Bath Time, Fun Time

Bath time is a big deal at my house, the kids are definitely in love with water. When Tobers was still little I found some little tablets that changed the water different colors without staining our tub at walmart. I also bought them some bath crayons. Those didn't work out too well because of their age at the time. They spent more time eating the crayons than coloring on the wall. However, to make them even more comfortable with the move, I've decided to go back to that type of thing and I've begun looking up recipes for the same type of stuff I used back then. I'm thinking that the more fun they have the more comfortable they'll be and we actually have space to move around now. So here are some of the recipes I'm going to try if you'd like to try them with me!

Homemade Bubble Bath:

• 750ml/3 cups of liquid Castille soap
• 15g/2 tbsp fine sugar ( confectioners or caster)
• 20g/ 4 tbsp glycerin (vegetable)
• optional: 1 level tsp of beet powder to make it pink, turmeric to make it yellow, or woad to make it purple
• essential oils for sent (optional)
• glass, ceramic or metal mixing bowl
• large bottle
• a funnel

Stir together all the ingredients above (except the essential oils) and add the optional coloring if you want it to have a color. Once the sugar has completely dissolved,  place the bowl in a cool, dry place for approximately 24 to 30 hours. Once the mixture has been allowed to cure, add the essential oil fragrance combo of your choice. You'll only need a few drops. You may either add them now, or you can add the essential oils separately to each bath- it’s up to you.

Jelly Bubble Bath -NOT EDIBLE:

• Packet unflavored Gelatin
• 3/4 Cup water
• 1/2 Cup clear liquid soap or bubble bath
• Fragrance oils (optional)
• Food Coloring of your choice
• Plastic jar with lid (you can use a cleaned out empty peanut butter jar)
• Mixing Bowl

Empty the packet of gelatin into a mixing bowl. Set aside.
Warm water until it begins to boil. Immediately remove water from heat source. Carefully pour the hot water into mixing bowl and gently mix with gelatin powder. Allow gelatin to completely dissolve. Be patient! This may take a few minutes.
Very SLOWLY and gently stir in the liquid soap to the gelatin mixture. Add a drop of food coloring and 5-8 drops of fragrance oil. (Be careful not to beat mixture, bath jelly will become foamy if you do.)
Pour your bath jelly into a clean, clear container.
Refrigerate Bubble Jelly until set (about 4 hours).
To use, scoop a small amount of jelly into your hand and hold under warm running water for a bubbly bath-time treat!

Body Glitter:

Tobi loves this stuff. Just mix aloe vera gel and glitter, rub on with fingers.

Bathtub Crayons:

• Clear glycerin soap base cut into cubes
• 3 or more soap color dyes (or food color dyes)
• Essential oils in your favorite smells (optional)
• Glass measuring cup for melting soap
• Spoons for mixing colors and fragrances
• Ice cube trays or round crayon molds

Separate the soap base cubes; one pile for each soap color dye.
Have the children place the soap cube for the first color in a glass measuring cup and melt in microwave in short bursts.
Once melted, have the children add soap color a drop at a time, mixing well after each drop until you get the color right.
Then, add a couple of drops of essential oils and mix well.
Next, have the children carefully pour the color soap into ice cube trays.
If you see any air bubbles on the surface of the soap, spray it with rubbing alcohol.
Have the children repeat the same soap crayon making process with the rest of the colors.
After that, allow the soap to set until it is firm. This could take anywhere from 30 minutes to a few hours.  When the soap is close to firm, feel free to place the soap in the freezer to speed up the hardening process.
When ready, have the children pop the soap crayons out of the trays.

Bathtub Paints:

• 1/3 cup mild clear Joy dishwashing soap or baby shampoo
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• food coloring

Mix cornstarch and liquid soap in bowl.

Pour into ice cube tray, filling about 1/2 full.

Put 4-8 drops of different food coloring colors into each section and mix till blended.

I usually use toothpicks to mix when in the ice cube tray.

Give to the kids and let them at it!

This washes your child, and will wash off the walls too!

