Chill Pill Bath Bombs Recipe

Cute Chill Pills!

How much do we LOVE this new mould?! 

So easy to use, this is a 2D tray style plastic mould that can be used for lots of crafting applications - soap, bath fizzers, mini melts etc. What's more, because it is produced with Food Grade plastic, it's also suitable for chocolate making*.

Our passion as you may have guessed is for all things fizzy.  With that in mind we thought we'd share with you our simple recipe for creating rock solid chill pills that you can package up to make excellent gifts.  

(Don't let us stop you from using this mould for your other crafts though! Let us know what you've used it for :) )

Of course, you can simply use your own favourite bath bomb making recipe for this mould if you prefer.

As these are small fizzers you don't really want to end up with crumbly fizzers therefore we've created a recipe using Witch Hazel as the primary binder and including Corn Flour for a smooth finish.  Witch Hazel will help create a strong solid fizzer.  All good when making and packaging gifts :)

This recipe is also what we'd term oil free.  Because of the size of these adorable fizzies, a lot of people will use them in a shower.  No slippy oils or butters here then please!

We've made ours in white. If you want to add either some colour though you can include a powder pigment/water colour or a liquid colour at the dry stage before binding with Witch Hazel. 

Note that if you use a liquid colour, it is likely that with this recipe you will end up with spotting due to the speed of drying going on. We like spots, but we know not everybody feels the same. 

This recipe will dry at this size in just minutes.  Once you've filled all 6 cavities you are safe to turn them out and go ahead and use the remaining mix to refill and repeat the process.  You could go on like that forever, so if you wish to make more or less Bath Fizzers simply reduce or increase the mix proportionately, keeping the ratios of one ingredient to another.

We suggest wiping the mould with kitchen paper before refilling to avoid the subsequent fizzers from sticking to any residue in the cavities.

To make around 12 Chill Pill Fizzers

Chill Pill Mini Mould

150g Sodium Bicarbonate

75g Citric Acid, Fine Grade

25g Corn Flour

Up to 5ml Fragrance Concentrate

Witch Hazel to bind

Gloves

Optional colour

Method

Sing "Hi Ho, Hi Ho, I must work quickly you know" whilst you place all of the dry ingredients in a plastic bowl (saved for B&B crafting) pop on your gloves and mix everything thoroughly with your hands.

Add your fragrance a couple of drops at a time and keep the mix moving with your free hand. 

Once you've added all of your fragrance, spritz the mix with Witch Hazel. Work steadily until the mix is holding together when squeezed in your hand.(Think sandcastle sand)

Take your mould and press mix into each of the cavities.  Compact the mix and level the base.

As soon as the cavities are all filled, you can turn the fizzers out carefully.  You might want to cover the mould with a plate or tray and use that to help turn out the fizzers without damage.  If necessary, apply firm but gentle pressure to the middle of the mould to release the fizzer.

Set your creations aside, wipe the mould with kitchen paper and repeat until all mix is used. (Keep singing!)

If wrapping the fizzers we suggest leaving them up to an hour to totally dry out and become safe to handle.

Enjoy!

Click here for our Keep Calm & Carry on Chill Pill making KIT

*As with all plastic moulds, do not overheat your ingredients or pour into the mould at high temperatures, whatever medium you are using. For soaps we recommend allowing the soap to cool for a few minutes before pouring but in the case of bath melts where you are using hot oils, it is necessary to exercise lots of caution - have the liquid oils as cool as is practical before you pour. You will find that oils & butters will still pour at quite low temperatures.

All Natural Bath Bomb Recipe

This is a really simple recipe that uses no artificial fragrance or colour.  

Even if you find fragrance overpowering, you can still enjoy a relaxing and cleansing bath filled with fizz and the sensory delights of aroma & colour that comes only from gorgeously natural ingredients.  

The pure Cocoa Butter in this recipe will literally feed your skin, leaving you feeling pampered and moisturised without any effort.

As you would expect, the aroma of these beautiful bath bombs is gentle and soothing; perfectly suited to those who struggle with strong smells or indeed anyone who needs that bit of me time.

What you might not expect is that the aroma from this recipe is soooo nice! Enjoy :)

Ingredients

250g Sodium Bicarbonate

125g Citric Acid

50g Corn Starch (Corn Flour)

50g Dried Mango Powder

Orange flower water in a spritz bottle to bind (about 15-20ml needed here)

Grated Natural Cocoa Butter (unbleached to keep its natural properties and aroma)

Handful of Calendula flowers
(All of the above ingredients are available at www.bathbomb.biz)

The above will make around 5 Bath Bombs when using a 60mm two part mould, or will make dozens and dozens of little fizzers using silicone ice tray type moulds.  We also used a PVC soap & bath bomb tray type mould and these worked really well.

Method

Place the bicarb, citric and corn flour in a large plastic bowl & using gloved hands, combine the ingredients

Add the Mango powder & combine, squashing any lumps between finger & thumb (Mango has a tendency to clump)

Taking a lump of Cocoa Butter, grate in around 10-20g and stir through the mix

Add a handful of Calendula Petals (Not too many or you may have problems getting the mix to hold its shape)

Spritz with Orange Flower water 5-6 sprays at a time whilst moving the mix around with your hands.  When the mix is holding together if squeezed in your palm, its ready for moulding. (Think damp sandcastle sand - do not over wet)

Place into your moulds and allow to dry.  Wrap to preserve the aroma until required.

