DIY Vanilla Lavender Bath Bombs

So my cousin, aka my best friend, LOVES Lush's bath bombs.  And to be fair, I am a huge fan of lush and the products they put out. However, I figured I could make these on my own.  And with Galentine's day coming up (February 13th!) I knew I had to make a zero waste treat for my girlfriends!

Ingredients:

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• 1 cup Baking Soda
• 1/2 cup Citric Acid
  • Citric acid is a weak acid that naturally occurs in citric fruits.  It is responsible for the fizzing of the bath bomb. I bought mine in the bulk spice section at Sprouts.
• 1/2 cup Epsom Salt or table salt
• 2 teaspoons olive oil or sweet almond oil
• 2 teaspoons witch hazel or water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or water
• 20-30 drops lavender essential oil
  • You can use whatever essential oils you want, I just like lavender because of its calming/ soothing scent
• 1-2 teaspoons dried lavender buds (optional)
  • you can either add these in with the dry ingredients or sprinkle on the bottom of your mold before you start and they will come out on top of the bath bomb
• Some sort of mold: silicone molds, ice cube trays, cupcake tins, etc.
  • if using a tray or pan, grease with oil before hand (not butter)

Instructions:

1. Combine dy ingredients (baking soda, citric acid, and epsom salt, lavender buds) into a bowl and whisk together
2. In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients (olive oil, witch hazel, vanilla extract, essential oil) and whisk until will mixed
3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and very quickly mix with your hands.
4. At this point the mixture should hold together when you squeeze it. If it doesn't, add some more witch hazel or spritz with water.
5. Press the mixture firmly into your molds and let it sit out for 24-48 hours or until hardened (48 hours is better)
   1. These will continue to puff up over the course of the next few hours (it will look like you have little white muffins), just press them down with your fingers when they do!
6. Once removed, store in airtight container and use within 2 months!

To use:  Place into your warm bath as you get in it and enjoy the fizzy, vanilla-lavender glory!

Combine Dry Ingredients

In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients

Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and quickly mix with hands

Press mixture firmly into molds

For bigger bath bombs you could make six and fill the whole muffin round

Let sit for 24-48 hours

pressing down the puffiness over the first few hours

Remove from tin

Store in airtight container(s) and use within two months

I put these ones in smaller containers as fun gifts!

Homemade Coconut Oil Shaving Cream

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When I first started shaving, it became quickly apparent that I was not only sensitive to the traditional foaming shaving creams, but actually allergic to them.  My legs would rash and become uncontrollably itchy. I fell asleep in school a few times from taking bennydryl to calm the reaction down.  So it didn't take long for my mom to help me find some alternative options. There weren't really any health food stores near us at the time, so I started using soap and conditioner with no problems, and for years that's what I shaved with.

 As some new stores came into town (Sprouts and Trader Joe's specifically), we found some different, more natural products like Dr. Bronner's Shaving Soaps and Trader Joe's Honey Mango Shave Cream.  I used these on and off into and out of college, but now that I'm going zero waste, these won't cut it anymore because the packaging is not recyclable.

So after some internet research, and some experimentation with different recipes, here is my coconut shaving cream recipe! While there are quite a few more ingredients and steps than any of my previous body care products, I promise this is still easier to make than making a batch of cookies (even the kind that comes out of the box) so don't be intimidated!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup unrefined coconut oil
• 1/2 cup pure shea butter
• 2 tablespoons cocoa butter (optional)
• 2 tablespoons vitamin E, olive, or grapeseed oil
• 2 tablespoons of honey (optional)
• 3 tablespoons liquid Castile soap
  • I recommend lavender, eucalyptus, or peppermint
• 10–20 drops of your essential oils of choice (optional)
  • I recommend lavender, my boyfriend likes peppermint for his face

DIRECTIONS:

1. Using a small saucepan, melt the shea butter and coconut oil (and cocoa butter if your using it) on a very low heat setting on the stove.
2. Stir until fully melted.
3. Add vitamin E/olive oil/grape-seed oil and stir until fully blended.
4. Remove from heat.
5. Transfer the mixture to a medium-sized bowl and place in the fridge or freezer until it becomes solid, about 15-30 min.
   • Make sure the oil hardens but doesn't freeze, you will find whipping it difficult if it does.
6. Remove the mixture from fridge/freezer.
7. Using a hand mixer to whip the mixture until smooth and fluffy; about 3–5 minutes.
   • You can use a stand mixer but I've had better luck with this portion using a hand mixer
8. Add the castile soap and honey and mix again.
9. Add the essential oils and whip again until well mixed and the mixture reaches the desired texture.

