I went wandering through various shops and looked at many items. Trial size bottles of bubble bath, small decorative soaps, single packs of bath salts, bath oil marbles in small containers, and after doing a bit of math, determined that it would cost me too much to create a decent sized basket on my miniscule sized budget.

Clearly, I had to get more creative.

  There are several components to making a nice bath basket. First and foremost is the basket. The options for baskets are as varied as the colors of wildflowers. You can walk into any import shop or Walmart sort of place and find dozens of baskets in all sorts of shapes and sizes. With Easter nearing, there are even more baskets available than usual.

But wait! Baskets are not your only option! Think creatively. How about a small wastebasket? What about a plastic coated wire box of a good size? Have you considered something as simple as a small plastic mixing bowl? How about some of that old Tupperware you saw for sale at that garage sale last week? The only things you need to keep in mind is that the item you choose as your basket should be unbreakable, as glass in the bathroom can create a safety hazard, and that the container should be of a moderate size, neither very small nor large and preferably not very deep. Personally I like to purchase old Tupperware containers for making bath baskets. I get them for 50 cents to a dollar at thrift stores and garage sales, and if the color is unsuitable for my purposes, I just put a few layers of craft paint on them to give them a more up to date color, and decorate with a stencil or stickers.

Now to fill that basket.

The first thing that I put into a bath basket is a small hand towel. These can be purchased at Walmart for a dollar or two. (Get a matching face cloth while you're there!). I lay this on the bottom of the container, with the corners flopped outside. If you're handy with a needle, you can monogram the recipient's initial or a floral motif on one corner of the towel and cloth.

After the towel is in, I fold the washcloth into a triangle and stand it on its edge in a corner (or off to the side for rounded containers).

Now comes the truly crafty part, making the bath goodies.

Materials: Unscented bubble bath (I use Avon's Sensitive Skin bubble bath, which is usually on sale for very very cheap and has no scent), Unscented glycerine soap (Ivory soap works well for this also), essential oil in your favorite fragrance, food coloring (optional), Epsom salts, sea salt, colored saran wrap, small seethrough plastic bottles, wide mouthed glass jars such as old mayonnaise or spaghetti sauce jars, scraps of ribbon, candy or soap molds.

Procedures:

Bubble Bath - This is as simple as filling a wide mouthed jar with unscented bubble bath, a few drops of food coloring (Not too many, too much food coloring will color the skin!), and a few drops of essential oil, then stirring to mix well. I recommend adding the scent and color a few drops at a time, stirring, checking the scent, adding more if needed. Remember too, that hot water intensifies scents and that people will be immersing their body in this bubble bath, so less is better than more. After you have the bubble bath to the scent and color you want them, fill the small plastic bottles with it and cover. You can affix a label if you like, with instructions for use (check the original bubble bath bottle for those).

Bath Salts - The recipe for bath salts is simple: use equal parts of Epsom Salts and Sea Salt, add food coloring and essential oils. Simply mix in a large glass jar one cup each of epsom and sea salts, cover, shake well to blend, uncover.

Spread about one half cup of the salt mix in a large non-metallic casserole pan and add in the food coloring and the essential oil. (Try ten drops of each for a starter). Mix this very well, so that the scent and the color is evenly spread throughout the salt mix. Then slowly add this color/scent/salt blend back into the jar of plain salts, mixing often until you are happy with the color and scent. Close the jar tightly and set aside for a week, shaking it thoroughly every day.

To package the salts, I recommend cutting off squares of colored saran wrap and placing 1/4 cup of salts in the center, then pulling the sides up and twisting once or twice, then tying closed with a piece of ribbon. On a small piece of paper, write the instructions: Pour the contents of this packet under running water and enjoy a long and comfortable soak.

Decorative Soaps - Cut the glycerine soap into small pieces, and melt in an old pan over low heat, stirring constantly. After the soap has melted, remove from heat and add coloring and scent, a few drops at a time and stirring until it is thoroughly blended. Using an old ladle, pour the mixture into your candy or soap molds, and let cool for several hours until hardened. Wrap each soap in colored saran wrap, and tie a ribbon around them if you like.

If you feel like filling the basket out a bit more, consider adding a pumice stone or loofah, a bath cap, a votive candle in a scent to match the soaps (don't forget a votive cup!), a relaxing book, or how about a small inflatable pillow?

The cost of each of these projects is very minimal. Glycerine soap can be found at most shops for about $1 per bar, and one bar will make two to three smaller decorative soaps. The essential oil will cost several dollars for a bottle, but you use only a few drops for each project, and it should last you through a few basket's worth. Epsom salts and sea salt are extremely cheap and readily available. The biggest outlay will most likely be the basket and towel/washcloth. You should be able to put together a very attractive and full basket for less than $10.

Difficulty level: Fairly easy, these projects mostly require patience to ensure that everything is blended well.

For some ideas on gathering crafting materials for less, check out my article on Gathering Supplies .  Happy crafting until next time!

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