natural skin care Archives

Botanical Skin Care Course Review (Plus A Vanilla Whipped Body Butter Recipe)

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September 18, 2019 By Rebecca D. Dillon Leave a Comment

This post is sponsored by The Herbal Academy. All opinions are my own.

Expand your knowledge of herbal skin care and discover the relation between nutrition and your skin with the Botanical Skin Care Course from The Herbal Academy. Keep reading to learn why I recommend this in depth course, plus how to make a vanilla whipped body butter recipe for dry skin.

When we think of back to school, our thoughts instantly go to school buses, packed lunches and hopefully a little bit of peace and quiet. That’s not always the case however. I have several acquaintances, also in their forties, who have gone back to school recently in order to start new careers. While my sister-in-law recently finished her teaching degree and just started teaching pre-k students in low income areas – something she’s always wanted to do.

Unfortunately, not all of us have the luxury or the means to head back to college later in life. That doesn’t mean we don’t want to further our education. In fact, I love learning! It’s one of the reasons I became a blogger. Being a blogger encourages me to research new ingredients on a regular basis and explore new techniques in my field. While the internet offers a wealth of information online through an unguided quest, not everything is readily available with a keystroke. So how do I gather further insight and the knowledge I need to go further my craft? The answer is an easy one. It’s The Herbal Academy.

Botanical Skin Care Course Review

I didn’t realize how much more there was to learn about natural skin care and whole body wellness until I enrolled in The Herbal Academy’s Botanical Skin Care Course. This online course offered so much more than I expected. I can honestly say that I learned way more than I’d expected. As it was thoughtfully and well presented, I found myself wanting to learn even more after I completed the course. The Botanical Skin Care Course not only offered in depth information on the natural ingredients used in skin care, it also taught me the biology behind our skin and how its makeup relates to herbal skin care.

Why I Love (& Recommend) The Botanical Skin Care Course

There are number of things I really loved about this course.

For those new to The Herbal Academy, a video tutorial was available to make the process of navigating the course even easier.
There were notable facts about the history of cosmetics and skin care that were especially intriguing and found throughout the course lessons.
As this course offered in depth information on skin biology and whole body health, I felt this was definitely a college level course.
The information was broken up into different lessons and sections, so it was easy to stop at any time and pick it back up later.
There was no endless reading. The informational sections of each lesson were broken up with instructional videos and recipes, as well as graphics and herbal knowledge.
All of the information provided can be printed or viewed as a PDF. So everything is printable including the lessons, graphics and charts.
The Herbal Academy also provides printable pdf transcripts of video lessons to refer back to later.
The course is much more affordable than taking a college course and can be completed at your own pace.
Once you start the course, you have full access to that course for a full year from the day you begin.
There’s a private facebook group for additional help as well as to share tips and recipes. (I checked it out and signed up. It’s pretty awesome – plus zero drama.)
The course offers a brief overview of terminology on how to share the benefits of herbal skin care products without making medical claims.
If you want to further expand your knowledge on a topic covered in the Botanical Skin Care Course, there are additional resources provided at the end of each lesson.

Some of My Favorite Information from The Course

There’s so much information to soak up through the Botanical Skin Care Course. Therefore, it’s really hard to share a full overview of everything it entails. However, some of my favorite things were learning how to use herbal allies to care for skin – as well as how skin care connects to whole body wellness. (ie. Gut-Brain-Skin Axis.) I also like that this course covers herbs that address acute and chronic skin ailments with special consideration for anti-aging skin care. And there aren’t just skin care recipes to accompany the lessons. There are also herbal remedies AND food recipes that offer nutritional support for skin. You’ll also love their chart on skin-friendly dietary guidelines!

I loved learning about the basic energetic categories of Western herbalism—hot, cold, damp, and dry—to provide a more nuanced view of skin health. It was highly enlightening as were the sections on Ayurveda skin care and skin care in Chinese medicine. One of the more important lessons, however, covered the commercial ingredients we should be avoiding and why they are harmful. I was most surprised to learn that retinol, which is practically a staple in anti-aging skin care products, should be avoided due to its numerous negative side effects.

In contrast, the Botanical Skin Care Course from The Herbal Academy, also educates you on the carrier oils and butters that you SHOULD be using in your natural skin care products. Fatty acid content, comedogenic ratings, properties, shelf life and absorption rate are covered for each ingredient. There’s also a printable chart so you can keep this information handy when referring back to it later. Additionally there is information on salts, waxes and emulsifiers, clays and natural skin safe pigments, humectants, natural preservatives and essential oils.

For those of you just getting started with essential oils, you’ll find the chart for essential oil dilution guidelines especially helpful along with the properties and aroma of common essential oils used in skin care. I also learned the right way to make herbal vinegars, while expanding my knowledge on hydrosols, salves and oil infusions. There are a number of great recipes in the lesson on making botanical body care products. This section also offers video tutorials, troubleshooting information, additional graphics and printable charts as well as information on storing your products.

Botanical Body Care Recipes Within the Course

In fact, you’ll discover video instruction, printable property charts, troubleshooting tips, preservatives needed and recipes for making a number of botanical skin care products. These herbal skin care recipes include:

Natural bath care product recipes.
Recipes for creams, lotions & body butters.
Instructions for crafting herbal gels.
How to make herbal soaps with recipes.
Hair care recipes.
Cosmetic recipes.
Recipes for herbal vinegars.
Information on making herbal hydrosols.
Herbal salves and balm recipes.
How to make oil infusions & recipes.

The sheer volume of information provided throughout this course is priceless. I know that I will personally be referring back to this course throughout the year.

Botanical Skin Care Recipe Book

You also have the option to add on the Botanical Skin Care Recipe Book with this course. It’s filled with 194 favorite tried and true herbal skin care recipes. Inside are recipes for pretty much everything you can imagine – eye shadows, toners, face masks, deodorant, foot scrubs and baths, body butters, facial serums, homemade soaps and more. (You can also purchase this book separately here.) I really love this book and would definitely recommend it as an addition to your collection.

Now that you’ve decided to sign up for the Botanical Skin Care Course, be sure to also check out the recipe for making a daily moisturizer for acne prone skin. You can find this natural skin care recipe both within unit 4 of the course (for support for chronic conditions) as well as inside the Botanical Skin Care Recipe Book.

Vanilla Whipped Body Butter Recipe

The great thing about body butters is that they don’t contain any water-based ingredients. This means there’s less potential for microbial contamination (such as bacteria) which gives body butters a longer shelf life than lotions and creams. Because the ingredients used can be damaged by exposure to air, light or excess heat – causing the oils to go rancid, vitamin E or rosemary extract can be used to help prevent oxidation.

This vanilla whipped body butter recipe is adapted from Plant-Powered Beauty by Amy Galper and Christina Daigneault. The finished whipped body butter is both fluffy and decadent with a fragrance reminiscent of an orange creamsicle.

Ingredients:

¼ cup (2 fl oz) coconut oil
¼ cup shea butter
¼ cup cocoa butter
¼ cup (2 fl oz) jojoba oil infused with vanilla (Vanilla planifolia) bean
35 drops sweet orange (Citrus x sinensis) essential oil and 5 drops ylang ylang (Cananga odorata) essential oil (optional)

Instructions:

Make the vanilla-infused jojoba oil using the instructions in the herb-infused oil tutorial (found in the Botanical Skin Care Course) using ¼ vanilla bean and ¼ cup jojoba oil. Note that ¼ cup is the amount of finished herbal oil to include in the recipe—you may need to start with more oil when making the herb-infused oil, as the herbs will soak up some of the oil (if you forget to do this, just top off with some plain oil as needed for this recipe).

Gently heat coconut oil, shea butter, and cocoa butter in a double boiler over low heat (or a glass or ceramic bowl or canning jar over a small saucepan of simmering water) until melted.

Add the vanilla-infused jojoba oil, stir until mixture is melted and consistent, and turn off the heat.

Let cool for approximately 10 minutes, and once it is still warm, but not hot to the touch, cover and transfer to the refrigerator for approximately 1 hour, or until there is no longer a semi-liquid center.

Using an immersion blender or electric mixer, whip the mixture on high for 5 minutes or until it changes color and looks fluffy. You may need to periodically scrape the mixture from the sides of the bowl.

Add essential oil, if desired, and mix.

Label, and store in a cool, dark place. This vanilla whipped body butter recipe will keep for up to 1 year.

Not quite ready to commit to the Botanical Skin Care Course? Then be sure to pin this post for later! Otherwise, you can sign up for the Botanical Skin Care Course here.

For more botanical skin care recipes like the vanilla whipped body butter recipe from the Botanical Skin Care Course, be sure to follow my boards on pinterest. You can also find and follow me on your favorite social media platforms, including Blog Lovin‘, facebook, twitter and instagram. Or sign up to receive my newsletter to stay in the loop.