As this recipe contains a "butter" please use caution - the bath will be slippery.

Tip when you get out of your bath, just pat your skin dry allowing the film of Cocoa Butter to remain and work its magic!

If you prefer a stronger aroma you can simply adapt this recipe by adding your favourite fragrance or essential oils.  We recommend using a citrus Essential oil - Tangerine or Mandarin work really well with the ingredient combination here.  Use around 1% so for this quantity you'd need around 4.5ml.

What do you think?  Let us know if you'll be giving these a try we would love to hear from you.

And if you'd like to share pictures of your own creations please do join us on Facebook here

Christmas Pudding Tutorial

Christmas Pud Bath Bombs

These little "puddings" are of course a bath bomb in disguise.
Packed with the usual array of fizzing ingredients we've added some detoxifying Epsom Salts (for texture as well as therapeutic value) and a little skin loving Sweet Almond oil for a touch of luxury.  You can make them without and stick with a simple Witch Hazel bath bomb recipe if you prefer.



For authenticity we've also thrown in a handful of sugar strands - the sort you'd decorate a cake with.  These will dissolve in a warm bath with no ill effect but will help create a Christmas Pud effect.  Again, omit these if you prefer.

Ingredients (will make 5/6 large pudding pot puds or several 50 or 60mm round puds)

500g Sodium Bicarbonate
250g Citric Acid

100g Cornflour (optional but advised if using spherical rigid moulds)

15g Epsom Salts 
15ml Sweet Almond Oil (Or other vegetable base oil such as Grape Seed)
10-15ml Toiletry Grade Fragrance Concentrate - Christmas Pudding is ideal!
1/2 tsp of Chocolate Brown Water Soluble Colour Powder
Crystalina Cosmetic Glitter
Chocolate and White Sugar Strands
Witch Hazel as needed to bind the mix
Holly & Berry decoration or similar
Red and Green cake sprinkles (any design)(optional)
Small grip seal bag & a Sixpence (optional)

(Click HERE for a kit containing the ingredients to make your own Puds!)
You will also need; two plastic mixing bowls, gloves and a mask if susceptible to the dust created when mixing the dry ingredients.  If you wish to use up any leftover mix, have an ice cube type mould or some petit four cases handy.

Finally the other magic "ingredient" you will need for these is the pudding pot.  We've reused a clean steamed pudding bowl - the type you can buy containing a chocolate or treacle microwave pudding.  (Isn't that the perfect excuse to rush out and buy a fridge full?!!) You can also use an old plastic shop bought christmas pudding bowl provided it is the smallest size.  If you can' t get these though, you can still make a gorgeous pudding in a regular 50 or 60mm 2 part mould.

Step 1

Wearing gloves all the time and using your hands to mix;

Mix Bicarb, Citric Corn flour and Epsom Salts in one bowl.  When thoroughly combined, put one third of the mix into the second bowl.  The larger bowl will become your brown "pudding" portion of the finished product and the smaller bowl will remain white and act as the white sauce on top of the pudding.

Step 2 The large bowl

Add the brown powder colour.  Stir thoroughly. 
Add sprinkles if using.
Add 5-10ml of fragrance concentrate a few drops at a time stirring constantly.
Add 10ml of Sweet Almond Oil and stir thoroughly
Spritz with Witch hazel 5 or 6 sprays at a time and mix well until your mixture is holding together - like the sand you make sandcastles with this mix should be damp but not wet.  If you can form a clump in your hand that doesn't crumble, it's probably ready.


Step 3 The small bowl

Working quickly...

To the small bowl add some crystallina and stir through if using
Add 5ml of Fragrance concentrate and mix well
Add 5ml of Sweet Almond Oil and mix well
Spritz with Witch hazel as above

You will need to work quickly to ensure your large mix doesn't dry out whilst you're mixing.  If it has, spritz a few times with Witch Hazel and continue to the next step.

Step 4

Moulding.

If using pudding pots

If you want to top your pudding with glitter you can simply sprinkle some into the pot before filling.

Fill the pot to about a fifth of the way up with white mix - this will be the top of the pudding.

Ensure that the mix is compact - push down with your fingers as you fill the pot. Don't worry about an even edge as these are most effective with a natural looking wavy edge to the "sauce".

Follow immediately with the brown mix filling the pot to the top, pushing the mix down as you do so.  Level the base with your hands.

Set aside and repeat until all pots are full.

Allow to dry for about 15 minutes and then de mould. We suggest you don't leave it longer or your puddings may become stuck. 

To de mould simply upturn the pudding, supporting it underneath with your hand and place on a flat surface upside down.  Push gently in the middle of the pot and if necessary very gently squeeze the sides of the pot.  The pudding bomb should just slide out.  If not, leave 5 minutes and try again.

Add your decoration at this point, before the bath bomb is too hard.  Using a holly topper gently push the "stalk" into the bath bomb - avoid too much pressure or your bath bomb may crack.  If you do see a crack forming carefully push it back together.