I picked these recipes specifically because of the science behind them. I've found that the bubble bath recipes without glycerin don't really bubble up as well. They're usually just shampoo mixed with water. I was also particular about hunting down recipes that had no indication of staining as I just got that bathtub perfect, I don't know what I'd do if it was suddenly rainbow colored. Be sure to comment and let me know how you liked the recipes, I know my kids are going to love them.

Bath time themed books (we sometimes read while in the tub, I'm big on reading ask my mom :)):

1. What Floats? By Julie Aigner-Clark
2. Bath Time By Sandra Boynton
3. The Fish is Me: Bathtime Rhymes By Neil Phillip
4. Bathtime Peekaboo by DK Publishing
5. Splish Splash Fun-In-The-Tub: Bathtime Science Activities for Kids by Jordan and Diane Ohanesian
6. Clifford's Bathtime by Norman Bridwell
7. Bathtime for Biscuit by Alissa Satin Capucilli

Homemade Oxi Clean and Fabric Softener

The other day I posted my own recipe for the homemade laundry detergent. It's working great, by the way. That same night I got into a huge DIY phase where I had to make all kinds of stuff all at once. I made homemade fabric softener and homemade oxi clean. Both are working wonders. I based both the laundry detergent and fabric softener on other recipes I had seen. Most of the recipes vary from site to site, so I made my own based on the different reviews. The oxi clean I came up with all by myself. They've all worked so well.

Fabric Softener:
6 parts water
3 parts vinegar (I used rice)
2 parts conditioner (I used some VO5 I had on hand)

Mix (not shake) together and use a funnel to pour into a plastic/glass container. I used another left over laundry detergent bottle for this. Use a half a cup per load.


"Oxi-Clean":
2 c. washing powders
2 c. borax
1 1/2 TBS Dawn dishwashing liquid
2 tsp febreeze

I used a fork to mix with, whatever you use be sure to mix in every thing well. The dawn and febreeze will mix in very well. I use 1 TBS per load.

All Purpose Cleaner:
2 c. washing powders
2 c. borax
water

For this I just used a medium sauce pan and just filled it up with water. On medium heat stir until the borax and washing powders dissolve. Pour into container.

Bathroom Cleaner:
2 TBS Lysol Toilet bowl cleaner for hard water and rust/lime
water
empty spray bottle

Ok, so I totally cheated on this one. All I did was dillute this amazing toilet bowl cleaner. It's awesome. You guys have no idea, it works really well for the tub and kitchen sink. I also poured some of this stuff about an inch deep in a plastic cup and put our shower head in it. Then I poured some more (not much) in the inside of the shower head. Five minutes later, it was clean and had a beautiful stream- like brand new. I love this stuff. Try it. Go. Now.


That's all I've got for now. Please be aware that these cleaners I've made are not "sudsy" cleaners. When they start to work you're not going to see a whole bunch of soapy looking bubbles like you might be used to. That's ok. I'm not only making this to save money but to keep plastic out of the landfills. If you can, please reuse containers. Alot of containers only need to be washed out before they can be reused. WARNING: NEVER MIX BLEACH WITH AMMONIA IN ANY AMOUNT IT CREATES DEADLY FUMES
I save a lot of containers and reuse them, it's recycling. Repurpose things guys, it's not hard at all and it helps our enviroment, saves you money, and provides convenience. There's a lot  you can do with the empty laundry containers. A lot of things need to be put in air tight containers and sealed well, these are air tight and seal well. They would also be good for storing the benneficial "tea" from your compost, storing any thing, like let's say Miracle Grow, that comes in a box. There are a lot of art projects you can do with these at all. My two favorite would be making animal "heads" out of them for hanging on a kids wall and making little fairy houses out of them by cutting out a door and windows and then covering with rocks, marbles and moss. Here's a list of more stuff you can do with these bottles.

