Homemade Bath Salts Using Your Empty Essential Oil Bottles

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Homemade bath salts are a frugal way to pamper yourself.  I have always enjoyed a hot, relaxing bath but didn’t realize how much until we moved into a house with the worst bathtub in existence.  I took exactly one bath in it.  Then, about a year ago, we decided to tear out a creepy, never-once-used shower in our basement bathroom and put in (do you hear the angels singing?) a soaking tub.

I am a simple girl and don’t require a jetted spa tub or anything so fancy.  Just give me a nice deep tub that I can ease down into and soak, maybe a few candles, and some Norah Jones to listen to and I’m all set.

Bubbles are always nice, but the real therapy comes in the form of these easy to put together bath salts.

Epsom Salts

There are lots of recipes out there for homemade bath salts.  I have whittled them down to what has become my ‘bare bones’ recipe.  Just two ingredients:  Epsom salts and essential oils…essential oil bottles, to be more specific.

You can find Epsom salts in the pharmacy area of pretty much any store.

I’ve been doing some reading on the benefits of Epsom salts and there’s, frankly, not much out there that can be verified.  I see lots of sites that claim ‘detoxifying’ qualities, but no evidence to back up the claim.  Same with the claim that Epsom salts– which are actually not salt, but magnesium-sulfate– help increase our magnesium levels.  Sounds nice, but there doesn’t seem to be evidence to back this up.

If you want to read about it on your own, you can find:

• Articles with positive claims here and here.
• A scientific skeptic examining the issue here.
• A relatively neutral article here.

Here’s my take…no one says they’re bad.  And there is a lot of anecdotal evidence supporting their benefits.  I’m cool with that.

Essential Oils

I’m also cool with finding new ways to save money.  I love using essential oils whenever we can to promote good health, and as a first attack when we have health issues.  We use them for headaches, respiratory issues, bloody noses, seasonal colds, and general immune building/protection.

While I order oils from a variety of places, I am not brand loyal, I find myself mostly ordering from Rocky Mountain Oils these days.  High quality, great prices, and no clubs or memberships to join.

If you use them, you know that essential oils are not super cheap.  Making these homemade bath salts is my favorite way to use the empty bottles and get every last bit of healing goodness out of them.

1. Remove caps from empty essential oil bottles.
2. Begin filling jars (I get most of mine at Ikea, but they are a lot like these and these).
3. When jar is about 1/3 full, add a cap (or two).
4. At 2/3 full, add empty bottle(s).
5. Fill remainder of jar.
6. Periodically shake jar to distribute the oils.

The best part is that you can make your own personalized blends.  I currently have one jar that has lavender and peppermint (great for headaches), a respiratory blend, and one with Thieves (an immunity boosting blend).

When you want to use the bath salts, just add 1/2 to 1 cup to your hot, running, bath water.

You can even refill the jar with more salts as you use them.  The scent won’t last indefinitely, of course, but when you notice it going away, toss the empty essential oil bottles and add new ones if you’ve got them.

Options

If you don’t currently have any empty bottles, you can still have a soothing soak.  Just add 1/2 to 1 cup of plain Epsom salts to your running bath water, and shake in a few drops of the essential oil of your choice.

Also, many recipes for homemade bath salts also call for adding some baking soda to the mix.  I did this for awhile, but have stopped (mainly because I forgot several times).  Baking soda is known to be a benefit especially for softening the skin.  If you’d like, add a few tablespoons (up to 1/2, or even 1 cup) to your jar when you are mixing the salts.

Have you tried making homemade bath salts?

How do you make the most of empty essential oil bottles?