Sprinkle with glitter if using.

Leave the puddings at least another 45 minutes before attempting to wrap.

Using 2 part moulds;

Take one half of a mould and fill with brown mix - over fill if you can.  Take the second half, pop a few red and white sprinkles into the mould if using and then use the mould to scoop some white mix into itself.  Now carefully scoop some brown mix into this second half, again using the mould.  What you're trying to do is create a small "blob" of white on top of the sphere to represent the sauce.  Really, it isn't crucial how you do this as the combination of the two colours and some red and white sprinkles or a sprig of holly will do the trick and create a stunning effect.  When you have the second half full bring the two halves together smoothly and without twisting the halves.  This does take some practice therefore to avoid endng up with bowls of mixed colour, we suggest you perform this bit of the moulding process over a sheet of kitchen paper. 

Allow to dry in the moulds for 10-20 minutes according to size and then gently ease one half of the mould away. At this point if you're using a plastic Holly topper we suggest you put that onto your bath bomb now, gently easing the "stalk" into the white area of the bath bomb.  Sprinkle with glitter if using.

Allow to set further for 10 more minutes before removing the final half.  Your puds will need another 30-50 minutes to dry to the point where it's safe to pick them up and wrap them.

Using leftover mix

If you have some petit four cases, and your mix isn't too dry you can try rolling some into small balls and dusting with glitter or even cocoa powder for a truffle effect.  Or even just creating hand rolled mini puds.  If your mix is really dry you can always spritz or add a tiny amount of Almond Oil to help with this.

If you really want to go a step further and add a touch of nostalgia why not embed something in your puddings?  Using a small grip seal bag, there's just enough room for a coin for instance.


Enjoy!  This recipe will be featured in Making Magazine's November issue, do have a look at their website packed full of craft ideas. 

Competition Time with a Difference...

Some of you may have noticed a little bit of falling silent on our part lately.  The Bath Bomb kitchen has been eerily still, the office has generated very little sound other than the echo of whirring brain cells and the occasional cough of an overworked printer.  Ok so the packing and dispatch rooms are still buzzing and occasionally rocking to the sound of good old Radio 1 but otherwise there has been a lot more silent working than usual.

Our week long 50% discount promotion has been left to run a while amid surely the sunniest ever Easter, a bumper crop of bank holidays and a bunting fuelled flurry of that wedding excitement. 

Why the silence then?  We've been swotting.  Maybe that should read "brainstorming". Perhaps a bit of both.

Grey matter has been challenged.  Ideas put on paper and properly costed.  (Accosted? Maybe!)

Plans have been drawn up.  Ideas have been given legs.  Concerns have been tabled.  Discussions have been had.  Heads have been scratched and excitement HAS finally BEEN unleashed.

What on earth is going on?!

We've entered a competition of our own.

Accustomed to organising competitions, I've found that it's quite scary being on the other side! 

So today as we finally clicked "upload" on our application to Barclays for the One Small Step competition, the first place I wanted to run was here.  Our entry isnt live on the Barclays website yet but I feel the need to scream our news from the rooftops. 

On the basis that behaviour of that sort would be a tad dangerous and a little eccentric even for Basingstoke, posting on this Blog seems a very good substitute.

Our plans for this year have been outlined in a summary which will form the public view of our entry along with a video (provided the god of computer gremlins was shining his happy face on us - we don't yet know if our upload was a success!) giving an insight into our vision for our business.

Behind the public side of the application was a raft of further questions concerning our business plan, costings and essentially the features and benefits of our offering, all of which will go under a panel of judges scrutiny, along with the entries from a great many other businesses.

In the end, 3 shortlisted candidates from 9 regions will go through to a public voting round with one winner in each region gaining £50,000 of investment from Barclays under the guidance of an appointed Business Manager and members of the Barclays Business Team.

The closing date for applications was today at 13:59 - (please don't ask us how close to that time we were) and our entry isn't yet live as I've said, as it has to be moderated before being published...

But here is the paragraph (written by Amanda) that will be on public view along with the video (created by Brian) ... let us know what you think if you would be so kind...

"We sell a unique range of kits at www.bathbomb.biz containing natural ingredients enabling anybody to create their own fun & functional bath & body products. Each kit provides an opportunity to learn a new skill, save money & have fun. All of the recipes have been devised for ease of use & compliance with EU legislation in exactly the same way as big brand bath & body products.

For 2011 our aim is to capitalise on demand at a nationwide level by developing a team of fully trained ambassadors. A team who share our vision & have the expertise to help our customers learn the skills they seek. Nothing beats a hands on demonstration - the opportunity to “have a go” when learning a new skill.

Our team will share their expertise & love of creating bath & body products with a wide range of individuals in a variety of settings; from Mums at home to schools, community groups, enterprise events & beyond.

Winning would enable us to recruit, train & manage our team whilst enhancing our range. "

Looking forward to your comments & appreciating you sharing this one around ... hopefully we'll be asking for your support with this again very soon!

Potential investors/mentors/partners wishing to see our full proposal are of course welcome to contact us