1. Handy scoops can be cut out of them, like small trowels
2. If you're diabetic this is a safe way to dispose of your used needles
3. Ice salt shaker (store your ice salt for your driveways in these to conveniently shake it out.
4. fill them with sand or water to make weights for weight training.
5. storing small things like nails, screws, buttons, etc.
6. sturdy templates for crafting.
7. store old rags
8. to store grocery bags for reuse
9. hand washing station in the garden
10. storage of any liquids

Always make sure you thoroughly wash these bottles out





Helpful Links:
15 Uses for Laundry Detergent Bottles

10 Uses for Laundry Detergent BottlesReusing Laundry Detergent Bottles
How to Re-use Laundry Detergent Bottles in the Garage
10 ways to Repurpose Laundry Detergent Bottles

Homemade laundry detergent

Tonight we ran out of laundry detergent and had to go get more. There's always laundry to be done in this house. However, there's always a need for money in this house too. So I decided to get the ingredients to make laundry detergent. It's definitely worth a try. Here's what I picked up. Just so you know, before you ask I picked up all of these things at Walmart in the laundry detergent aisle. Be aware though, I didn't get a picture of my washing powders but what is in the picture here is baking soda. You don't want baking soda you want washing powders. It's not the same thing. They're all next to each other.





Ingredients:

1. a box of Arm and Hammer washing powders
2. a bar of Fels-Naptha soap
3. a box of 20 mule team borax

Directions/Recipe:

1. grate up half of your bar of soap into a medium sized sauce pan
2. add six cups of water and, on medium heat stir until melted.
3. add two cups of washing powders
4. add two cups of borax
5. stir until dissolved
6. In a large enough bucket (2 gallons or more) place 4 cups of hot water and stir in your soap mixture
7. add another gallon plus six cups of hot water and stir
8. allow to cool, will gel over night
9. add to your empty containers

 NOTE: I added the mix into my containers while still warm. When mix starts to gel it will have little beads of solid in it. This will not be as thick of a gel as what you buy, it'll still be a little soupy and will need to be shaken before each use. I use about a 1/2 a cup per load.

WARNING: Brandon has some pretty nasty work pants, that are really really soiled every night he works. Anything that's exceedingly gross should be washed by itself or in a small load, and if you'd like use some of my laundry booster (homemade oxi-clean, recipe to come later)

Fabric softener recipe to come later, along with kitchen and bath cleaner and an all purpose cleaner

This picture really shows what the mixture looks like after it's melted and all the powders are dissolved.

I have found that my laundry detergent recipe works pretty darn well if I do say so myself, but here are some links to other recipes where other people have made their own, you'll see that they don't vary very much! Some will be dry and one is unscented!
Homemade Laundry Detergent @ Simply Designing
Homemade Laundry Detergent @ Great Oak Circle
Hypoallergenic Laundry Detergent @ Ehow
Homemade Laundry Detergent @ Happy Hooligans
Homemade Dry and Liquid Laundry Detergent @ Life at Cobble Hill Farm
Stain Removal 101 discussion about scent free laundry detergent



Storage Inspiration!

Make My Spa! Homemade Recipes!

The type of recipes I'm going to showcase in this post will be your basics soaps, lotion bars, etc. meant for use on humans in the shower or bath. I'm all about being frugal and the ability to make your own products of this type can really save you a lot of money in the long run!


Eye Makeup Remover

1 c. water
1 1/2 TBS tear free baby shampoo
1/8 tsp baby oil

mix and shake before each use.

Pore Cleaning Strips

1 Tablespoon Unflavored Gelatin

1 1/2- 2 Tablespoons Milk {any kind}

Measure 1 Tablespoon of unflavored gelatin into a disposable container Add 1-2 Tablespoons of milk into the gelatin
Mix it up, and be quick about it, until you get a chunky consistency.  Add more milk if you’re uncomfortable with the amount of chunk.
Microwave the gelatin for about 10-15 seconds.  It will get creamier in the microwave.  Stir that around and start applying it immediately to your face.  This stuff hardens fast so you’ve got to act fast.

Shaving Lotion

1 c. conditioner
1 c. shampoo
5 TBS lotion
5 TBS baby oil
mix and let sit an hour before using

Lip Gloss

1 teaspoon paraffin wax
4 teaspoons coconut oil
4 teaspoons petroleum jelly
4 white or pink (or whatever color you like) candy melts
1/2 teaspoon oil-based candy flavoring

Grate the wax into a ziploc freezer bag. Add the coconut oil, petroleum jelly, candy melts and the flavoring. Place the bag in a bowl of very hot water and allow the ingredients to melt together. Massage the bag a bit to mix the ingredients together. Snip a corner from the bag and squeeze the ingredients into small containers. Pop your lip gloss containers into the fridge to cool completely.

