How to Make Prim Heart Bath Melts

We so wanted to share these lovelies with you, as they are simple to make but better yet, they are truly fabulous to use.  So finally, here they are!

So what is a bath melt?

You simply pop one into  your (running) bath.  The natural Cocoa, Shea and Natural Vegetable oils will melt in the warmth of the water, but as you probably guessed they will not disperse fully.  Instead, the oils will be drawn to your skin providing instant moisturising without the effort!

When you finally get out of your bath (take care, it will be slippery and we strongly recommend the use of a bath mat) all you need do is pat your skin dry.  A film of skin loving oils will remain, leaving you with a wonderful pampered feeling.

We're using our Prim Hearts Mould which can also be used for fizzers and soaps, but you can of course use any suitable mould.  Keep the size small, there is no need to have a huge chunk of a melt in your bath.  Novelty ice trays will work as will guest soap moulds.  As this is an oily recipe, it will work well with re purposed yoghurt pots etc too. and should not give you too many de moulding issues whatever the shape.  As with soaps, chilling before de moulding will help tremendously.

What you need to make around 6 melts. (Multiply up if you want to make more)

A mould with a capacity of around 120-130g divided between cavities of around 20-25g (If you don't know the capacity, weigh your mould empty and then again with water in it to calculate the rough capacity)

65g Shea Butter or similar (a butter of similar consistency at room temp such as Mango)

32g Cocoa Butter unbleached (still has its natural aroma)

32ml Vegetable base oil such as Sweet Almond (substitute with your favourite if you prefer)

0.5ml of Thyme fragrance oil

0.5ml of Rosemary fragrance oil

(both fragrances can of course be substituted for your preference)

Due to the oil rich nature of this recipe, the melts that you make are known as a "leave on" product.  That is, there is an increased element of dermal exposure to the fragrance; the oil and the fragrance within the melts will cling to the skin and not be washed away.  

This is in contrast to a melt and pour soap for example that you rinse away and is termed a "wash off" product.  These two classifications are especially relevant for those making and selling products - the two have different permitted levels of fragrance and allergens in the final product.

Of course at home there are no regulations covering your own creations made for personal use, but the rules exist as a point of safety. For this type of recipe, use no more than 1% fragrance or essential oil in your mix in total. This recipe uses around 129g of ingredients and so using 1ml in total of fragrance will keep you within the recommendations.  Our suggested fragrances Rosemary and Thyme have relatively low levels of allergens in their formulation.  Allergen free fragrances are available here

Rosemary & Thyme make a fabulous fragrance combination that should not be kept for stuffing!  But you may also have other ideas. Don't be shy - you can combine any of our cosmetic grade fragrance concentrates to create your own classy combinations but please don't mix Essential oil and fragrance oil.  How about Vanilla & Cinnamon for a warm spicy autumnal soak? Or English Rose & Patchouli for a sensual soak?

Method

Using a saucepan over a very low heat, melt your Cocoa Butter first.  When half liquid, add your Shea Butter and Oil.  Stir gently until completely liquid but do not overheat.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes.  Add your fragrance and stir.

Cool for a further 5-15 minutes, observing the mix to ensure it is not setting.

Pour into your moulds.

Allow to cool, refrigerate until cold before popping out of the mould.

For our Prim Heart mould, turn the mould upside down and press firmly but gently in the middle of each cavity.  Your melts should release easily.  If not, they may not be cold enough - pop them back in the fridge.

Wrap & Enjoy!

#NatClean2012 Challenge - Week 5 - Lavender Carpet Freshener

This week's recipe is a really simple one, and our thanks go to Sam who recently reminded us about this fab recipe in a conversation on the Bathbomb.biz Ltd Facebook page.

Using just two natural ingredients you can create your own version of the commercially available carpet fresheners - without chemicals!

All you need is a quantity of Sodium Bicarbonate and some natural Lavender flowers.  Because you can make this ahead of time and keep some for later use, (and we recommend this because the aroma deepens over time) we would suggest that you find a suitable container just for the purpose.  Something like an old ice cream tub or a large coffee jar will be fine.

How much you make depends on the area of carpet you want to clean.  For an average sized rug you will need around 250g of Bicarbonate of Soda and a handful of Dried Lavender.

Simply mix the Bicarb with the Lavender and use immediately.  Sprinkle onto the carpet liberally - if you can leave it overnight so much the better.  If not, try to leave for a couple of hours and then vacuum up.  A definite plus is that your vacuum will also benefit from a Lavender aroma too!

If you don't like the idea of using Lavender flowers, or if you have a particularly light coloured carpet/rug then you can just use Bicarb on its own.

Alternatively add 5-10 drops of your favourite essential oil per 250g of Bicarbonate.  Stir the oil through the bicarbonate and leave overnight.  Before use, stir the mix and crumble any lumps.

Again, if in any doubt about the effects on your carpet please do a small test.

We hope you have been finding these #NatClean2012 recipes useful.  If you, like Sam, would like to share a recipe that you've found to be useful, do get in touch.  You can comment here, email or catch up with us on Facebook.

Enjoy :)

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