Bath melts???

[squeakycleanuk]

Admittedly I have never actually bought a bath melt in my life, so I'm effectively trying to make a product I know nothing about, but I had a go at making some last week and I am somewhat unimpressed. I followed a recipe which said 2 parts butter to 1 part oil. I think it was probably too much oil though because it took about 4 days to set and even then the papercups which I used to pour into are covered on the bottom / sides with mix that soaked through (I'm assuming this is not supposed to happen because it makes then messy to handle / transport / store). Now I only filled the paper cups half way but believe me it was enough. I tested one today when I had a bath and although it smelled lovely, it felt horrible. The bath was so slippy and the surface of the water was a complete layer of oil, I was completely covered in oil when I got out and I seriously do not consider it to have been a pleasurable experience, especially the 15 minutes or so I had to spend trying to clean the bath afterwards. So my question is, is this what is expected from a bath melt and that its just not my kind of thing or was it a recipe problem, too much oil. I'd hate to think how bad it would have been if I'd filled the papercups to the top. Is there something missing from my recipe, it can't just be mostly butter can it?

 

[Relle]

Just found this old link in the forum, that might help you http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f19/bath-melts-2611/

 

[Hazel]

You can make the butter water dispersible by adding polysorbate 80 (or polysorbate 20 although this is better for EOs and lightweight oils).

http://candleandsoap.about.com/od/bathbody/a/waterdisbathoil.htm

Do you have any ewax? I used mango butter with 10% ewax and added it to bubble bath powder I had made. So it was more of a bubble bath melt product instead of just a regular bath melt. I only used one and a little partial bit that was leftover after I filled the cavities for my bath. There was a slight slippery feel to the bottom of the tub when I got in but not so slippery that I felt it was a problem. After I drained the tub, there wasn't any oiliness on the bottom or sides of the tub except right around where the surface of the water touched the sides. This made clean up very easy. However, the bubble bath powder might have also helped to "clean" the tub, too.

You could try some ewax with just butter and see how it turns out.

eta: I forgot to mention I've seen water dispersible shea butter but I don't know what supplier carries it in the UK.

http://www.lotioncrafter.com/shea-butter-ws.html

 

[squeakycleanuk]

I'll have to do some research on the polysorbate and ewax because I'm not familiar with those. I'm also thinking (after reading the link you posted relle) that a bath melt - bath bomb hybrid might be better suited to my tastes, the fizzing bath melt. Going to give it a go anyway and see what I think, thanks

 

[lsg]

Here is my go-to place for information:

http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2010/07/back-to-basics-bath-melts.html

 

[squeakycleanuk]

Thanks lsg, I'll give that a go

Anyone know what I can use for natural colourants in bath melts / bombs. I tried using powdered paprika in some bath bombs but wasn't too impressed with the results, so just wondering if there is something better I could use. I intend to use petals, so that will add some colour but any any ideas on colours would be appreciated

 

[lsg]

I would probably use rose clay or French green clay.

 

[busy bee beauty]

Hi Squeaky Clean, I don't colour them, I use flower petals e.g. rose, lavender, calendula and others to make an impact. If you want colour then you could use a water based colour as you don't want anything that might stain.
As far a melts/truffles go I distinguish between both - the melt being more for drier skins and the truffle to soften the water and moisturise. Another suggestion with melts is that they can be used as a solid moisture bar, but check with your safety assessment. :-D