Filed Under: Bath & Beauty Recipes, Health & Wellness, Lifestyle Tagged With: bath and beauty, bath and body, body butter, body butter recipe, botanicals, health and wellness, herbal infusion, herbal skin care, herbalism, herbs, homemade soap, natural beauty, natural living, natural remedy, natural skin care, non-toxic, online course, review, salves, skin care recipes, whipped body butter

Homemade Daily Face Wash Recipes for Your Natural Skin Care Routine

I may receive compensation from links on this site. See my disclosure policy.

September 11, 2019 By Rebecca D. Dillon 2 Comments

It’s important to care for your skin. A homemade daily face wash is an easy way to do just that. There are a number of benefits to making your own homemade daily face wash. Not only is it an effective way to cleanse your skin as part of your natural daily beauty regimen, it can also save you money.

Homemade Daily Face Wash Recipes

Benefits of Making A Homemade Daily Face Wash

There are many reasons I love making my own homemade face daily wash. Following are my top contenders for investing in natural homemade skin care.

The ability to customize my daily face wash to my skin type.
I have control over the ingredients I use and I know where they come from.
I’m able to create dupes of luxe skin care brands for less money.
It’s simple to adapt my facial skin care routine to the (new) season.
My skin looks younger and feels healthier using natural ingredients.

Different Types Of Homemade Daily Face Wash

Like our personalities, our skin is individual and unique to us. Therefore there are a variety of facial cleansers available to take advantage of. While cleansing balms may work well for one person, they may not for another. So you may have to try a few homemade daily face wash recipes to find your perfect fit. If you already use a store bought facial cleanser that works well for you, then that type of cleanser is a good starting point when deciding to make your own.

So what are the different types of homemade daily face washes available for your natural skin care routine? Following you’ll discover the main types of facial cleansers. As well as homemade daily face wash recipes for each type, including cleansing balms, oil cleansers, soap cleansers, facial scrubs, cleansing clays, milk cleanser and micellar water.

Homemade Daily Face Wash: Cleansing Balms

Cleansing balms are similar to cold creams that my mom and grandmother used in the way back. These rich and creamy facial cleansers are usually the consistency of a homemade body butter. Because they are thicker and heavier than other facial cleansers, cleansing balms are well suited for those with dry or maturing skin. Not only are cleansing balms effective at removing dirt and makeup, they also moisturize and hydrate thirsty skin. So they are perfect for dry or dull skin. And will impart all skin types with a healthy looking glow.

Depending on the formula used to make cleansing balms, they can be used for oily and acne prone skin as well. Much like oil cleansers, cleansing balms help to balance skin. So instead of overstripping skin of all its natural oils, which can lead to overproduction of oil, it helps your skin achieve the perfect natural balance. In addition, you’ll also find that homemade cleansing balms help clear out clogged pores to reduce the occurrence of acne and blackheads.

If you have oily or acne prone skin, you don’t want to use a cleansing balm made with coconut oil or olive oil as they can clog pores. Instead, look for cleansing balm recipes that are formulated with non-comedogenic oils such as argan oil, hemp seed oil and camellia oil. (You can learn more about non-comedogenic oils for oily or acne prone skin here.) You can also opt for cleansing balms with essential oils or other ingredients, such as activated charcoal, proven to combat acne.

Cleansing Balm Recipes

Some of my favorite homemade daily face wash cleansing balm recipes are:

For more DIY ideas for formulating your own cleansing balms for your daily skin care routine, or to buy pre-made makeup melting cleansing balms, check out these natural Etsy beauty finds. Alternately, you can explore more anti-acne skin care solutions here. Or explore the best natural skin care products for acne prone skin to buy or DIY.

Homemade Daily Facial Cleanser: Oil Cleansers

Unlike cleansing balms, oil cleansers are liquid. Comprised primarily of non-comedogenic carrier oils, oil cleansers can easily be customized for every skin type. This is done by choosing carrier oils that work with your skin’s needs. Essential oils may also be added to address issues such as acne, aging or dry skin.

What’s so remarkable about using oil cleansers as a daily facial cleanser, is that you can get a quality product with as little as a single ingredient! Not only does oil remove makeup, dirt and toxins, it won’t strip your skin like some soap based cleansers can. So skin is balanced and perfectly moisturized in one simple step. As someone with maturing, combination skin prone to hormonal acne, I tend to stick to dry carrier oils. My favorite carrier oils for oil based cleansers are argan oil, rosehip seed oil and jojoba oil. While I have tried oil cleansers with other ingredients included, I always steer clear of carrier oils known to clog pores such as olive oil.

If you’re looking for clear, glowing skin, choose carrier oils that rank low on the non-comedogenic scale. Non-comedogenic oils are carrier oils that won’t clog pores and have a comedogenic rating of 2 or less. You can explore the comedogenic ratings database at Skin Reference to help you make more informed choices about the ingredients to look for in your natural daily facial cleansers. (Also be sure to check out my anti-acne essential oil blend recipe.)

Oil Cleanser Recipes

Learn how to formulate your own custom, homemade daily face wash oil cleanser recipes here:

Also be sure to try out my anti-aging facial serum recipe. Not only does it moisturize skin and diminish the visible signs of aging, it works great at removing heavy eye makeup. You can also shop for custom oil cleansers for your natural beauty regimen here.

Homemade Daily Facial Cleanser: Soap Cleansers

Just like soap removes dirt and grime from your body, facial soaps are also designed to remove dirt, sweat sebum and excess oils from the skin. However, you likely learned early on that not all soaps are created equal. If you’ve ever had your skin feel tight and dry after bathing, then you fully understand that some soaps are harsher than others. And that means they can strip too much oil from your skin leaving it feeling dry, itchy and irritated. Luckily facial soap cleansers are normally formulated to be gentler on skin than body soaps.

If you’re a no frills kind of girl, you may find that soap cleansers are not only more convenient, but also more practical. They also tend to cost less than some of the other homemade daily face wash cleansers. Soap based facial cleansers are typically either a solid cold process soap bar or a liquid Castile based soap formulated specifically for your skin type. I prefer to use soap cleansers for my facial skin care routine in the summer when I sweat more and my skin tends to be on the oily side. Plus, who has time for eighty different products when the lake or that hiking trail is calling your name?

If you’re trying to go zero waste, then bar soaps are also a more eco-friendly option than a facial wash that comes in, what is usually, plastic packaging. When I make bar soaps to use as a homemade daily face wash, I skip the packaging entirely. It goes right into my shower and is ready for me when I’m ready for it. While scrubs, and other liquid soap-based facial cleanser, go into a plastic container when I whip them up, I do reuse my packaging to reduce waste. (You can reuse your plastic containers by washing them thoroughly, then running them through the dishwasher. A final spritz of rubbing alcohol before you pour your product will help to ensure nothing nasty is left lurking in your containers when it’s time for fresh product.)

Facial Soap Recipes

Following are a number of soap-based, homemade daily face wash recipes, including soap-based facial scrubs.

For more homemade bar soap recipes for natural skin care, visit Soap Deli News blog here. Or shop for handcrafted artisan facial soaps on Etsy.

Homemade Daily Face Wash: Clay Facial Cleansers

Clay facial cleansers are another option for a homemade daily face wash, especially if you are looking for a soap free facial cleanser. Formulated with clay as a primary ingredient, the primary purpose of these facial cleansers is to remove impurities and toxins from the skin. Depending on the clay used, they can also help remove excess oil and dry out acne breakouts for improved healing times. A simple wash off homemade daily face wash, I like to use clay facial cleansers when my skin leans more toward the oily side or during acne breakouts. And, for acne prone skin, these cleansers also double as a facial mask if desired. You’ll also find that you skin will benefit from the naturally occuring minerals found in the clays used.

There are a number of different types of clay. While bentonite clay is best suited for oily skin that’s prone to evil blackheads and whiteheads, there are clays that are also suited for dry or maturing skin. Here’s the skinny on the most common clays used in homemade daily face wash clay cleansers.

Benefits of Common Clays Used in Clay Facial Cleansers

Benefits of French Green

French green clay, also sometimes called sea clay, is also great for occasional breakouts or combination skin. Not only does it“drink” oils, toxic substances and impurities from skin, its natural toning action also stimulates the skin. This clay is great at clearing occasional skin blemishes. And, when used daily it can tackle those pesky trouble spots.

Benefits of Fuller’s Earth Clay

Fuller’s earth clay is considered a “whitening” clay. Not only is this sedimentary clay coined as a “facial bleach” that acts as a skin lightening agent, it also possesses an extraordinary ability to absorb oil. Best suited for oily skin, this clay is often used as base ingredient in facial clay recipes. A great addition to any clay facial cleanser recipe formulated for oily skin, Fuller’s earth clay works best when combined with a small amount of bentonite clay.

