Okay, I'll admit. I've been kind of a Grinch this Christmas season. I haven't given much thought to celebrating the season other than popping up my snow white tree which is looking a little ragged being that the cats have turned the bottom two layers of branches into their kitty playground. But, what do you say? Some years are just like that.
Well in the spirit of good holiday cheer I will give you this super simple DIY as my Christmas gift to you. :) It would be a lovely last minute handmade gift to those on your nice list. ;)
Super Simple DIY Bubblebath
You will need...
1. Pure and clear dish washing liquid (I prefer Seventh Generation's pure and clear dish liquid. Palmolive makes one as well.) I bought my Seventh Generation dish liquid on sale from Target at about $2.50 for a 25oz bottle.
2. Essential oils of your choice. (Look at these as an investment. If you don't use EOs I suggest purchasing a few to start with. They seem expensive as they are usually $5-$30 per ounce but you will only use a few drops per project unless you are making cold process soap.) Smell test the oils and choose your favorites. Some of my favorites are the citrus oils (like lemon, lime or grapefruit,) lavender, tea tree, peppermint and ylang ylang oils. These can be blended in various ways to create signature natural fragrances.
3. Food Coloring (optional but it will make it "pretty" if you are gifting your bubble bath.)
4. A bottle or jar of some sort to contain your bubble bath. You can use anything from those little bottles they sell in the travel section of most big box stores to a small mason jar. You can even recycle an old shampoo bottle!
Now that you have your materials...
Step 1: Uncap your bottle and pour dish soap into bottle until it is about half full.
Step 2: Add 3 or 4 drops of essential oil(s.) I added 2 drops of lime and two drops of tea tree. (Optional: add 1 to 2 drops of food coloring.)
Step 3: Shake well!
Step 4: Fill almost to top with dish soap and top off with a few more drops of your EOs.
Step 5: Shake again and smell test to see if you have the desired amount of EOs. If not add more one drop at a time and shake in between drops.
Here's the finished product!
It gives good bubble foam to your bath!
Enjoy! If you try this please comment and let me know how it goes.
Bonus: If you want to make a moisturizing hand soap instead; follow the instructions above but add a half teaspoon of jojoba oil (per 8 oz.) and put it in your hand soap dispenser.
As a soap maker I have made hundreds of batches using both processes. I'm beginning to prefer cold process over hot process so my curing rack is getting very full. If you have no idea what I'm talking about here's the breakdown.
Cold Process
Lye solution and oils are combined to trace. They are immediately placed in molds and the chemical process of converting into soap takes place over the course of 2 weeks. Soap goes through a "gel phase" and hardens overnight. It is then placed on a rack for up to 6 weeks. The first two weeks are for the soap to neutralize completely after that, it helps to keep it there for the bar to harden as moisture within the bars evaporate slowly.
Hot Process
Once lye solution and oils are combined to trace. Soap "batter" is cooked in a crock pot for 3 hours to speed up gel phase and then placed in molds to cure and harden. As soon as soap in molds is solid, the soap can be used. It does still help to allow hot process to cure for a few days on a rack. The bar is softer and has a rougher texture than cold process. This is the way people have made soap for thousands of years (over an open fire in a kettle, not in a crock pot of course!)
Hope you found this blurb informative! Enjoy the holidays :)
-Kim
So, I have been experimenting with natural plant dyes and colorants. I plan on using these for soap making but also dyeing things like play dough, finger paints, macaroni etc. to create some natural products for kids. So far I have used the following in my soaps.
- Lemon Powder (Looks a little spotty but variation is beautiful in nautral soap.)
- Parsley Powder (Turned out gorgeous! Check out the picture below.)
I also purchaced some beets, turmeric and spirulina powders to make some natural colorants.
I have also started using natural oxide pigments with pretty good results. I have a few batches on the curing rack. After a long break from soap making (hey life gets in the way) I'm glad to be back in the game!
