Making your own bath salts is something anyone can do. You have a wide range of options which lets you choose how much you want to spend and how fancy you want your salts to be. You can have a lot of fun trying new things and making your bath salts into something luxurious. You can then use them for yourself, give them as gifts, or even sell them with the right marketing strategy.

You will Need-There are a few things you will need. Equipment wise you will want to have a large mixing bowl, the larger the batch of salts you desire to make the larger  your bowl should be. You will also want a wooden spoon, an aluminum foil covered baking tray, and containers (jars or even baggies) to put your salts in when you are done making them. The ingredients you use is completely up to you, but you will need salt (no kidding, huh?!), colorant, fragrance, moisturizers (if you wish), and baking soda (if you wish). 

Salts-Salt is the one ingredient you have to have for bath salts. In fact  you can make an all natural, beautiful bath salt that includes nothing but salts. It would of course be fragrance free, but you can get a lot of good out of salts! Most bath salts include at least some Epsom salts. This is because it is inexpensive and it has a great deal of benefits including releiving sore muscles, relaxing the body, and providing a good base. I always suggest using about 1/3 to 1/2 Epsom salts as a great start to a great bath salt. 

Different kids of sea salts and such can be used for the other half. You have a ton of options at a wide range of prices. You can find inexpensive sea salts for about 50 cents a pound. More expensive, exotic varieties can be purchased (mostly online) for $1-10 a pound. The fancy exotic varieties often come in different colors (which can be a way to get colored bath salts with no colorant added) and have a lot of good mineral properties that are good for the body.

Colorant-You have a few choices when chosing a colorant to color your salts. You can go without and leave your salts their natural color. This isn't a bad idea, especially if you used fancy colored salts which you really shouldn't dye anyway. Your other option is to use soap dye or colorant which will either be powdered or liquid, or food coloring. Both options are safe for the skin and for the bath tub.

Fragrance-You have a couple of options for fragrances as well. You can go with fragrance oil, which is synthetic, or essence oils which is all natural dirived from different plant materials. Either option is good, but I like essence oil best. I have also heard of people using perfume, calogne, and even body spray, but I have never tried it and don't know  how well it works. 

Moisturizers-Bath salts can be wonderful for detoxing the body, relaxing the skin, helping with cell metabolism and such, but with a few moisturizers, they can also be fantastic for leaving the skin soft and silky. You have a ton of choices here. Any sort of oil is good, certain types are better for certain skin types, but all will leave you feeling soft and moisturized. Your choices here include olive oil, nut oils, seed oils, fruit and vegetable oils, and even oils such as hemp oil and jojoba oil. You can choose one or a combination of them. You may even want to do a little research and find out the advantages of each type. 

You can also add wonderful ingredients to help mositurize the skin such as Vitamin E oil, Aloe Vera gel, and glycerin for a wonderful addition to your bath salts.

Baking Soda-While it isn't necessary to add baking soda in order to have a good bath salt, baking soda has a lot of nice properties to add and is very inexpensive making it a great thing to toss in to the batch and mix up. 

The Process. Making bath salts is simple. So, simple it is a great project to do with kids, and a great project for beginners. It doesn't take a lot of practice to make perfect salts! 

1. Measure out your salts, and mix them together really well. Your salts can be all sorts of different textures (this is good for looks and good for feel as well).
2. Add colorant. You will want to do this a few drops or a pinch at a time. Make sure you add a little and stir it really well. If you don't like the color, add a little more till you achieve the color of  your choice.
3. Add fragrance. Do this just as slowly. Add about five drops and stir. Make sure that you close up your frangrance and then smell your salts. You want to make sure that the fragrance is strong enough to smell, but not so strong to over power the user and make them feel sick. Add more fragrance as needed, about 3-5 drops as needed.
4. Add moisturizers. To do this mix the ingredients you wish to use in a small glass cup. You won't need much, so only mix a little of each ingredient. Add it to the salt about a tablespoon at a time, mixing well between each spoonful. You want your salts to be coated with it, but not really wet.
5. Bake your salts. Place them on your aluminum foil lined baking sheet and bake them in an oven set on "warm" or about 200 degrees. They will need to bake at least ten to fifteen minutes, but could take up to one hour depending on how much moisture they had. Check them every ten to fifteen minutes until they are dry or mostly dry.
6. Mix in your baking soda. This is the last step. You should carefully add about 1/3 cup of baking soda for every three cups of salt. Stir it in well.
7. Place your salts in their containers. You can get creative with this part and decorate up some beautiful jars or other containers. You need to remember that salts will absorb moisture, so don't leave them in open baskets or tins.

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