Benefits of Bentonite Clay

Like Fuller’s earth clay, Bentonite clay is sedimentary clay. Composed of weathered and aged volcanic ash, this cosmetic clay rapidly swells as it absorbs water. As it becomes hydrated, the electrical and molecular components of Bentonite clay rapidly changes and produces an electrical charge. (You may have heard that using metal to mix Bentonite clay will “deactivate” it. This is why.) Rich in minerals calcium, magnesium and iron, this clay is also well suited for oily or acne prone skin. Not only can it help remove oil from the skin’s surface, it can also have a calming effect on skin inflammation caused by acne breakouts.

Benefits of Rhassoul or Moroccan Red Clay

Rhassoul clay is a mineral rich, spa quality clay unearthed from ancient deposits in the mountains of Morocco. It blends easily with water for a smooth application and has been used for centuries as a soap, shampoo and skin conditioner. Mineral rich, cleansing and detoxifying, Rhassoul clay is well suited for dry or maturing skin. It can help rebalance dry, flaky or mature skin, while also improving texture and elasticity. However, it can be used for all skin types.

Benefits of Kaolin or White Cosmetic Clay

White cosmetic clay also makes a great addition to any clay based homemade face wash recipe. Like Rhassoul clay, white cosmetic clay can be used for any skin type. This fine, light clay is highly versatile and is found in virtually all powdered and dry cosmetics, as well as most wet cosmetics. It’s a common ingredient in soaps, scrubs, poultices, deodorants, facial powders and face masks. Suitable for even the most sensitive of skin, this clay gently cleanses and exfoliates skin while also helping to stimulate skin circulation.

Cleansing Facial Clay Recipes

Here are a few natural cleansing facial clay recipes you can try to use as a homemade daily face wash.

Activated Charcoal Detox Mask & Clay Cleanser Recipe (with Kaolin Clay)
Exfoliate & Detox Skin Polish & Cleansing Clay Recipe (with Bentonite Clay)
Soap Free DIY Clay Cleansing Bars (for Acne Prone & Maturing Skin)
Kaolin Clay Facial Cleanser Recipe
Coconut & Clay Facial Cleanser Recipe
DIY Tamanu Oil & Clay Facial Cleanser
Soothing Chamomile & Oat Facial Cleanser (with Bentonite Clay)

Homemade Daily Facial Cleanser: Milk Cleansers

If you have sensitive skin, there’s nothing like a gentle milk cleanser to help soothe and calm inflammation. A soap free cleanser, which in some ways is similar to an oil cleanser, milk cleansers are made with naturally emollient ingredients that erase dirt and makeup without stripping your skin. Typically milk cleansers are a combination of carrier oils, such as jojoba and squalene, that also moisturize skin. Yet, unlike a cleansing balm, milk cleansers are a much thinner milk-like consistency. So they are more likely to wash completely off.

Not all milk cleansers contain milk. The term refers more to the consistency of the product. However, the cleansers that do include milk may contain coconut milk or rice milk in lieu of cow or goat milk. Unfortunately, making a DIY milk cleanser that contains milk can be tricky to preserve. Therefore if you choose to create a DIY milk cleanser, I recommend using dry ingredients – such as buttermilk powder or powdered coconut milk – that you mix with a liquid of your choice just prior to use.

Alternately, you can also mix a dry exfoliants such as clay or colloidal oatmeal with milk to use as a homemade daily face wash. The dry ingredients will keep and you never have to worry about your facial cleanser spoiling. Cleansing grains are absolutely perfect for making a simple DIY milk cleanser! Keep reading below to discover some simple DIY milk cleansers that you can safely make at home.

DIY Milk Cleanser Recipes

Homemade Daily Face Wash: Micellar Water Cleansers

Micellar water cleansers are another soap free cleanser designed to cleanse skin without being drying. These gentle, water based cleansers are comprised primarily of tiny balls of oil cleansing molecules known as micelles, which attract dirt and oil to draw out impurities from skin. However, micellar water is more than just another facial cleanser. Not only does micellar water remove makeup and cleanse skin, it also acts as a toner cutting out the number of skin care products you need in your daily beauty routine. And, micellar water cleansers also work with all skin types – whether you skin is dry, oily or acne prone.

Micellar Water Recipes

Some of my favorite micellar water homemade daily face wash recipes are:

I hope you love my roundup of amazing, homemade daily face wash recipes. But if you’re not quite ready to dive into making your own natural skin care and beauty products, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite ready made products. I have a lovely collection of my favorite makeup, beauty and skin care products compiled on Etsy here. (Just be sure to pin these DIY facial cleansers when you’re ready to make DIY a part of your everyday life!)

For more daily face wash recipes and homemade skin care recipe, follow my boards on pinterest. You can also find and follow me on your favorite social media platforms, including Blog Lovin‘, facebook, twitter and instagram. Or sign up to receive my newsletter to stay in the loop.

Filed Under: Bath & Beauty Recipes, Lifestyle Tagged With: bath and beauty, bath and body, beauty balm, beauty recipes, clay cleansers, clay cleansing bar, cleansing balm, cleansing cream, cleansing oil, face care, face wash, facial care, facial cleanser, facial cleanser recipe, facial recipe, facial scrub, homemade soap, micellar water, milk cleansers, natural beauty, natural skin care, oil cleansers, soap cleansers, soap recipes

Fall Essential Oil Blends for Soaps (Plus A Fall Soap Recipe with Cocoa Butter)

I may receive compensation from links on this site. See my disclosure policy.

August 27, 2019 By Rebecca D. Dillon 4 Comments

Looking for fall essential oil blends for soaps? Try one of several great essential oil blend recipes in your fall inspired soaps this autumn. Plus learn how to make my easy fall soap recipe. Decorated with cute leaf embeds, this cold process fall soap recipe with cocoa butter is the perfect choice for daily cleansing as temps cool down and the stifling humidity of summer dissipates.

Plus discover fall skin care recipes for pumpkin spice bath bombs, DIY sugar scrubs, vanilla chai latte lotion bars and rebatched apple pie spice soap!

Crafting Fall Soaps with Essential Oils

Fall is more than just pumpkin spice. So if you’re looking for creative ways to scent your fall soaps, then you’ve come to the right place.

Essential Oil Safety Tips

There are a number of fall essential oil blends for soaps that you can use in your homemade soap recipes for a natural fragrance. However, it’s important to keep in mind that some essential oils, while they may smell amazing, aren’t always skin friendly.

Cinnamon bark essential oil, for example, is not skin safe. It causes skin irritation and therefore should not be used homemade soaps or skin care recipes. On the other hand, cinnamon leaf essential oil, while also an irritant can be used as a small percentage of your recipes when properly diluted – sans those sensitive parts and mucous membranes. However, I know that I am allergic to cinnamon essential oil. Even in small concentrations as part of a fragrance oil, it makes my skin red, irritated and itchy when used in soaps. So it’s important to perform a patch test on skin prior to using oils that are known irritants.

It may be that you choose to avoid using cinnamon leaf essential oil in order to avoid possible skin sensitivities when making soaps for your family. Therefore I’ve chosen to include several fall essential oil blends for soaps that omit cinnamon essential oil entirely.

There’s so much to learn about essential oils. Not only are some essential oils, such as cinnamon, known skin irritants, many are also not safe to use when pregnant. While other essential oils should not be used on children, are or if you have certain medical conditions. Certain essential oils, including most citrus oils, can also be phototoxic. Therefore care should be taken to cover skin and use sun protection when spending time outdoors. Pets can also be affected by essential oils being diffused in your home. So follow up with your vet on which essential oils are not pet safe to avoid causing harm to your pets. You also should never leave your pets in a closed room with an essential oil diffuser.

Where to Learn More

If you aren’t sure whether an essential oil is a skin irritant or not – unfortunately many of the scents for fall have the potential to be – you can check out the essential oil profile for each of the essential oils in these fall essential oil blends for soaps at Mountain Rose Herbs to learn more. You can also discover more tips for safely using essential oils here as well as an essential oil dilution chart here.

I’m so excited to use my own custom fall essential oil blends for soaps in upcoming recipes. Any one of these essential oil blends is the perfect match for my fall soap recipe with cocoa butter. So pick your favorite to customize the perfect homemade soaps for your family this fall! Or, if buying multiple essential oils is outside of your reach financially at this time, try out my fall soap recipe with your favorite seasonal, fall fragrance oil instead.

Fall Essential Oil Blends for Soaps

Ready to bask in your favorite fall scents as part of your morning bath routine? Following are a number of my favorite fall essential oil blends for soaps. They can be used in both cold process soap recipes as well as melt and pour soap recipes and hot process soap.

As these fall essential oil blends for soaps contain essential oils that can irritate skin if not properly diluted, I don’t recommend using more than .5% (or a half percent) in your soap formulations for those containing a high percentage of spice essential oils such as cinnamon and clove. However you can increase the amount up to 2% maximum for fall essential oil blends that either omit those essential oils or that are used in lower concentrations in a scent blend. Essential oils such as patchouli, lavender and frankincense have higher usage rates as they are generally skin safe and not irritating.

