mold my bath bombs in plastic ornament halves but this time I just packed them into a ball shape with my hands. Slightly more rustic but I think that's OK and it was less frustrating than cracking the bombs during unmolding. I really wanted this to be a fast and easy project.
Another tip, I always wear gloves when I make the bombs because the straight essential oil irritates my skin. And yes, they will make a mess of your tub but it's still worth it for the skin-softening goodness and the novelty science factor.
Bath Bomb Instructions
Quadruple recipe makes about 12 large bombs
Start to finish, about 30 minutes
3 comments:
this is great! I love playing chemist for a day. ;)
What a great idea, thanks for the link to the info!
I worship at the feet of Your Fizziness!
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