Bath Fizzies

Baking soda

Cornstarch

Citric acid

Spritzer bottles

Food coloring

Glass bowl

Essential oil

Baking molds

1. Sift 1 3/4 cup baking soda, 1 cup citric acid, and 2 cups cornstarch through a sieve to remove chunks. To make different tints, fill small spritzer bottles with water and add about 6 drops of food coloring to each. 

2. Pour 1 cup of powdered mixture into a glass bowl. Lightly spritz, stirring after each spritz, until powder is desired color. Add water slowly, so mixture does not fizz. If mixing two tints, alternate colors as you spritz. Check the consistency of powder with your fingers; when it can be tightly packed or shaped, stop spritzing (this may take a little while). 

3. Select an essential oil. Add 5 drops if it's one of the stronger scents (peppermint, lavender), 6 if it's a weaker one (lemon, grapefruit). Mix well. Firmly pack mixture into small baking molds. We used 1/4 cup for each fizzy, which is good for one bath. Allow mixture to set for 2 hours, then pop out carefully. Repeat with different tints for remaining powder.

Sun Block

• A double boiler or saucepan with a metal bowl slightly larger that will sit on top
• A wire whisk
• A receptacle to hold your sunblock like this one
• A Kitchen Scale if you want to be precise
• Gloves and a mask

• 3 oz. Coconut Oil
• 1 oz. Beeswax
  (for waterproofing properties)
• 1 oz. Cocoa Butter (100% cocoa butter can be found in the ethnic beauty section of the grocery store)
• 2 oz. Almond Oil
• 1.5 oz. Aloe Vera Gel or about 4 large aloe leaves
• 1.5 oz zinc oxide powder

1. If you have an aloe vera plant, you can make your own aloe vera gel by scraping the innards of a few leaves. Just run the very tip of your knife along the length of the aloe leaf being careful to only cut one side, don’t cut all the way through. Separate the leaf with your fingers so it will lie flat. Holding the dull side of the knife against the leaf, starting in the middle, pull the leaf under the knife blade, scraping off the gel. Turn it around to get the other side. If you purchase aloe vera gel, you can skip this step.
2. Fill your saucepan or double boiler pot with about an inch of water and start it heating on the stovetop. Meanwhile, measure the oils into the metal bowl or top part of the boiler, along with the beeswax and cocoa butter.
3. When the water starts to boil, turn the temperature to med-low and put the bowl on top. This way the steam from the pot underneath will slowly raise the temperature of the bowl and melt the oils and wax.
4. When the oils and wax are completely melted, remove the bowl from the heat and quickly whisk in the aloe gel and the zinc oxide powder (are you wearing your mask?). Continue to whisk until the mixture cools and thickens.
5. Let the sunscreen cool completely before transferring it to your chosen receptacle. A piping bag or zip top bag with the corner cut off helps with this process. Using the chart below, this will result in a sunscreen with an SPF of about 12-19. As the summer progresses, I will make it with less zinc oxide and apply it more sparingly, so I can absorb some more of that oh, so important,  Vitamin D.

Toothpaste
1/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup vegetable glycerin
1 Tbsp castile liquid soap
A few drops peppermint, anise, wintergreen essential oil, optional
dash of stevia or  xylitol

combine and store does not need to be refigerated and just a dab will do.

Crockpot Soap
I'll let you click the link on this one. It's easy, don't panic, but a lengthy discription.

Shampoo

• 1 cup distilled or spring water
• 2 tbsp. dried herbs or ¼ cup fresh herbs
• ⅓ cup liquid castile soap
• ¼ tsp. vegetable oil
• 25 drops essential oil
• 1 tbsp. additive of choice, optional

Directions:

1. Bring the water to a rolling boil in a glass saucepan. Remove the pan from the heat, add the herbs, cover and allow the mixture to steep for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Strain the herbs from the liquid and discard the plant material in the compost pile or garbage bin. Allow the liquid to cool completely.
3. Stir the liquid castile soap into the cooled liquid, then add the vegetable oil, essential oil and additives, if using. Transfer the shampoo to a plastic bottle with a flip-top lid.
4. Store the shampoo in the shower and shake well before each use. Keep in mind that this shampoo works gently and will not produce much lather. However, it will leave your hair clean, shiny and healthy.  