Additionally, if you’re looking to get more bang for your buck scent wise, you may find you can use a smaller percentage of fall essential oil blends in melt and pour soap recipes as well as hot process soaps. Alternately, you can also pop your soaps in the fridge, if you are making cold process soap, to prevent gel phase. (You can learn more about the gel phase in soap making at Lovin’ Soap here.)

Autumnal Bouquet Essential Oil Blend

Chai Tea Latte Essential Oil Blend

Pumpkin Spice Fall Essential Oil Blend

Fresh Baked Gingerbread Essential Oil Blend

Earth & Spice Fall Essential Oil Blend

Patchouli Lovers Fall Essential Oil Blend

Mulled Cider Fall Essential Oil Blend

Frankincense Fall Essential Oil Blend

Fall Colors Essential Oil Blend

Fall Garden Wreath Essential Oil Blend

Simple 2-Ingredient Fall Essential Oil Blends

Not quite ready for the more complex fall essential oil blends? Try one of these simple two-part essential oil blends in your homemade soaps or even your essential oil diffuser at a one-to-one ratio. For soap making, I recommend using the Lavender 40-42 essential oil as it is standardized oil used in the perfume and fragrance industry. Primarily used for soap and candle making, it’s important to note that lavender 40-42 is not intended for therapeutic use.

Equal parts lavender & rosemary essential oil
Equal parts lavender & orange essential oil
5 parts bergamot & 3 parts vanilla absolute
Equal parts lavender & fir needle essential oil
Equal parts bergamot mint & fir essential oil

Formulating a Fall Soap Recipe

As the seasons change from summer to fall, the air outside becomes drier and cooler. Our skin feels the environmental effects from this change and as a result it can also feel dry or itchy. Therefore you may find you need to switch up a number of your skin care products to account for this. I always find that I need to make a simple soap swap to negate the effects of the changing seasons. My easy fall soap recipe is perfectly suited for this time of year. It’s formulated so it won’t strip skin of the beneficial oils your skin needs to look and feel healthy as we make the transition from hot summer weather into the fall season.

My fall soap recipe is easy to make. It includes just four soap making fats – castor oil, coconut oil, cocoa butter and pomace olive oil. Perfect for both body and facial skin care, this homemade soap recipe contains a whopping 25% cocoa butter to condition skin in addition to 45% olive oil. While this fall soap does contain a high percentage of olive oil, you’ll find that the higher percentage of cocoa butter not only conditions skin, it also helps the bar harden faster. Thereby reducing the long cure that often comes with Castile and Bastille soap recipes.

Adding Fall Essential Oil Blends to Your Soaps

To scent your soaps, you can make up a master batch of your chosen fall essential oil blends for soaps above. Then add your essential oil blend to your soap batter at a light trace. Alternately you can also substitute the fall essential oil blend with a fragrance oil of your choice. Typically fragrance oils have a usage rate of around 5% for homemade soaps. However, some fragrance oils have a lower usage rate so be sure to refer to manufacturer guidelines when determining the amount of fragrance you need for your fall soap recipes.

You should also be aware that some essential oils, such as black pepper, may increase trace. Typically, if I know an essential oil will hasten trace times, I add it to the oils prior to mixing the soap making oils with the lye. However, should your soap seize on you, don’t give it. As it heats up it will go into gel phase and your fall soap batter will start to look translucent. At this points you’ll be able to remix the soap batter as you would if you were making hot process soap. Once the soap looks a bit like mashed potatoes, it’s ready to go into the mold.

Essential Oil Fall Soap Recipe

Ingredients for Fall Soap Embeds:

.8 oz. castor oil (10%)
1.6 oz. coconut oil (20%)
2.6 oz. cocoa butter (25%)
3.6 oz. pomace olive oil (45%)

2.85 fl. oz. distilled water (36% of oil weight)
1.05 oz. sodium hydroxide/lye (8% superfat)

.05 oz. fall essential oil blend, of choice (about .5%)
1/2 teaspoon apple green moss mica, or desired color
1/2 teaspoon copper sparkle mica, or desired color

Ingredients for Fall Soap Loaf:

2.4 oz. castor oil (10%)
4.8 oz. coconut oil (20%)
6 oz. cocoa butter (25%)
10.8 oz. pomace olive oil (45%)

7.9 fl. oz. distilled water (33% of oil weight)
3.25 oz. sodium hydroxide/lye (6% superfat)

.15 oz. fall essential oil blend, of choice (about .5%)
1 Tablespoon turmeric powder, or desired mica color
additional mica to swirl, if desired in color of choice

Fall Essential Oil Soap Making Notes:

If you’d like to incorporate soap embeds into your fall soap loaf, you will need to make these ahead of time. As the silicone leaf soap mold I chose had lots of smaller nooks and crannies, I did not apply a water discount to the recipe for embeds. However, this did mean I had to freeze my soap embeds the next day for about 3-4 hours to get them to come out of the mold cleanly.

I used this leaf soap mold for the embeds and this silicone loaf mold for the soap loaf. However, you can adjust this fall soap recipe to suit any size mold of your choosing. I also used a pumpkin shaped mold (and cut off the jack-o-lantern faces) to see what pumpkins inside the loaf would look like for two of my fall soap bars.

The embed soap recipe also has a higher superfat. Therefore it is soft enough that you can work with it like playdough to create custom shapes for soap embeds as desired. There is more than enough leftover soap to play with. Alternately, you can always use the same fall soap loaf recipe for both the embeds and the loaf.

To make both the fall leaf soap embeds, as well as the fall soap loaf scented with your favorite of the fall essential oil blends, you need to follow basic cold process soap making directions. Simply make the soap embeds first, per the cold process soap making instructions below. Then, once the embeds have hardened, you are ready to make the soap loaf. You can find more detailed cold process soap making directions here to further guide you on your soap making journey.

You need to follow all safety precautions when making cold process soap from scratch. This includes using heat safe containers and non-aluminum containers and utensils. Protective clothing and eyewear is also highly recommended.

Fall Soap Making Instructions:

Now let’s make a loaf of homemade falls soaps with your favorite fall essential oils blends for soaps!

Begin by measuring out the water called for in the soap recipe. Pour into a heat safe container. Then use a digital scale to weigh out the lye into a separate container. Carefully pour the lye into the water in a well ventilated area. Then mix well until all the lye has dissolved and set aside. (This step can emit fumes. Therefore I recommend using an exhaust fan. Alternately, you can mix the lye into the water outdoors.)

Next, weigh out all the soap making oils and butters. This includes the cocoa butter, coconut oil, castor oil and pomace olive olive. Combine the carrier oils and cocoa butter in a heat safe container. Then melt the ingredients on the stove, in a crockpot or at reduced power in a microwave. Once melted, remove the melted oils and cocoa butter from the heat source and set aside.

While the lye-water and soapmaking oils cool, weigh out the the fall essential oil blend you’ve chosen for your soaps into a glass measuring cup. (You should prepare a master batch of your favorite fall essential oil blends for soaps prior to starting the soap making process.)

Then measure out the mica powder or other cold process soap colorant of your choice into a small dish or container separate from the essential oil blend.

Once both the lye-water and soap making oils reach about 85°F-90°F, you’re ready to continue making my fall soap recipe.

For the soap embeds.

Mix the lye water and soap making oils together, using an immersion blender, until the soap batter reaches a light trace. Then pour half of the soap batter into another heat safe container. Add the green mica powder to one container and the copper mica to the other. Then mix separately and pour into your mold(s.)

For the soap loaf.

Start by adding the soap colorant (and the essential oil blend if desired) to the melted soap making oils and cocoa butter. Mix briefly with an immersion blender to distribute the additives throughout the oil mixture.

Follow with the lye-water. Then mix until you achieve a light trace.

Add the fall essential oil blend to the soap batter if you did not add it in previous step. Then continue mixing the soap batter until you reach a medium to heavy trace. (I overmixed my soap batter to be sure I did not get a false trace as my fall soap recipe calls for a high percentage of cocoa butter.)

Pour a small layer of soap into the bottom of the loaf mold, then add any embeds you’d like to appear inside your fall soap loaf. Then pour the rest of the soap batter into the loaf mold. Use a fork or other utensil to add designs to the top of the soap loaf as desired. Then place the remaining soap embeds onto the top of the soap loaf. Set aside.

You should be able to unmold your soaps after 24 to 48 hours. Once unmolded, cut the loaf into slices as desired. Then allow your fall soap bars to cure in a cool, dry location for four to six weeks. After which, you can wrap and label your soaps for personal use or to give as seasonal fall soap gifts.

If you’d like to sell the homemade soaps you create from my fall soap recipe, you need to follow good manufacturing practices (GMP) when making your homemade soaps. The book, Good Manufacturing Practices for Soap and Cosmetic Handcrafters by Marie Gale, is a valuable resource if you’re just getting started making your own homemade soaps, skin care products and cosmetics.

