Even if you're craft-challenged, it's easy to make a homemade bubble bath solution with just a few household ingredients you probably already have. Yes, DIY is economical, and it's satisfying to make things yourself, but the beauty of creating your own bath bomb or bubble bath solution is knowing exactly what you're putting in your bathtub and on your body.
Start with one of these recipes, and then devise your own customized formulas. And don't miss our experts' advice for making the most of your bathtime experience.
- Natural beauty expert Janice Cox, from Southern Oregon, specializes in crafting cosmetic products from everyday kitchen and garden items. Among several books she's authored is Natural Beauty at Home.
- Dr. Elizabeth Trattner emphasizes individualized and holistic methods in her Miami-based practice. She uses acupuncture, nutritional counseling, and herbs and supplements to treat a wide range of conditions.
- Atlanta makeup and skin care consultant Sarah Biggers-Stewart is also the founder and CEO of the cosmetics brand, Clover. It specializes in products made in the USA using naturally-derived ingredients and sustainable packaging.
Egg White Bubble Bath
What You Need:
- Liquid soap
- Sugar or honey
- Egg white
Instructions
Natural beauty expert Janice Cox recommends this bubble bath recipe: In a clean container, mix ½ cup mild liquid hand or body soap, 1 tablespoon sugar or honey, and one egg white, and then pour the entire mixture under running water as you draw your bath.
Why does this work? Honey is a natural humectant, which attracts and retains moisture in your skin, and the egg white helps create stronger, longer-lasting bubbles for a nice, fluffy bath. For extra-dry skin, consider adding a tablespoon of light oil (such as almond oil) to provide extra nourishment.
Custom-Scented Bubble Bath
What You Need:
- Castile liquid soap
- Coconut or almond oil
- Epsom salt
- Essential oil
Instructions
Keep things simple by mixing 1 cup warm water with 1 cup Dr. Bronner's Unscented Pure-Castile liquid soap. Next, add 1 tablespoon coconut or almond oil, 1 teaspoon Epsom salt, and 2 to 3 drops of your favorite, non-irritating, essential oil.
Why Epsom salt? This naturally occurring mineral—not meant for consumption—was named after the town of Epsom (near London, England) where it was supposedly discovered 400-some years ago. While studies are not definitive, integrative medical experts commonly recommend an Epsom salt-warm water soak to relieve muscle pain and mental stress.
Lavender Bubble Bath
What You Need:
- Castile liquid soap
- Lavender essential oil
- Coconut oil
Instructions
Lavender is known for its calming effect, while coconut oil moisturizes your skin, so this formula is relaxing and nurturing. Starting with ⅛ cup Dr. Bronner's Unscented Pure-Castile liquid soap, add 2 to 3 drops lavender essential oil. Stir in 1 tablespoon coconut oil until blended, and then dilute the solution with enough water to thin it out. Easy as one, two, three!
Foaming Vanilla Honey Bath
What You Need:
- Light oil
- Honey
- Liquid soap
- Vanilla extract
Instructions
Make your bubble bath extra sweet with this DIY recipe of Cox's: In a clean container, mix 1 cup of light oil (almond, sunflower, or canola), ½ cup honey, ½ cup mild liquid hand or body soap, and 1 tablespoon vanilla extract.
Shake gently and then swirl about ¼ of this solution into your bathtub under running water, allowing the oil to create a silky escape while the honey moisturizes your skin. Use for three more baths and repeat.
Black Sea Salt Bath
What You Need
- Castile liquid soap
- Black sea salt
Instructions
Mix equal parts water and a gentle liquid soap, like Dr. Bronner's Unscented Pure-Castile Soap ($10 for 8 oz, amazon.com), and then add black sea salt to your desired consistency. Pour this mixture into your bath until you start to see bubbles. Use enough solution to give you a fizzy bath, allowing the black sea salt to moisturize dry skin.
Tips for an Ideal DIY Bath Experience
One of the best things you can do for yourself is to indulge in some relaxation. For many of us, a warm bubble bath is the most direct route to stress-relieving bliss. If this sounds like your ideal cozy night in, here's what you need to know to optimize your soak.
Ensure Your Tub Is Clean
If you share your tub with someone, you can't be sure what products were used in it last, which means the tub could be slippery or harbor residue from an irritating product. Before starting your bath, Dr. Elizabeth Trattner recommends checking to make sure your tub is sanitary. To prevent stains, she advocates cleaning your tub immediately after using it.
Pick a Scent You Love
Unless you have very sensitive skin, adding a bit of essential oil to your bubble bath solution can increase your relaxation. Essential oils like lavender and chamomile can help you relax after a stressful day, and an oil like sandalwood can help moisturize dry skin.
To prevent skin irritation, be careful with how much essential oil you're using. To play it safe, add no more than a couple of drops to your bubble bath solution, and only use essential oils you know won't irritate your skin. If you're unsure how your sensitive skin will react, makeup and skincare expert Sarah Biggers-Stewart advises avoiding them in your bathwater altogether.
Avoid Sodium Lauryl Sulfate
Any bubble bath aficionado should avoid a prolonged soak in sodium lauryl sulfate, according to Biggers-Stewart, and should not use it in any DIY solution. "SLS [sodium lauryl sulfate] is a very common surfactant in products that creates foam and bubbles," she explains, warning it can irritate sensitive skin.
A 2005 study reported how irritating SLS can be to skin, especially in warm water because heat can increase the potency of any product you put in it. Trattner adds that it's bioaccumulative, which means it stays in your body. "Hot water will drive these into the body faster as pores are open, and they can cause dermatitis as well," she explains.
Don't Expect Too Many Bubbles
When it comes to making your own bath solution at home, the lighter materials used in DIY recipes tend to not lather as much as a store-bought solution. "It would be hard to make a super fizzy bubble bath at home," says Biggers-Stewart, "but for a more subtle bubble bath, a combination of castile soap, some essential oils, and a little bit of olive or coconut oil would do the trick."
Forget the Flower Petals
There's something romantic about bathing with floating flower petals, but it's one of those additions that's good in theory and bad in practice. "Flower baths make a mess," Trattner insists. "You can always make a flower tea, but you will have to scrub the tub." Plus, flower petals don't offer any health benefits for your skin, so you may as well leave them out.
