Homemade Bath and Beauty Recipes

Buttermilk Bath

This gentle bath will leave your skin soft and silky. Buttermilk is high in fat and lactic acid, and both help soften and hydrate skin. Make an extra portion of this because people of all ages can benefit from this rich, relaxing natural bath. You may want to package this in a decorative glass jar or a cellophane envelope to give as gifts to friends.

• 1/4 cup dry buttermilk (or dry milk)
• 1/4 cup Nonfat Dry Milk
• 1 Tbsp. Cornstarch
• 1/8 tsp. essential oil of your choice, depending on your mood. (lavender is relaxing)

Mix together all the ingredients with a wire whisk and pour into a airtight jar or re-sealable plastic bag.

Directions for use: Pour 1/4 of the buttermilk bath powder in tub as you add hot water .

(makes 1/2 cup, enough for 2 baths)

Herbal Milk Bath

• 1 cup Cornstarch
• 1 cup Dry Milk Powder
• 2 tsp. of your Favorite Herbs

Combine ingredients in food processor or blender. Add herbs and blend.

Directions for use: Add 1/cup of mixture to hot bath water

(makes 2 cups, enough for 4 baths)

Do It Yourself Bath Salts

• 1 cup Epsom salt
• 1 cup Sea salt
• 1/2 cup Baking soda
• Fragrance optional, 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. essential or Fragrance Oils as desired

Combine all ingredients with wire wisk. If your salt is a large crystal type, grind your salt first in a food processor until it is finely grained.

Store in a large zip-lock bag

Directions for use: Use about 1/3 cup per bath

Bubble Milk Bath

• 1 cup Powdered Milk or powdered buttermilk
• 1/2 cup Oatmeal
• 1 cup Baking Soda
• 4 Tbsp. Corn Starch
• 2 Tbsp. Cream of Tartar
• 1/4 cup Handcrafted Soap(cut in chunks)
• Optional, fragrance with 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. essential or Fragrance Oil as desired

Use a food processor, add chunked handcrafted soap and oatmeal until grainy. Add powdered milk, baking soda, corn starch and cream of tartar. Add fragrance and process until it's powdery. Store in glass jar.

Directions for use: Use 1/4 cup per bath, add to running hot water.

Cleansing Body Polish

• 1/2 cup fine sea salt
• 1/4 cup Jojoba Oil or other body oils(olive oil works fine)
• 1/4 cup handcrafted soap( finely grated)
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. essential or Fragrance Oil

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix thoroughly. store in a small plastic jar that you can keep in the shower.

This scrub acts as a cleanser, scrub and moisturizer all in one.

Directions for use: Use this in the shower on dry skin(otherwise the salt melts instead of scrubs). Rub and scrub anywhere you need to exfoliate and moisturize. Bath Bombs

• 4 Tbsp. Citric Acid
• 4 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 3 Tbsp. Monoi de Tahiti Oil (or you can use any other emollient oil like coconut or Almond Oil, )
• 1/4 tsp. Fragrance Oil or essential oil (Eucalyptus, peppermint and rosemary is an uplifting blend, great for head colds)

Sift all of the dry ingredients (first three) into a bowl and mix well with wire whisk. Put bottle of oil in warm water to melt oil. Slowly add oil to dry ingredients, then add fragrance and blend well. Take 1 Tbsp. of mixture and shape into balls or press (really hard)into molds (such as small chocolate mold) if using molds, pop them in freezer till hard and pop out. Let the balls rest on a sheet of waxed paper for two to three hours. Gently reshape if needed. Let the bombs dry and harden for 24 to 48 hours.

These are fragile so carefully package each bomb in its own cellophane bag or in a closed container to keep fresh.

Directions for use: To use, drop one bomb into warm bath water to release fragrance and oils. A little bit of heaven right in your bath tub!

Vinegar Hair Rinse

• 1/2 tsp. of vinegar
• 1 cup of water

After shampooing, apply the vinegar rinse. You may rinse it all out if you want, or leave the rinse on your hair. Leaving the vinegar rinse on your hair will help to prevent tangles. Vinegar helps to restore your pH balance and helps prevent an itchy scalp. Once your hair dries it will not smell like vinegar. Most people like to use the vinegar rinse 1 to 2 times a week. You can experiment adding infused herbs, a few drops of honey or essential oils to your vinegar rinse.

By Mythi from Silverdale WA