In addition to GMP, you also need to follow FDA guidelines for labeling your homemade soaps. If you’re unsure about the rules and regulations regarding labeling cosmetics, the book, Soap and Cosmetic Labeling: How to Follow the Rules and Regs Explained in Plain English by Marie Gale, spells out everything you need to know to legally label your products in the United States.

Love my fall soap recipe and collection of fall essential oil blends for soaps? Then be sure to pin this post to your Pinterest boards for later!

Creative Ways to Package Fall Soaps

Need ideas for creative ways to package your fall soaps you scented with your favorite fall essential oil blends for soaps? Check out this collection of soap packaging ideas to discover ways to use scrapbook papers, bakers twine, ribbon and other elements to elevate your fall soaps to the next level. There are also soap packaging ideas for using boxes and bags as well as tips for packaging round soaps. You can also find more inspiration for your soap packaging on Etsy here.

More Soap Recipes for Your Fall Essential Oil Blends

You can swap out the fragrance oils in other fall soap recipes with your favorite fall essential oil blends for soaps to customize your creations with natural fragrances. Here are some of my other fall soap recipes you may enjoy. Just be sure to reduce the amount of the fall essential oil blends your use in these soaps to between .5%-2% depending on the recommended usage rate for those essential oils.

Not quite ready to try my fall soap recipe with your favorite fall essential oil blends? Then be sure to shop for handmade artisan soaps on Etsy here. I also have a huge collection of pumpkin spice bath and body favorites that you may enjoy. This collection includes not just seasonal fall soaps in pumpkin spice, but bath bombs, bubble bars, body butters, dry shampoo and more!

New Fall Skin Care Recipes to Try

Once you’ve made homemade soaps for fall, be sure to check out some of these other fantastic fall skin care recipes for all over body care. You’ll find that your favorite fall essential oil blends will work great in these cool weather inspired homemade skin care recipes.

DIY Sugar Scrub Cubes (3 Recipes for Fall)

Learn how to make three fall-inspired DIY sugar scrub cubes: fall bouquet, cinnamon churro and caffè mocha. These easy to make sugar scrub cubes exfoliate, moisturize and cleanse your skin all in one simple step. They’re made with melt and pour soap, shea butter and coconut oil for gentle cleansing. Plus, they’re scented with fall essential oil blends and dried flowers so they’re both non-toxic and all-natural. Get the recipes here.

Apple Pie Spice Oatmeal Doughnut Soaps

Turn hotel soaps into adorable DIY apple pie spice oatmeal doughnut soaps for autumn with this easy soap making tutorial. These rebatched soaps are easy to make with bars of soap, ground oatmeal, and an apple pie spice fall essential oil blend. Learn how to make yours here.

Vanilla Chai Latte DIY Lotion Bars

Turn your favorite fall drink into easy DIY lotion bars with this fall skin care recipe! These chai latte massage bars are made with all-natural moisturizing ingredients. The recipe includes traditional chai ingredients (and a hint of vanilla) to spice up your new go-to fall lotion bar. Get the recipe now.

DIY Pumpkin Spice Bath Bombs (3 Fall Bath Bomb Recipes)

Celebrate autumn with three fall bath bomb recipes! Pumpkin spice, pumpkin spice latte and pumpkin pie bath bombs create cozy fall vibes while you relax in the tub. These easy homemade bath bombs are also made with fall essential oil blends and contain natural, moisturizing ingredients that hydrate your skin while you enjoy the aromatherapy benefits of the essential oils. Learn to make them now.

For more homemade soap recipes and essential oil ideas be sure to follow my boards on pinterest. You can also find me on your favorite social media platforms! Follow me on Blog Lovin‘, facebook, twitter and instagram. Or sign up to receive my newsletter to stay in the loop.

Filed Under: Homemade Gift Ideas, Soapmaking Tagged With: bath and body, cocoa butter, cold process soap, cold process soap recipe, cold process soapmaking, crafts, diy, essential oil blend, essential oil recipes, essential oils, fall, fall crafts, gift idea, natural skin care, pumpkin spice, soap recipe, soap tutorial, soapmaking

How to Make Bath Bombs (& A Natural Bath Bomb Recipe with Shea Butter)

I may receive compensation from links on this site. See my disclosure policy.

July 21, 2019 By Rebecca D. Dillon 5 Comments

Have you ever wondered how to make bath bombs? Considering how easy it is to get hooked on using bath bombs, it’s not a surprise that you’d want to learn how to make your own DIY bath bombs. Keep reading to learn how to make bath bombs with an easy, natural bath bomb recipe with shea butter.

It’s not hard to get hooked on bath bombs. Especially if you love taking baths. However, if you’ve tried a lot of bath bombs, then you’ve likely noticed that there’s a big difference between cheap commercial bath bombs and ones that are handmade. As someone with extremely sensitive skin, I can’t indulge in bath bombs made with cheap fillers and synthetic ingredients. They not only cause skin irritation and rashes, but sometimes I’ll itch for days afterwards.

The same is true for soap fragrances. While the soap recipe might be perfect for my skin, the wrong fragrance can totally leave me itching for weeks. So much in fact, that I’ll wake up in the middle of the night scratching. Sometimes pinning down the ingredient that caused an allergic skin reaction can be a challenge. Therefore, I try to stick to natural colorants, scents and ingredients when I make my own homemade soap and skin care products. This is even more important when making bath bombs. Because unlike soap, which causes a reaction even after its been rinsed off, I’m soaking in a tub with that bath bomb for quite some time

Let’s Learn How to Make Bath Bombs

My natural bath bomb recipe is perfect for anyone who suffers from skin sensitivities and allergies. Not only is it made with natural colorants for bath bombs – in this case pink kaolin clay and orange peel powder – it also contains hydrating shea butter and an uplifting essential oil blend. Are you ready to to learn how to make bath bombs? Keep reading to learn no just how to make my natural bath bomb recipe, but also about the skin care benefits of the bath bomb ingredients I used.

What Gives Bath Bombs Their Fizz?

There are two key ingredients that give bath bombs their fizz. They are citric acid and baking soda. When combine, the chemical reaction between these two ingredients creates carbon dioxide. This in turn makes the bath bombs fizz. Some bath bombs, such as the bath bombs made popular by Lush, also contain synthetic foaming agents such sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate (SLSA) or sodium coco-sulfate (SCI.) The addition of these ingredients gives bath bombs amazing bubbles in addition to the fizz.

Tips on How to Make Awesome Bath Bombs

When learning how to make bath bombs, I recommend starting with a simple basic bath bomb recipe. This will give you a feel as to how bath bombs are made and familiarize you with the process. The basic idea behind making bath bombs isn’t difficult. However, there are tips and tricks you need to know when making bath bombs. Otherwise, you may end up with bath bombs that fizz prematurely. Or, in the process of making round bath bombs with a two-piece mold, you may find that your two halves don’t stick together.

Beginners mistakes, however, are easy to make. In fact, I’ve made them myself in the past. Luckily, with a little research first on how to make bath bombs, you can minimize or even prevent making these mistakes entirely.

Formulating Your Own Bath Bomb Recipes

Once you get the hang of how to make bath bombs, you can begin formulating your own bath bomb recipes. There are some basic rules that can help you either create your own bath bomb recipes from scratch or customize and existing recipe.

Tip #1

I recommend using ingredient weights when formulating your bath bomb recipes, rather than unit measurements. Not only is this a more accurate way to create a bath bomb recipe, it also makes it easier to determine the amount of fragrances or other ingredients needed for your recipe as recommended usage rates are provided as a percentage. This will also make it easier to scale your bath bomb recipe up or down at a later date. As such, you will need a digital scale to weigh out the ingredients when you make your bath bombs.

Tip #2

When using baking soda and citric acid as the base for your bath bombs, the recommended ratio is to use two parts baking soda to one part citric acid. If you’d like to use a foaming agent, such as SLSA or even sodium cocoyl isethionate, it should account for anywhere between 15%-25% of your recipe.

You can make bath bombs without citric acid. However, a combination of baking soda and citric acid produces the best fizz. Using lemon juice as a substitute can set off your fizz prematurely. And it can be a challenge in high humidity. While using cream of tartar, reduces the fizz reaction even further. Therefore, if you want to make the best bath bomb recipe, I recommend using citric acid.

Tip #3

Additional dry ingredients are typically added to a bath bomb recipe to prevent premature fizzing. Dry ingredients such as arrowroot powder, cream of tartar, cornstarch and clay can be use based on your preference. I like to choose my own dry ingredients for bath bombs based on the desired result and skin care benefits of those ingredients. These dry ingredients can be added to your bath bomb formulation with or without a foaming agent such as SLSA. When adding dry ingredients, it’s important that they don’t comprise of more than one half of the amount of citric acid in your recipe. Otherwise the fizzing performance of your bath bombs may be affected.

