DIY Holiday Gift~A Soothing Bath Soak

Yesterday, I shared the steps for making Muscle Relaxing Bath Salts. If you missed that post, you can see it here. Today, I am making another luxurious product, perfect for reducing stress. This has been a crazy year and the holidays, in and of themselves, tend to be frenetic. My focus this year is providing gifts that will help calm, soothe, and pamper my family and friends. So today is the second DIY Holiday Gift idea.

Simple, Clean Ingredients

Again, I sourced Pinterest for this recipe from Sweet Nature’s Beauty. This Chamomile, Lavender and Oatmeal Bath Soak blends dried flowers, oatmeal, Epsom salts and relaxing essential oils. I wish I had dried more of the chamomile flowers in my garden, but instead I am able to purchase these ingredients easily online. To see my garden chamomile, click here.

Chamomile is known for its reducing anxiety and promoting sleep. However, this sweet, floral herb has many other benefits from helping skin irritations to treating cold symptoms. Click here to see the 8 benefits of Chamomile tea by Medical News Today.

Though oatmeal is great for breakfast it is also a wonderful addition to your bath. It is moisturizing, soothing and inflammation-relieving for the skin. For this bath soak, put the oatmeal in a blender to get a finer texture.

Unlike yesterday’s recipe, this one calls for fine Epsom salts, another great source of magnesium.

Essential Oils

Lavender flower buds have been used in many cultures for many years. It is suggested that lavender helps purify the body and mind. Since ancient times, lavender has been used to treat many different ailments, including mental health issues.

In this recipe, I use Chamomile and Lavender essential oils, making it smell SO good.

Mix all the ingredients together. Make sure you remove any dried stems that may still be attached to the chamomile flowers. No one wants dried little sticks poking you while in the bathtub.

Presentation is Everything

Originally, I thought I would put the bath soak mixture into small muslin bags. However, for longer term storage, perhaps a glass container is better?

And since you will need to scoop the mixture out to put into your bath (2-4 big scoops), adding a spoon or scoop is a nice addition. Many different sizes, styles and price points can be found here. The bamboo spoon above is found at World Market.

Again, I did make labels for this bath soak with the ingredient list on the back. Using Avery Business Card #5377, it is very easy to create your own design and print both sides with a template.

As I mentioned yesterday, it would be such fun to put a spa basket together with the Muscle Relaxing Bath Salts and the Chamomile, Lavender and Oatmeal bath soak. In addition you could add the easy-to-make lavender pillow (see blog post here), a dry scrub brush, soaps and a candle for a lovely gift for friends or family. Who doesn’t need some love and attention, especially after this year?

I’ve never made products like this before. Not only is it enlightening and informative, but the results are gifts you would be proud to give. Packaging it up pretty for the holidays will make the recipient of this gift feel extra special.

The Ingredients

1 cup Fine Epsom Salts

1 cup Oatmeal, blended (I did not use instant)

4 TBSP Chamomile Flowers

3 TBSP Lavender Flower Buds

12 drops of Chamomile Essential Oil

12 Drops Lavender Essential Oil

Glass Jars or

Muslin Bags

The Directions

Blend the oatmeal in a blender or Cuisinart. In a bowl, combine Epsom Salts, oatmeal, dried chamomile flowers and dried lavender buds. If your chamomile flowers have stems, remove them. Stir in the essential oils.

Store in either an airtight glass jar or if using in the near future, use a muslin bag.

Happy Wednesday! Have a blessed day.

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