Made my first bath bombs!!

[SudsyKat]

I just made my first bath bombs this weekend and I'm so excited! They're great in a lot of ways, though I did have a couple of questions:

1. They did not have any warts, but most of them did develop a large crack along the seam. Also, they flattened out a bit. I'm thinking that both of these symptoms mean that I probably had too much liquid. Does that sound right?

2. Does it matter what order you add the wet ingredients (including color)? I used a recipe that called for mixing all the wet ingredients together and then drizzling into the dry mix. I had oils, water, fragrance and LaBomb liquid coloring. It worked pretty well, I think, but I'm wondering if there are any benefits or downside to doing it this way.

3. How long are they supposed to fizz for? Mine went for 15-20 seconds. Is that good or bad? I have no idea.

Incidentally, I remember seeing a thread where people were very curious about how to get their bombs to float. I guess I got lucky, because mine did float and I think the answer is surprisingly simple. My recipe included epsom salts. Salt makes things float!

 

[krissy]

cool! i am about to attempt a batch of bombs now.

 

[SudsyKat]

Good luck, Krissy! Let us know how they turn out!

 

[carebear]

bath bombs are the work of the devil! the devil, I tell ya!! the devil!!!
:evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

 

[Genny]

ROFL Carebear!! That's how I feel most of the time.
Bath bombs can be such a pain in the butt. I used to think I had them down pat. I'd do batches and batches without any problems. But lately something always goes wrong, even though in the years I've done them, I do the same thing every time .

 

[krissy]

i just made 4 small batches! they came out so awesome! i am super duper excited!!
the lavender ones came out so pretty!

 

[Clueless]

Bath Bombs

Hi
I also made some bath bombs, I followed a recipe that a friend gave me and they don't seam right or something, I cant make them into molds they are too dry. What could be the problem?
Thanks

 

[krissy]

Hi clueless, welcome to the forum. if you would share your recipe, we could tell you what to put more of to help you.

 

[soapbuddy]

I gave up on bath bombs. It was taking up too much of my time and my time is valuable. I now make them loose in a jar.

 

[krissy]

here are my bombs... they are 2+ oz each


lavender and April Showers

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

[Catmehndi]

Bath bombs can be really tricky - I don't know about :twisted: !

The humidity level of the room you work will come into play - try to work in a dry environment (a de-humidifier may have to be used)

If they won't stay formed, perhaps you need to spritz them a little - you should be able to squeeze the ingredients in your hand and it will 'stay'. Once you get to that point, you should be ready to put the in the molds.

The larger the bomb, the longer it will take to dry (of course)

 

[BakingNana]

:twisted: is right!! I do custom fragrance orders sometimes, and you can bet I put a minimum order number on those suckers. I gotta say, tho, I love using them myself. I'm doing an Easter egg shape for spring. I like the mold so much I think I'll stick to that shape all year. It's stainless steel so I can really put pressure on them, and they release just fine.

Congrats to all on bomb sucess!

 

[SudsyKat]

Krissy - they're gorgeous! Congrats!

 

[lsg]

I have had better luck making bath tablets. I use the lid off of a can of Republic of Tea and press the mixture into that. I have also started dusting the inside of the lid with a little cornstarch, this helps the tablets release. I have had mixed results with the round bombs as some from the same batch look great and others crack along the seam after a while. With tablets, you don't have that problem.
Using a little clay and some coco butter in the bomb recipe works for me.

 

[krissy]

thanks sudsykat!
i have found that if i use water/witch hazel my bomb don't work but i no longer use any water-ish liquid and they work great.

 

[BakingNana]

thanks sudsykat!
i have found that if i use water/witch hazel my bomb don't work but i no longer use any water-ish liquid and they work great.

Krissy, do you use just an oil then? I love safflower oil in the bombs. To me it's a nice, light bath oil and the price is pretty good. I use a lot more oil in the bombs than any published recipe I've seen, and rarely add water. Doesn't affect the fizz at all. (Sorry if this is a highjack!)

 

[krissy]

yes, i just use oil.i use just enough to make the mix fit together and stick. i think because the humidity here is so high so my baking soda already has absorbed some moisture and if i add water or another liquid that it just pushes it too far. so i tried using only an oil and they come out hard and dont wart on me. it has been raining for the past few days and i made a batch just to see if it would mess up just from the water in the air. so far so good.

 

[SudsyKat]

I have enjoyed this thread and have gotten some great information from it, but nobody actually answered my initial questions. Well, I made a second batch and made adjustments/experimented and found some of the answers for myself. Here they are:

1. They did not have any warts, but most of them did develop a large crack along the seam. Also, they flattened out a bit. I'm thinking that both of these symptoms mean that I probably had too much liquid. Does that sound right?

It was too much liquid that caused those symptoms. In my second attempt, I omitted the water all together (it was 3/4 Tbsp in the original recipe). I used the same amount of oils and other ingredients. I did have to add 10 spritzes of witch hazel, but it was from a mister bottle, so it's really a very small amount of moisture. No cracks, no warts, and perfectly formed balls that did not flatten out at all. I'm very excited!!!

2. Does it matter what order you add the wet ingredients (including color)? I used a recipe that called for mixing all the wet ingredients together and then drizzling into the dry mix. I had oils, water, fragrance and LaBomb liquid coloring. It worked pretty well, I think, but I'm wondering if there are any benefits or downside to doing it this way.

I don't have a comprehensive answer, but I did try putting the 4 drops of La Bomb coloring (that's all I used in the last batch - 4 drops), into the dry mix FIRST. I was using my Kitchenaid mixer with the whisk attachment. It didn't blend in nearly as well as when I added the color to all the liquid ingredients first and then drizzled the whole liquid mixture into the dry powder. So, after the fact, I added another 4 drops of the coloring to the liquid mixture and did it the way I had done with the first batch. Worked like a charm.

3. How long are they supposed to fizz for? Mine went for 15-20 seconds. Is that good or bad? I have no idea.!

I still didn't get any answers for question #3. Anybody?

 

[krissy]

i dont know how long the are supposed to fizz. i think it varies by size at the least. i tried out mine last night and it fizzed for around a minute i think.

 

[agriffin]

I would think cracking and flattening would mean you didn't press hard enough? I add all my liquid together and add to dry ingredients. I think it does help disperse the color better.