Tip #4

It’s not recommended that you add Epsom salt or Dead Sea Salt to your bath bomb formulations. This is because the magnesium in these ingredients draws moisture from the air into your bath bombs. This in turn can cause premature fizzing. However, I’ve made a number of bath bomb recipes using salt with success. (These bath bomb recipes include my Epsom salt bath bomb recipe for chronic pain as well as my rose essential oil bath bomb recipe. I also have a hidden color bath bomb recipe with magnesium flakes.) By adding a hard butter to your recipe, I’ve found that it does prevent premature fizzing. Just be sure to wrap your creations tightly once they’ve dried.

Tip #5

Rather than using a liquid for making bath bombs, such as witch hazel, I instead use a combination of carrier oils and/or body butters. As I live in a humid area, I’ve found that these ingredients work better at preventing your bath bombs from exploding early due to high humidity. If you prefer to use a liquid rather than oils or butters in your bath bombs, then stick with 90% or higher isopropyl alcohol. It evaporates more quickly than witch hazel, thereby making it more suitable for humid climates.

Tip #6

There are a number of options when it comes to choosing colorants for your bath bombs. You’ll learn more about different colorants and how they react in bath bombs – and ultimately bath water – as you experiment more and learn how to make your own recipes. Natural colorants, such as colored clays or botanical powders are one option. While lake dyes and micas are another. If you love a show in your bathtub, like the ones you get from hidden rainbow colored bath bombs, then lake dyes or dyes formulated specifically for bath bombs are the way to go. They will give the biggest color show and won’t leave a colored ring around your tub once the bathwater drains out. Lake dyes typically account for 28-34% of the total weight of a bath bomb recipe.

Tip #7

You should not use food coloring in your bath bomb recipes. Not only can food coloring stain both your skin and the tub, it’s simply bad practice especially if you’re formulating recipes to sell or give as gifts. In addition, it’s also important to note that not all colorants are approved for use in bath bombs. Some green colorants, for example, including green chromium oxide, are not approved by the FDA for use in bath bombs. Therefore you should do your research on colorants before deciding which ones to use. While some colorants can be used in wash off products such as soaps or body wash, it’s not always true for things like lotions or bath bombs where there is a longer exposure time.

On the other hand, for little to no color show, you can use natural colorants or mica powders. Natural colorants, such as the spinach powder and French green clay I used in my natural mango butter bath bombs, are an easy way to create a green color. Alternately, mica powder can be used in significantly smaller quantities than both natural colorants for bath bombs or lake dyes. They’ll give your bath bombs bright colors before they go into the tub, but very muted tones once diluted in bathwater.

Tip #8

If you choose to use skin safe cosmetic micas, then you will need to also use polysorbate 80. Polysorbate 80 works as an emulsifier when used in bath bomb bombs. Soluble in water and alcohol, it binds with the colorants and oils used to make your bath bombs and helps disperse them evenly throughout your bathwater. This keeps any oils or fragrances you used in your recipe from floating on top of your bathwater. It also prevents the colorants used from sticking to both your skin and the tub and it helps glitter disperse more evenly. As such, if you don’t mind using non-natural ingredients to make your bath bombs, polysorbate 80 makes a wonderful addition to your bath bomb recipes whether you use mica or not. The suggested usage rater for mica is 1-2% of your recipe.

Skin Care Benefits of My Natural Bath Bomb Ingredients

Now that you know how to make bath bombs, let’s move on to my natural bath bomb recipe and why I chose to use the ingredients I did.

Having sensitive skin can make it challenge to find the perfect skin care products. From anti-aging skin care to anti-acne treatments, there’s a whole world of potential skin reactions waiting to happen. Therefore, I chose each of the ingredients used in my bath bomb recipe for their specific skin care benefits. These ingredients include orange peel powder, shea butter, pink kaolin clay and an easy, aromatherapeutic essential oil blend.

Orange Peel Powder

Vitamin C is the new anti-aging skin care treatment. However, daily doses of vitamin C serums or creams, while practical for our faces, isn’t quite so practical for our bodies. By adding orange peel powder to your natural bath bombs, you can give your entire body a boost of Vitamin C’s antioxidant benefits. Not only does Vitamin C help stimulate collagen production, it can also help repair damage from free radicals, brighten skin and fade dark spots caused by hyperpigmentation.

In addition, orange peel powder can also help unclog pores, tone skin, diminish the appearance of scars and reduce inflammation. It’s also an effective treatment for body acne. So if you struggle with back acne – or even acne anywhere on your body – adding orange peel powder to your bath can prevent acne breakouts and promote healing.

Pink Kaolin Clay

Pink kaolin clay is a naturally occurring cosmetic clay. Its color comes from combination of both white and red kaolin clays. Suitable for sensitive skin, this natural rose colored clay helps balance out skin and absorb excess oils, while also gently cleansing skin. It also lends my natural bath bomb recipe a pink color. Combined with the orange powder, these two natural bath bomb colorants give the resulting bath bombs a peach-like color.

Refined Shea Butter

Shea butter is hydrating body butter that’s naturally rich in vitamins A and E. Rich in essential fatty acids as well as other vitamins and minerals, shea butter offers a number of skin supporting properties. Commonly used as a natural moisturizer, shea butter is also used as a component in skin care formulations that target acne. I used refined shea butter, which has been deodorized, for my natural bath bomb recipe in order to allow the fragrance of my essential oil blend to shine through.

Essential Oils

Essential oils offer a number of aromatherapeutic and skin care benefits. For my natural bath bomb recipe, I created an essential oil blend containing grapefruit essential oil, sweet orange essential oil and cardamom essential oil for their uplifting and re-energizing properties.

Grapefruit essential oil, specifically, is often used in aromatherapy to combat acne, reduce stress, stimulate circulation, increase energy, enhance mood and improve digestion.

Tips for Making No Fail Bath Bombs

Now that you’ve learned about the ingredients that went into my natural bath bomb recipe, here are some easy tips for success when you’re ready to get started.

Tip #1

As you are working with fine powders such as SLSA or even citric acid, it’s recommended that you wear a face mask respirator or dust mask. This keeps small particles from being inhaled when mixing your bath bomb ingredients together. In addition, nitrile gloves are also recommend. Not only will this prevent colorants from staining your hands, it will also keep the citric acid from burning any open cuts or scratches.

Tip #2

Some ingredients, such as orange peel powder as well as certain essential oils, can cause photosensitivity. Therefore you should take extra care to use sunscreen and wear protective clothing if you plan to spend time in the sun. (You can learn which essential oils are phototoxic along with safe usage instructions for phototoxic essential oils here.)

Tip #3

When using a two part bath bomb mold, it’s important not to pack each side before pressing the two sides of the mold together. Otherwise, the two sides won’t stick together resulting in two half spheres rather than a single solid one. Instead, you should pile each side of the mold loosely with your bath bomb mixture. Lightly compact each side, then pile more of the bath bomb mixture into each side of the mold. Finally, firmly press both sides of your bath bomb mold together. (It’s important not to twist the two sides of mold together when using a round bath bomb mold.) Then gently tap around the edges of the mold with a spoon to release your bath bomb.

For one piece bath bomb molds, use the same process. However, instead of pressing the mold against another half, firmly pack the remaining bath bomb mixture into the mold with your hands. Tap the mold with a spoon to help release the bath bomb if necessary. I suggest you set the molds onto a cutting board, then tap until the bath bomb slides out when the mold is lifted off.

Tip #4

Your bath bomb mixture, once mixed, should be the consistency of wet sand. When picking up a clump of the mixture with your hands, it should hold together when squeezed then dropped back into the container. This is important. If your bath bombs are too dry they may crumble and not hold together. On the other hand, if they are too wet, you may get a premature fizz in addition to having difficulty releasing the bath bombs from the mold.

Natural Bath Bomb Recipe with Shea Butter

Ingredients:

8 oz. baking soda
4.5 oz. citric acid
2 oz. refined shea butter
.5 oz. orange peel powder
.25 oz. pink kaolin clay
.25 oz. arrowroot powder
2.5 mL grapefruit essential oil
1 mL sweet orange essential oil
.5 mL cardamom essential oil
carrier oil of choice, as needed

Instructions:

My natural bath bomb recipe is made using the peach bath bomb mold from this set. However, you’re welcome to use any bath bomb mold of your choosing when making my shea butter bath bombs. Likewise, you can always substitute the essential oil blend I used for my natural bath bomb recipe with a peach fragrance oil at the manufacturer’s suggested usage rate.

Begin by weighing out refined shea butter using a digital scale. Place the shea butter into a heat safe container. Heat at 30% power in the microwave until melted. Alternately, you may also use the double boiler method. Once the shea butter has melted, remove from heat.

Next, measure out the essential oils using a fresh graduated plastic transfer pipette for each essential oil. Then add to the melted shea butter. Mix to combine. Then set aside.

Next, weigh out the baking soda, citric acid, arrowroot powder, orange peel powder and pink kaolin clay into a in a separate container. Mix the dry ingredients until thoroughly combined.

