Body & Soul: Colored Bath Salts

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Photo by Angie Cao
Try to use natural sources of color for your bath salts and scent them with essential oils.

You can create dozens of different bath salts in no time at all. All you need is a combination of natural salts, such as Epsom salts, sea salt and kosher salt, and some food coloring–look for the pastel varieties used in cake decorating or investigate natural sources of color. You also can scent your colored bath salts. The result will be a gift to rival any store-bought bath salts. MAKES 12 OUNCES

• 1 cup Epsom salts
• 1/2 cup rock salt or kosher salt
• 3 to 5 drops food coloring
• 4 to 5 drops essential oil

1. Stir all ingredients together until well-mixed. I like to do this in a large plastic resealable bag, as you can seal it and massage the mixture until the color and scent are evenly distributed. Check out the color and add more food coloring if you like, or, if the color is too dark, add more salt. Pour bath salts into a clean jar or pretty gift container.

2. To use: Pour about 1/2 cup of bath salts under running water while drawing a bath. Relax in the tub and enjoy!

Tip: Use your favorite essential oils to bring natural scent and aromatherapy benefits to your colored bath salts. Try eucalyptus to stimulate the senses, peppermint to relieve fatigue, sandalwood to dispel tension or ylang ylang to create a sense of euphoria.


Reprinted with permission from EcoBeauty: Scrubs, Rubs, Masks, and Bath Bombs for You and Your Friends. © 2009 by Lauren Cox and Janice Cox. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, Berkeley, CA. Photo Credit: Angie Cao.

Click here for the main article, Body & Soul: Shine Through to Spring with Natural Beauty Recipes.

  • Published on Jan 6, 2012
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