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Who doesn’t love a warm, relaxing bath? In the chaotic world we live in, many times, we forget to stop and take care of ourselves. We’re always taking care of other people – our family, our friends, our coworkers – but shouldn’t we take care of the most important person of all … ourselves?

YES! We should.

Even taking a few minutes out of your day to just focus on you and your own needs can make a dramatic improvement in your quality of life. At a very minimum, we should spend 30 minutes per day just focused on ourselves, doing something that makes us happy or just spending some time sitting quietly and thinking. Sometimes, even 30 minutes seems impossible for me, but these bath salts make it a little easier to step away from work and take a warm, relaxing bath. They are so easy to make and can be customized to fit a wide range of preferences. I love using a combination of dried herbs and essential oils, but you could use one or the other. Or, if you don’t have any essential oils or dried herbs, tea bags will work well too! I am not ashamed to admit that I have thrown a few peppermint tea bags into my bath on occasion. 🙂

Top 5 Reasons For a Hot Bath

Here are the top 5 reasons you need to step away from the computer right now and run yourself a hot bath:

5. It’s cheaper than going to a spa. Face it, we’d all love to get the royal spa treatment from time to time, but who can afford that? For a fraction of the cost, you can make some herbal bath salts, turn on some soft music, and light a candle. It will be almost as good as a day at the spa.

4. Your skin will be re-hydrated and rejuvenated. The hot water helps your pores open up and sweat out toxins. This gentle detoxifying bath will leave your skin will feel smoother and firmer. Be sure to drench your skin in coconut oil, or my favorite lavender hair and body oil from L.c. of Acirema.

3. Your muscles will thank you. Have tired, achy muscles? Been swinging those kettlebells, working in the garden, or taking on your workout of the day (WOD)? If so, a hot bath is one of the best things you can do. The warm water will help loosen your tight muscles and soothe away aches and pains. Try doing some gentle stretching right after the bath to help keep those muscles limber.

2. You’ll be calm, relaxed, and sleep better. Warming up the body is a way to relax your muscles and your mind. Hot baths have long been used as a remedy for insomnia and other sleep disorders. In addition, the whole process of an herbal salt bath is quite relaxing

1. You’ll be happier. You just took time to pamper yourself, so your outlook on life may be quite a bit more cheerful than before. Let go of all the worries and stress and savor the moment. You’re so busy taking care of everyone else, it’s time to take care of YOU!

DIY Lavender Peppermint Herbal Bath Salts | deliciousobsessions.com

Where Do I Get the Goods?

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The nice thing about this DIY recipe is that you probably have everything you need, save maybe some of the herbs, in your kitchen or bathroom. The main ingredients (Epsom salts, baking soda, and sea salt) are cheap and widely available at both health food stores and grocery stores. Most health food stores will carry dried herbs, but the best bet is to go online or look around locally for an herb shop that sells herbs to the public.

I am always asked about my favorite ingredients and what I use in my own kitchen. I have linked to the products from my affiliate partners that I personally use and recommend. And now, here are the special coupon offers that select affiliate partners are currently offering:

  • Thrive Market: If you sign up through this link, you will get 15% OFF your first order.
  • Amazon, of course, has everything you need for this recipe. Their prices are often very good, though I love to shop around and sometimes find that Thrive Market has better deals. If you like saving money, it’s good to shop around! 🙂
  • I get all of my herbs and spices from Mountain Rose Herbs. I have tried so many other brands and have never found the quality, flavor, and aroma to be as good as the herbs I get from Mountain Rose.

For more information about the essential oils I use for myself and my family, click here.

A Note on Epsom Salts

Epsom salts have long been used as a relaxing, detox bath and many people have been told that they are a good way to get magnesium transdermally. This is actually not true, because the form of magnesium in Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) is quickly excreted through the kidneys and is very hard for the body to assimilate.

If you want to boost your magnesium transdermally, you will want to make sure you use magnesium chloride, which is the form of magnesium used to make magnesium oil. I wrote a detailed post about the importance of magnesium and how to make your own magnesium oil here. I

If you want, you are more than welcome to add magnesium chloride flakes into your bath salts, but keep in mind that magnesium chloride flakes will cost a bit more than Epsom salts. They (mag chloride) are, however, MUCH more beneficial to helping raise magnesium levels than Epsom salts (which are excreted from the body rapidly).

When you’re ready to bathe, you have a couple options. You can either put the bath salts directly into the tub and then just use a screen over the drain to catch the herbs. Or, you can use a little muslin bag and fill it with the salts and toss it into your bath water. Then, you just empty out the used herbs when your done and no mess! I use about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of salts per bath, depending on how much water I am running.

You could use magnesium chloride flakes instead of (or 1/2 and 1/2 with) the Epsom salts. The price will be higher on the mag chloride flakes, but you would get the transdermal benefit, which would be nice for those working on boosting their mag levels.

DIY Herbal Bath Salt Recipes

I have linked to the products from my affiliate partners that I personally use and recommend. If you purchase through one of these links, I may earn a small commission.

There really isn’t a formal recipe for bath salts. You can make as much or as little as you need, based on the following proportions:

Then, you can add whatever essential oils or herbs you want. The sky’s the limit, so use your imagination and discover your own personal favorites. Here are a few of my favorite recipes to get you started. 

Relaxing Lavender Peppermint Bath Salts

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients, except the essential oils, together until well combined and there are no lumps (the baking soda tends to get lumpy sometimes). Then add a few drops of the essential oil and toss or stir around. Add a few more drops, toss and/or stir. Keep doing that until you’ve added all of the essential oils that you would like.

Sweet Vanilla Peppermint Bath Salts

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients, except the essential oils, together until well combined and there are no lumps (the baking soda tends to get lumpy sometimes). Then add a few drops of the essential oil and toss or stir around. Add a few more drops, toss and/or stir. Keep doing that until you’ve added all of the essential oils that you would like.

Bright Sunny Citrus Bath Salts

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients, except the essential oils, together until well combined and there are no lumps (the baking soda tends to get lumpy sometimes). Then add a few drops of the essential oil and toss or stir around. Add a few more drops, toss and/or stir. Keep doing that until you’ve added all of the essential oils that you would like.

DIY Lemon Balm Passionflower Herbal Bath Salts | deliciousobsessions.com

Lemony Passionflower Bath Salts

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients, except the essential oils, together until well combined and there are no lumps (the baking soda tends to get lumpy sometimes). Then add a few drops of the essential oil and toss or stir around. Add a few more drops, toss and/or stir. Keep doing that until you’ve added all of the essential oils that you would like.

TO USE: Add 1 cup of the mixture to your bath. You can add more or less depending on your preferences. If you’re using dried herbs in your blends, try putting the mixture in a muslin bag to keep the herbs from floating around in your water.

Watch My Skin Care Videos

Since I am a fanatic about keeping my skin and body care non-toxic, I get a lot of questions about what my routine is and what products I use. I created this video to discuss all of that and more. The video below that features a lot of the hair care products that I use, including henna and my favorite clean shampoo.

Have you made your own bath salts before? What is your favorite scent combination?

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