Now add the melted shea butter with the essential oils to the dry ingredients mixing as you go. Mix until the entire concoction is the consistency of wet sand. If it’s too dry, stir in a small amount of a carrier oil of your choice, a little at a time, until it reaches the proper consistency.

To make my natural bath bomb recipe, pile the mixture into the peach shaped bath bomb mold. Lightly compact the bath bomb mixture into the mold, then repeat the step. Follow by firmly pressing the bath bomb mixture into the mold. Then unmold. Repeat for each shea butter bath bomb until you’ve used up all of your natural bath bomb mixture.

Once your shea butter bath bombs have hardened, wrap or package as desired for personal use or gifting.

More Bath Bomb Recipes to Try

Once you’d tried my shea butter bath bomb recipe, be sure to give one of these other homemade bath bomb recipes a try.

Natural Bath Bomb Recipes

Spinach & French Green Clay Bath Bombs with Natural Colorants
Epsom Salt Bath Bombs for Natural Pain Relief
Lavender & Chamomile Bath Bombs with Natural Botanicals
Homemade Holiday Peppermint Bath Bombs with Essential Oil
Lavender Essential Oil Bath Bombs with Shea Butter
Lemongrass & Sage Bath Bomb Minis
Natural Cola Bath Bombs with Essential Oils
Rose Petal Vanilla Bath Bombs with Natural Colorants

Creative Bath Bomb Recipes

Fizzing Shamrock Bath Truffles
Cranberry Fig Fizzing Bath Truffles for the Holidays
Moisturizing Bath Fizzy Powder Recipe
Halloween Pumpkin Bath Bomb Recipe
DIY Easter Egg Bath Bombs with Glitter
DIY Mermaid Bath Bombs with Moisturizing Cocoa Butter Shells
Hidden Rainbow Bath Bomb Embed Bars
Hidden Color Pineapple Bath Bombs for Summer Self Care
Rose Essential Oil Bath Bomb Recipe
Homemade Milk & Honey Bath Bombs
Moisturizing Strawberry Milkshake Bath Bomb Recipe

Once you’ve gotten comfortable creating your own natural bath bombs, invite your friends to join in the fun! Learn how to throw a bath bomb party for a girls night in to create self care treats. Or get together to craft homemade holiday gifts for friends and family.

I’m so excited that you’ve chosen to start your natural skin care journey! I hope you’ll stick with me as I continue to share new recipes for natural bath bombs, homemade soaps and fabulous skin care products! You can keep up with my new recipes and healthy lifestyle posts by following me across your favorite social media platforms. Follow me now via Pinterest, facebook, twitter and instagram. Or sign up to receive my newsletter to stay in the loop.

Filed Under: Bath & Beauty Recipes Tagged With: anti-acne, anti-aging, bath bomb recipe, bath bombs, bath tutorial, crafts, diy, essential oils, natural skin care, shea butter, vitamin c

Easy Bath Bomb Recipe with Natural Ingredients for Beautiful Glowing Skin

I may receive compensation from links on this site. See my disclosure policy.

July 15, 2019 By Rebecca D. Dillon 3 Comments

This easy bath bomb recipe is crafted with a combination of skin conditioning butters and essential oils. Naturally colored with spinach powder and French green clay, this natural bath bomb recipe not only fights the visible signs of aging, it can also help prevent or clear up back acne. While the other skin care ingredients prevent your skin from being stripped of beneficial oils – a known cause of overproduction of sebum that can lead to oily skin and acne.

Easy Bath Bombs Your Skin Will Love

If you’ve never made bath bombs before, you may have found that first time a little challenging. There are a number of factors that go into making bath bombs, and unfortunately, they can easily be affected by humidity. While you can’t control the weather, there are tips and tricks for making that perfect no fail bath bomb. These tips, in combination with an easy bath bomb recipe, can help guarantee success from the start.

Many store bought bath bombs are filled with cheap, synthetic ingredients. Not only can these ingredients irritate sensitive skin, they really don’t offer any skin care benefits. Therefore, I created an easy bath bomb recipe that contains natural ingredients that skin loves.

If you’re familiar with my previous bath bomb recipes, then you know how much I love using natural butters like cocoa, shea and mango butters in my bath bomb recipes. Including a body butter in your bath bomb formulation makes the finished product more moisturizing. Additionally, you’ll also find that adding butters to your homemade bath bombs helps your bath bombs harden faster. And it can even help them resist the unwanted effects of high humidity. Therefore, I chose to include mango butter in this homemade bath bomb recipe.

Additionally, rather than use mica powder or lake dyes to color this easy bath bomb recipe, I chose to work with natural, plant-based colorants instead. For this particular bath bomb recipe, I used both French green clay and nutrient rich natural spinach powder. When combined, these two natural ingredients give this easy bath bomb recipe a forest green tint. This is, of course, in addition to the natural skin care benefits these ingredients offer.

Skin Care Benefits of Natural Bath Bomb Ingredients

So, just what are the benefits of using these natural ingredients in your homemade bath bombs? And why are ingredients like mango butter, spinach powder and French green clay good for our skin?

Skin Care Benefits of Spinach Powder

Spinach plays an important role in skin care, whether you’re consuming it and incorporating it into your natural skin care routine. Spinach is naturally rich in iron, folate, chlorophyll, Vitamin E, magnesium, Vitamin A, fiber, plant protein, and Vitamin C. As Vitamins C, E, and A have antioxidant abilities, they are are especially beneficial for your skin. These antioxidants destroy free radicals that cause premature aging. Antioxidants can also help fight the visible signs of aging and even out your complexion. Thereby making your skin look and feel more radiant.

Spinach powder is also amazing at reducing acne to promote clear skin. Whether you use spinach powder as a mask, or in my easy bath bomb recipe, you’ll find that it removes both dirt & oil and reduces inflammation for rejuvenated skin. This makes spinach powder especially useful at treating back acne which tends to be more prevalent in the summer, regardless of your skin type, when incorporated into a bath bomb. However, you can also use spinach powder as an added ingredient in both melt and pour soap and cold process soap recipes.

Skin Care Benefits of French Green Clay

As with other clays, French green clay offers a variety of skin care benefits when incorporated into natural skin care products, such as my easy bath bomb recipe. Green, due to its high content of iron oxide and decomposed plant matter, French green clay (also known as Illite clay) is also rich in dolomite, manganese, silica, copper, phosphorous, magnesium, zinc and calcium. Not only does this clay detox skin to remove impurities, it also cleanses and gently exfoliates skin.

French green clay, like spinach powder, is also suitable for oily, clogged and acne prone skin. As it’s a highly absorbent clay, it is able to hold almost equal its weight in liquid. However, there’s no need to be concerned if you don’t have oily or acne prone skin. French green clay is gentle enough that it’s suited for all skin types. Therefore it makes a wonderful addition to facial masks, soaps and deodorants to gently detox and clarify skin.

Skin Care Benefits of Mango Butter

Like spinach powder, mango butter is also vitamins like A and E, essential fatty acids and natural antioxidants. A highly moisturizing plant-based butter, mango butter is light and non-greasy. And, because mango butter is non-comedogenic, it won’t clog pores or aggravate acne prone skin. This makes mango butter suitable for pretty much every skin type – even if you have acne prone skin.

Tips & Tricks for Making My Easy Bath Bomb Recipe

Now that you’re familiar with the ingredients I added to my natural bath bomb recipe for their inherent skin care properties, here are a few tips and tricks to help you create the perfect bath bombs.

Bath Bomb Tip #1

When formulating your own bath bomb recipes, it’s important to add dry ingredients in addition to the baking soda and citric acid that give bath bombs their fizz. This not only helps to bind your bath bombs together, it can also prevent a premature fizz. Dry ingredients that are commonly used for this purpose include arrowroot powder, cream of tartar, cornstarch and clay. Just be sure that the additional dry ingredients don’t equal more than one half the weight of the citric acid called for in your bath bomb recipe.

Bath Bomb Tip #2

Before mixing the dry ingredients for your bath bomb formulations, you should sift them first through a sieve. This will help avoid lumps and bumps in your bath bombs.

Bath Bomb Tip #3

Naturally scenting your bath bombs with citrus essential oils can hinder your bath bombs’ ability to fully dry. You can counteract this, however, by adding hard butters to your bath bomb recipe.

Bath Bomb Tip #4

Use water soluble colorants to color your bath bombs such as lake dyes or dyes specifically formulated for use in bath bombs. Otherwise, if you use micas to color your bath bombs, you’ll also need to use Polysorbate 80 to prevent your colorants from staining the tub or skin. It will also prevent a ring around the tub or floating mica. The recommended usage rate for Polysorbate 80 is 1-2% of the total batch weight and should be added to the liquids prior to mixing the dry and wet ingredients together.

