Whether your little ones are more of the "calm little goldfish" or "energetic splashing dolphins" type, they will all love the magical effect of these effervescent, and above all NATURAL, bath bombs!
The recipe itself becomes a beautiful moment shared with your child, allowing you to stop time and create something with your own hands. Yes!!! Praise for slowness and quality family time!
Recently, bath bombs have become popular with adults and children alike! There are several versions on the market, but unfortunately, they are often based on artificial ingredients such as dyes and perfumes. To avoid these ingredients, which are irritating to your children's fragile and delicate skin, we suggest you make this simple and fun recipe yourself. In addition to being a sure-fire hit at bath time for their magical bubbling effect, these homemade bombs have moisturizing and relaxing properties. What more could you ask for?
All the ingredients needed to make these bath bombs are safe for children, and you probably have most of them on hand already. The only slightly more unusual ingredient is citric acid, which is needed for the little "bubbly" effect that kids will find so fun! You can buy it in bulk in some specialty shops or chains (e.g. BulkBarn), in many big box stores, grocery shops or even pharmacies, or on Amazon.
If you respect the proportions of the ingredients, you will have no problem obtaining a satisfactory result just by measuring with kitchen utensils. However, as a gift or for a more consistent result, you may prefer to use a small digital scale to accurately weigh your ingredients. We suggest that you measure all your ingredients in advance, before you start your recipe.
Magic and natural ingredients :
8 ounces (about 1 cup) baking soda
4 ounces (1/2 cup) citric acid
4 ounces (1/2 cup) sea salt or Epsom salt
4 ounces (about 3/4 cup) cornstarch
2 tablespoons of liquid oil of your choice (we really like jojoba oil or avocado oil for their skin care benefits, but any oil in a liquid state will do)
2 teaspoons of water (and a little more if necessary)
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract (or substitute more water)
Approximately 30 drops of essential oils of your choice (e.g. lavender, eucalyptus, lemongrass)* and/or some dried or powdered spices or herbs (e.g. ginger, rosemary, thyme)
*Before improvising with essential oils, make sure they are safe to use on children.
Tip: for lightly coloured bath bombs, use a few drops of natural food colouring (based on vegetable pigments), or replace the water with beetroot or blueberry juice, for example (2 very colourful juices with a high concentration of pigments). With these suggestions, you will obtain colours ranging from pink to purple or pale blue.
How to proceed:
Mix all dry ingredients evenly in a large bowl (baking soda, citric acid, salt, cornstarch, herbs and/or spices if desired)
In a small bowl, mix the liquid ingredients (oil, water, pure vanilla extract, essential oils and natural colouring if desired)
Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients in small amounts at a time. Mix well with your hands.
The mixture should hold together well when squeezed between your hands, without crumbling. If the consistency is still not right, add a little more water. Using a spray bottle makes it easier to add a little water at a time and to moisten the mixture evenly.
Form very firm balls by pressing well with your hands and place in lightly oiled moulds (e.g. muffin tins). For best results, it may be best to form "rounds" or "large pellets" that can be pressed happily into the bottom of the muffin tins. It is also worth noting that metal moulds will give a harder, drier finished product, which is what is desired.
Allow to set completely for at least 24 hours (ideally 48 hours). Bath bombs will expand a little during the drying process, and this is normal! For best results, it may be necessary to press the bombs firmly into the bottom of the moulds a few times early in the drying period.
Once very well hardened, remove the bath bombs from the moulds and store them in an airtight container. Use them within 2 weeks.
That's it! Now let your little explorers have fun at bath time and discover this original effervescence reaction! All this, with NATURAL and REASONING ingredients!
These bath bombs are also a great gift idea to spoil a loved one, on Valentine's Day perhaps? The educator, the teacher or the grandmother will surely appreciate it!