***the link has more info on what types of herbs to use if you're unsure as to what you like.

Lotion Bars

1 part vegetable shortening
1 part vegetable oil
1 part beeswax
Melt the shortening and beeswax a double boiler or a little pan in a bigger pan of simmering water. Stir in the vegetable oil. Pour into cups/molds and let cool. Pop out of “mold” and it’s ready to use. The beeswax will fragrance the bars with a nice, light honey smell, or you can stir in a little essential oil before you pour it into the molds.

Anti-Frizz Hair Serum

4 ounces Camellia Oil
1/2 ounce Castor Oil
1/2 ounce Unrefined Avocado Oil
25 drops Essential oils for scent

Choose a natural, organic essential oil according to the healing properties desired. Use myrrh or peppermint for dry hair, lavender or rose oil for fine hair to normal hair, or add lemon or chamomile for golden highlights. Avoid using synthetic oils.
Combine all ingredients in a DARK GLASS bottle (sunlight is damaging to all oil types). Shake well before each use. Apply a small amount to damp hair before blowdrying or apply a very small amount to dry hair for smoothing and shine.

Hair Clarifier

• 2 tablespoons shampoo (either homemade or store bought)
• 1 tablespoon baking soda

While you're in the shower, bring along the box of baking soda with you.

Measure out approximately 1 tablespoon of baking soda and add it to twice as much shampoo in your palm.

Use the shampoo as you would normallypads of your fingertips to give your scalp a thorough massage.

Rinse very well with cool water, and then condition as normal.

The baking soda should help remove build-up, naturally!

Deodorant

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup shea butter, cocoa butter or mango butter (or a mix of all three equal to 1 part)
• 1/2 cup + 1 tsp  beeswax
• optional: Vitamin E oil to preserve. I added 1 tsp vitamin E oil for  this recipe)
• 3 tablespoons baking soda (Omit this if you have sensitive skin and just use extra arrowroot)
• 1/2 cup organic arrowroot powder
• 2-3 capsules of high quality probiotics that don’t need to be refrigerated
• optional: Essential oils of choice – I used about 20 drops of lavender essential oil

Combine coconut oil, shea (or other) butter, and beeswax in a quart size glass mason jar with a lid instead and place this in a small saucepan of water until melted. This will save your bowl and you can just designate this jar for these type of projects and not even need to wash it out…
bring water to a boil
Stir ingredients constantly until they are melted and smooth
Remove from heat and add the vitamin E oil, baking soda, arrowroot powder, probiotics, and essential oils. Make sure the mixture is not hot to the touch (warm is ok) so that the heat doesn’t kill the probiotics.
Gently stir by hand until all ingredients are incorporated.
If you will be making these into bars, pour into muffin tins or other molds while still liquid. If you will be putting into an old deodorant container to use like stick deodorant, let the mixture harden for about 15-20 minutes at room temperature to harden and when it is about the consistency of peanut butter, use a spoon to scoop into the deodorant tube and pack down to fill. Then, leave the cap off overnight to completely harden before using.

Dry Shampoo
cornstarch, cornmeal, baking soda or ground oats.
essential oil of choice (optional- for smell only)

Feel free to mix if you'd like but the list is intended to pick one of these. Put in a shaker and sprinkle onto hair. Use your fingers to scrub in and run down the length of your hair. Then with a fine-bristled brush, briskly brush the powder out of your hair. ******this link shows before and after pics of the use, by the author. Rave reviews are in the comments!


If you want to purchase bottles online instead of reusing old ones here and here are websites that sell all kinds.


WARNING: always clearly label these and keep them out of reach of children!



Again, all my recipe titles double as links to the original poster's sites and blogs. Get over there and show some love!