I think I'm bath bomb challenged....

[Tegan]

I've tired 5 or 6 different recipes, increased the oil until it was like a dough....waited two days to unmold and I still cant get these stupid things to hold together. I'm....challenged...when it comes to bath bombs......I think I'll remove them from my line expansion plans and just stick with what I can produce easily (for me). I cant even blame it on the humidity! It's dryer then crusty old snot here right now.....

 

[Sunny]

It's dryer then crusty old snot here right now.....

yummy

yeah I can usually get mine to stay together by adding a teeny bit of witch hazel and really packing them tightly, but they're soo slow to make, I don't care for the process anyway. too much work.

 

[Moonblossom]

Oh no don't tell me this I just got the stuff to make these I have dying to try them. But the big question is it's now the wet season in WA and will I even be able to make them?

 

[Tegan]

Not sure hehehe. Part of my decision to stop making them is every time I do I have a mild allergic reaction to something. I doubt it's the baking soda....so I wonder if I'm sensitive to the citric acid. It might be the FO I keep trying to use though.....but honestly I'm just done with them....too much frustration!

 

[LauraHoosier]

I swapped the water for witch hazel and added extra oil when I made my 2nd batch and they came out great. Now I have to fight the humidity of KY as they cure then again after I pop them out of the molds *le sigh* No one likes bumpy trees. I may try to cure them in the room I have a dehumidifier/AC in to see if that helps.

 

[Padamae]

I've tired 5 or 6 different recipes, increased the oil until it was like a dough....waited two days to unmold and I still cant get these stupid things to hold together. I'm....challenged...when it comes to bath bombs......I think I'll remove them from my line expansion plans and just stick with what I can produce easily (for me). I cant even blame it on the humidity! It's dryer then crusty old snot here right now.....

I do the same thing some are too oils some crumble.

 

[Hazel]

Have you tried eliminating the oil and spritzing them with rubbing alcohol?

 

[Kleine Teufel]

If you're making it like dough, you probably have too much oil. I use about 1/7th of the weight of my dry matter in oil. So if you use 7oz of dry junk, put 1oz of oil junk in it. It won't be like dough, in fact it'll crumble a good bit. I mold it in silicone molds, freeze and then pop them out after they're completely frozen, lay them out to dry for a day or two, then package and store them. They're not rock hard, and you can break them apart if you really want to, but they withstand a good bit of a beating, such as transfering back and forth to shows, shipping, etc. Normal handling won't break them apart. Oh, and I use coconut oil. Other, liquid at room temp, oils might not hold up the same, though I've shipped in the dead of summer and didn't have any issues.

 

[Padamae]

Thank you for your suggestions o will try it soon.

 

[alwaysme07]

Have you tried eliminating the oil and spritzing them with rubbing alcohol?

I have made them with water and the mix got too wet. Next time I make these Im using 91% rubbing alcohol. They worked but they grew and grew until I sprayed them with alcohol :shock: .

 

[Hazel]

That's what I use - the 91% alcohol and I think it works great, IME.

 

[Stinkydancer]

I'm challenged with them too..I would just make them for personal use and I don't care if their ugly. LOL

Good tip about the alcohol...everything else I tried just fizzed the mixture including withch hazel (which smells bad anyway).

 

[Bubbly Buddha]

I gave up on the bath bombs and now make bath salts. I would use so many ingredients and mix it up so carefully and ONE would turn out and the rest would be crumbly. Not worth it to me!

 

[busymakinsoap!]

If you add water the batch becomes clumped and crumbly as it dries

Oils or butters work best, without any other fluid - oils don't react with the mix, they don't evaporate quickly and they add moisturising properties.

You can use liquid oils with polysorbate - this never really worked too well for me, but I think most do.

Or you can use butters (any combo) with around 1% E wax (don't go too high or you won't have enough time to work with it).

If you add too much oil or butter you bombs will never set, too little and they will crumble.

I go more by feel than by measure, but usually 3 cups of powder to 2 - 3 tablespoons of oil/butter.

balls are REALLY hard to do, and your recipe needs to be 100% spot on, or they just don't work. I have just mastered them, but used muffin trays for ages, these are pretty fool proof, and give you a feel for the recipe, without a disaterous result.

Heres a pic of my lates that I made for a market - the ones with the hearts are made with muffin trays - and the balls - these are rock hard the next day


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Another tip is to sift the batch through a sieve WITH the oils, it ensures even distribution and saves heaps of time

Oh and Don't use 'Crackling Candy' (Pic back and far left) it reacted and left the uggliest looking spit globs on the top :?

Hope this helps, they are really fun to do once you get the hang of it

 

[Soapy Gurl]

busymakinsoap - those look fantastic! I haven't made bath bombs in a decade but have been getting the itch to. All for me of course! Pictures like this really make me excited to. So do you not spritz at all? Just add the oil/butter and pack when it feels right?