It’s also important to keep in mind that not all green colorants, including green chromium oxide, aren’t approved by the FDA for use in bath bombs. So be sure to do your research on colorants before deciding which ones to use. Additionally, if you are selling your homemade bath bombs, it’s important that you use batch certified colorants.

Bath Bomb Tip #5

When using a two part bath bomb mold it’s important not to pack each side before pressing the two sides of the mold together. Otherwise, the two sides won’t stick together. Instead, you should pile each side of the mold loosely with your bath bomb mixture. Lightly compact each side, then pile more of the bath bomb mixture into each side of the mold. Finally, firmly press both sides of your bath bomb mold together. (It’s important not to twist the two sides of mold together when using a round bath bomb mold.) Then gently tap around the edges of the mold with a spoon to release your bath bomb.

For one piece bath bomb molds, use the same process. However, instead of pressing the mold against another half, firmly pack the remaining bath bomb mixture into the mold with your hands. Tap the mold with a spoon to help release the bath bomb if necessary. I like to set these molds onto a cutting board, then tap until the bath bomb slides out when the mold is lifted off.

Bath Bomb Tip #6

Your bath bomb mixture, once mixed should be the consistency of wet sand. When picking up a clump of the mixture with your hands, it should hold together when squeezed then dropped back into the container. This is important. If your bath bombs are too dry they may crumble and not hold together. On the other hand, if they are too wet, you may get a premature fizz in addition to having difficulty releasing the bath bombs from the mold.

Bath Bomb Tip #7

If you’re new to making bath bombs, then I highly recommend Amanda Gail Aaron’s book, Fun in the Tub: Creating Bath Bombs, Solid Bubble Bath, Bubble Frosting and Bubble Scoops. Amanda, the author behind the blog Lovin’ Soap, shares an array of helpful tips and tricks for making bath bombs in this DIY bath bomb book. In addition, she not only provides a combination of easy to advanced bath bomb recipes, she also focuses on formulation and teaches you how to modify recipes to work in your environment.

Making My Easy Bath Bomb Recipe

Are you ready to try my easy bath bomb recipe with mango butter and essential oils? Let’s get started!

As I formulated my easy bath bomb recipe with only natural ingredients, I chose to scent my bath bombs with a combination of essential oils. This essential oil blend is an uplifting combination of lemongrass (or lemon), palmarosa and bergamot essentials oils. However, you have the option of substituting my essential oil blend with one of your choice. Alternately, if you don’t mind using synthetic fragrances, you can also use a skin safe fragrance oil at the recommended percentage rate. (This is determined by the manufacturer and can vary by scent.)

I used the leaf mold and the small round mold from this bath bomb mold collection for my easy bath bomb recipe. (I cannot tell you how much I LOVE these molds!) However, you’re welcome to use any molds of your choosing.

Easy Bath Bomb Recipe with Mango Butter

Ingredients:

8 oz. baking soda
4.5 oz citric acid
.5 oz. spinach powder
.25 oz. arrowroot powder
.25 oz. French green clay
2 oz. mango butter
liquid carrier oil of choice, as needed
2 mL lemongrass (or lemon) essential oil
1 mL palmarosa essential oil
1 mL bergamot essential oil

Instructions:

Begin by weighing out mango butter. (You will need a digital scale for this step.) Place the mango butter into a heat safe container. Heat at 30% power in the microwave, or using the double boiler method, until melted. Remove from heat.

Next, measure out the essential oils using a fresh graduated plastic transfer pipette for each essential oil. Then add to the melted mango butter. Mix to combine. Then set aside.

Next, weigh out the baking soda, citric acid, arrowroot powder, spinach powder and French green clay into a in a separate container. Mix the dry ingredients until thoroughly combined.

Now add the melted mango butter with the essential oils to the dry ingredients mixing as you go. Mix until the entire concoction is the consistency of wet sand. If it’s too dry, stir in a small amount of a carrier oil of your choice, a little at a time, until it reaches the proper consistency. (See tip #6.)

To make this easy bath bomb recipe, pile the mixture into your bath bomb mold of choice. Lightly compact the bath bomb mixture into the mold, then repeat the step. Follow by firmly pressing the bath bomb mixture into the mold. Then unmold. (See tip #5 for more detailed instructions.)

Once your homemade bath bombs have hardened, wrap as desired for personal use or gifting.

If you’d like to sell your natural bath bombs, then you will need to follow all labeling requirements for your product. If you aren’t familiar with how to label your homemade bath bombs for sale, then I recommend the book, Soap and Cosmetic Labeling: How to Follow the Rules and Regs Explained in Plain English, by Marie Gale.

More Easy Bath Bomb Recipes

Now that you’ve tried my easy bath bomb recipe with mango butter, here are some other homemade bath bomb recipes you can make.

Once you’re comfortable making bath bombs, you can also make rainbow bar embeds for rainbow hidden color bath bombs. You can find the recipe for rainbow hidden color bath bomb embeds here.

For more natural bath bomb recipes, check out my boards on Pinterest board. You can also find me on your favorite social media platforms including Blog Lovin‘, facebook, twitter and instagram. Or sign up to receive my newsletter to stay in the loop.

Filed Under: Bath & Beauty Recipes, Health & Wellness Tagged With: anti-acne, anti-aging, aromatherapy, bath and body, bath bomb recipe, bath bombs, bath tutorial, crafts, diy, essential oil blend, essential oils, french green clay, gift idea, mango butter, natural skin care, self care, stress relief

Botanical Skin Care Course Review (Plus A Vanilla Whipped Body Butter Recipe)

Botanical Skin Care Course Review

Why I Love (& Recommend) The Botanical Skin Care Course

Some of My Favorite Information from The Course

Botanical Body Care Recipes Within the Course

Botanical Skin Care Recipe Book

Vanilla Whipped Body Butter Recipe

Ingredients:

Instructions:

Homemade Daily Face Wash Recipes for Your Natural Skin Care Routine

Homemade Daily Face Wash Recipes

Benefits of Making A Homemade Daily Face Wash

Different Types Of Homemade Daily Face Wash

Homemade Daily Face Wash: Cleansing Balms

Cleansing Balm Recipes

Homemade Daily Facial Cleanser: Oil Cleansers

Oil Cleanser Recipes

Homemade Daily Facial Cleanser: Soap Cleansers

Facial Soap Recipes

Homemade Daily Face Wash: Clay Facial Cleansers

Benefits of Common Clays Used in Clay Facial Cleansers

Benefits of French Green

Benefits of Fuller’s Earth Clay

Benefits of Bentonite Clay

Benefits of Rhassoul or Moroccan Red Clay

Benefits of Kaolin or White Cosmetic Clay

Cleansing Facial Clay Recipes

Homemade Daily Facial Cleanser: Milk Cleansers

DIY Milk Cleanser Recipes

Homemade Daily Face Wash: Micellar Water Cleansers

Micellar Water Recipes

Fall Essential Oil Blends for Soaps (Plus A Fall Soap Recipe with Cocoa Butter)

Crafting Fall Soaps with Essential Oils

Essential Oil Safety Tips

Where to Learn More

Fall Essential Oil Blends for Soaps

Autumnal Bouquet Essential Oil Blend

Chai Tea Latte Essential Oil Blend

Pumpkin Spice Fall Essential Oil Blend

Fresh Baked Gingerbread Essential Oil Blend

Earth & Spice Fall Essential Oil Blend

Patchouli Lovers Fall Essential Oil Blend

Mulled Cider Fall Essential Oil Blend

Frankincense Fall Essential Oil Blend

Fall Colors Essential Oil Blend

Fall Garden Wreath Essential Oil Blend

Simple 2-Ingredient Fall Essential Oil Blends

Formulating a Fall Soap Recipe

Adding Fall Essential Oil Blends to Your Soaps

Essential Oil Fall Soap Recipe

Ingredients for Fall Soap Embeds:

Ingredients for Fall Soap Loaf:

Fall Essential Oil Soap Making Notes:

Fall Soap Making Instructions:

For the soap embeds.

For the soap loaf.

Creative Ways to Package Fall Soaps

More Soap Recipes for Your Fall Essential Oil Blends

New Fall Skin Care Recipes to Try

DIY Sugar Scrub Cubes (3 Recipes for Fall)

Apple Pie Spice Oatmeal Doughnut Soaps

Vanilla Chai Latte DIY Lotion Bars

DIY Pumpkin Spice Bath Bombs (3 Fall Bath Bomb Recipes)

How to Make Bath Bombs (& A Natural Bath Bomb Recipe with Shea Butter)

Let’s Learn How to Make Bath Bombs

What Gives Bath Bombs Their Fizz?

Tips on How to Make Awesome Bath Bombs

Formulating Your Own Bath Bomb Recipes

Tip #1

Tip #2

Tip #3

Tip #4

Tip #5

Tip #6

Tip #7

Tip #8

Skin Care Benefits of My Natural Bath Bomb Ingredients

Orange Peel Powder

Pink Kaolin Clay

Refined Shea Butter