Melt Shea Butter and Coconut Oil

Melt Shea Butter and Coconut Oil

Melt Shea Butter and Coconut Oil

Remove From Heat and Place in Medium Bowl

Place Bowl in Fridge or Freezer

Remove From Freezer

Whip All Ingredients Together Until Light and Fluffy

To Use: Use about a quarter sized dollop for each leg. Be aware that this can make your shower floor slippery and take extra caution. The texture will become oily once on your leg, as opposed to fluffy and mousse-like

A note about natural ingredients:  because these ingredients are all natural, they will inevitably spoil.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing as it is basically the microbial world telling you that its not poisonous!  None of these things should spoil too quickly, but to help make it last longer try to limit the amount of water that gets into its container. If you find this is becoming too much of a problem, just make a smaller batch by cutting the recipe in half.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

While my recipe is not a replication of any of these bloggers, I did use their posts for guidance and feel they should be acknowledged:

Heather of mommypotamus.com, find her shaving cream recipe here!

Katie of wellnessmama.com, find her shaving cream recipe here!

Zero Waste Shaving

I have been using a variety of razors and razor blades since I started shaving, I think I was 12.

Over the course of the past 13 years I have switched between reusable razors with replaceable blades, disposable razors, recyclable razors, waxing, and I even went the "I don't need to shave" route for a bit (by a bit I mean 3 weeks and then I caved).

I've jumped around for all different reasons. I switched from shaving to waxing because I wanted my hair to be thinner, but I got over that and went back to shaving. Then I changed from the reusable razors because the replacement blades became so expensive that I felt I had to go to disposable ones.  I felt terrible throwing away the entire plastic disposable razor, so I found an eco-friendly recyclable one from Preserve. But when I decided to go completely zero waste, I realized I would have to find an alternative because only Preserve's razor handle is recyclable, not the blades.

Luckily, the issue of hair removal has been solved for a long time within the zero waste community, and it's actually a money saver!

Introducing: The Safety Razor

The safety razor was introduced and patented in 1880, so they've been around longer than you or I (most likely, I'm assuming you're not over 100).  It was really the first move away from traditional straight razors (think Sweeny Todd) which were more challenging and dangerous to use. Technically modern razor blades, with 2-5 blades, are a type of safety razor.

However, it is the double-edge (DE) safety razor that is commonly used in the zero-waste community today and is definitely a staple of a zero waste bathroom.  They are actually most commonly used because of the cost savings compared to disposables and razors with replaceable cartridges. I, personally, went with a mid-range DE razor from Merkur

I vary with what cream/soap I shave with. When I'm feeling crafty I make a homemade coconut oil shaving cream, but I also love bar shaving soaps. Figure out what works best for you. Keep in mind that you need to frequently rinse a safety razor no matter what you shave with!

How to

Safety razors are a little different from disposable or cartridge razors. 

The Set Up

1. Get your safety razor and the double edge razor blade.
2. Take your razor apart into its three pieces: top, middle, and bottom 
3. Place your DE blade on the prongs of the top segment of the razor
4. Place the middle segment on the prongs, over the blade.
5. Screw the handle into the middle prong. 

The Shave

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Common Questions

1. Will a safety razor irritate my skin?
   • If your normal razor irritates your skin, then you may also have irritation with a safety razor. However, less blades should equal less irritation.  I haven't been able to track down any solid science to back this up either way, but you should certainly not experience more irritation. 
   • There are also claims of safety razors reducing the number of ingrown hairs, again no science to back it up so you'll need to find out for yourself!
   • Additional Note: I borrowed one of my friends traditional razors for my legs after using a safety razor for about 8 months and I found it to be VERY irritating. I'll totally backup this claim with personal experience.
2. Will I cut myself more with a safety razor?
   • No more than with a cartridge razor. Obviously if you slice it sideways it will cut you. The most important thing to remember is not to apply too much downward force while you shave. This will increase the likelihood of the blade cutting you. 
3. How many shaves will a DE razor last?
   • It depends how often you shave and how course your hair is, but a typical DE blade will last about 5-7 shaves.
   • Your actual safety razor could last anywhere from 10-50 years depending on the quality!