Mood Lifting & Energizing Bath Salts
While I was making sugar scrub and had my essential oils out and at the ready I decided to whip up some bath salts as well. It had been much, much too long since I had done so. Like the sugar scrub, it is pretty darn simple and I have no excuse as to why I haven’t mixed any up in several years. I routinely have Epsom salts around and take soaks with it unadorned, but there is just something extra special about sinking into a bath that is gently scented just for you.
Like the sugar scrub, I opted for a citrus-based scent. Since I tend to seek refuge from high pain days or that in the tub I wanted to go with a scent that would lighten my mood and energize me to get through the remainder of my day. I tend to take my baths later in the day so I went with real essential oils and will just be careful to not expose myself to the sun after soaking in a bath using them. I used a blend of grapefruit, lime and bergamont which I grounded with a tad bit of geranium and ginger.
Uplifting and Energizing Bath Salts
Makes ~8 cups
- Food Coloring (optional, 10 drop blue and 4 drops yellow shown here)
- 45 drops Grapefruit Essential Oil
- 26 drops Lime Essential Oil
- 20 drops Bergamont Essential Oil
- 14 drops Geranium Essential Oil
- 14 drops Ginger Essential Oil
- 1 C Sel Gris (gray salt, my local Food Co-op has it in the bulk section for a reasonable price)
- 1 C Table or Kosher Salt
- 5 C Epsom Salt
- 1 C Baking Soda
- 1 C Pink Himalayan Salt (again available in bulk from the co-op)*
Mix the oils and food coloring with the sel gris and table salt in a large bowl dedicated to non-food purposes. The sel gris and table salts more readily soak up the oils and coloring, helping to keep your salts from clumping. Then add the baking soda and stir again. Lastly, add the remaining salts and mix until evenly combined. I recommend you let the salts age at least a few days so the oils blend and become more uniform throughout the batch.
To use, sprinkle 1/2-1 C of salts under running warm water and let dissolve. Lock kids, pets and husbands out of bathroom and soak as long as desired!
I put a portion of my salts in a pretty apothecary jar and use a sea shell as a scoop. The remainder I keep in an air-tight canister under the bathroom sink. I have packaged the salts up with a nice little wooden scoop and given it as a gift. I’ve even saved some juice bottles that are shaped like old fashioned milk bottles that I want to give as gifts sometime with a variant that includes fat free powdered milk for a milk bath!
* I would leave it out next time though as it doesn’t dissolve very readily, but it sure looks pretty in the mix!
You can of course use any combination of essential oils you would like. A popular mix for calming and relaxation is chamomile and lavender. I am planning on mixing up another batch with rosemary, peppermint, and ginger to promote increased circulation and healing.
If you are unfamiliar with the properties of the various essential oils most manufacturer’s assign a descriptive word or brief phrase to each oil which can point you in the proper direction. Some say to follow your nose, that your body knows what you need and I have found that to be pretty true. When I first started using essential oils I lacked confidence in combining scents though. I found The Encyclopedia of Aromatherapy by Chrissie Wildwood to be quite helpful. It gives you information on how to combine scents as well as more in depth coverage of the therapeutic properties of the essentials oils. There are even recipes for various types of ailments that are a great place to start exploring.
What is your preferred scent combo for a soak in the tub?
