I love a nice bath–a long, hot soak with a good book. Have you ever happened to read the ingredients in your personal care products while you filled the tub? Go do it now. I’ll wait.

Right. That’s what I thought. You’re probably a little weirded out. Now, I don’t think that all man-made chemicals are bad for your skin. And I KNOW not all natural ingredients are good for your skin (poison ivy, for example). But are you gonna research all that stuff and figure out if it’s bad for you or not? If you do, please tell me what you find out. I would really like to know, but I’m too lazy. Therefore, all things in moderation. When I can reduce what I’m using, pick something more natural, or make it myself, I do. But I haven’t replaced everything.

While I am somewhat concerned about bad stuff that might be in our food, cleaners, and personal care products, I also hate how much we pay for this stuff. HATE it. And I hate how it is marketed. According to the beauty industry, we need a staggering variety of products just to leave the house without being ashamed of ourselves. I hate the dumb commercials and I hate the stupid coupons and I hate the ads in the magazines. And I would just rather make things myself, when you get right down to it.

Wow, that got a little negative. What’s a sorta eco-conscious, DIYer to do when it’s time for a relaxing, yummy smelling bath?

Lush is a popular option, and I recommend it, especially if there’s a store near you so you can really check them out in person with your sniffer. But there’s plenty of information on their website about the ingredients they use in each product and their policies, so you can see if they meet your standards.

At the grocery store the other day, I was checking out the personal care aisles. Central Market carries lots of natural and handcrafted personal care items, and some of the supplies you need to make things yourself. I found this.

I realize the brand is torn off, so it is Aura Cacia for anyone who cares. I bought two, this one and a lavender scented one. They  make a foamy, fizzy bath with a big hit of aromatherapy.

Then I looked at the back, curious about the fizziness and wondering how close a relative of the bath bomb this product is. Here it is.

The main ingredients are baking soda, salt, citric acid, and oils. Yep, that sounds like a bath bomb.

I happened to have some citric acid around. WHY, you ask? Because I make my own dishwasher detergent. I know, I know–most people are interested when I explain my homemade laundry detergent, but typically I lose them on this one. But I don’t care, because leftover citric acid for bath products is just one of the many perks of making your own dishwasher detergent. It’s easy to get citric acid on Amazon. In fact, after I made this I realized that the company I buy my citric acid from on Amazon, Frontier, made the Aura Cacia foaming bath I bought at the grocery store!

After a little Googling, I decided on the ratios I would use and got started.

Gather together baking soda, citric acid, salt, and some fragrant oils. I went with epsom salt, but you can use kosher. I used lavender oil. I find it relaxing, and most of the time I take my bath just before bed. You will also need a container. If you like to can, you will have glass jars around. I used two of the 16 ounce jars. You can make one to use yourself and one to give away (or, make one to use and one to hoard for later–that’s what I did).