Soothing Cupcake Bath Bomb DIY

I've always wanted to make cupcake bath bombs. Don't they look amazing? But the problem until now was that in order to make a cupcake bath bomb you had to make the base first out of your usual bath bomb mix and then whip up the material for the piping separately. The piping often required ingredients that I either didn't have on hand - like meringue powder - or that I didn't want to have in my bath water - like powdered sugar. So, I never actually made bath bomb cupcakes until I saw this mold 🙂

This mold allows you to make bath bomb cupcakes in one swoop without having to use frosting or piping bags, and it doesn't hurt that it's super cute. It also gives you endless opportunities to be creative and makes for easy and beautiful homemade gifts.

For this tutorial I chose to use ingredients that are soothing and nourishing for dry and irritated skin similar to a traditional oatmeal bath. We don't like to think about it but we all know that colder weather will eventually be back, and with it dry air and harsh winds. These lavender and oatmeal cupcake bath bombs smell amazing and will be just the thing you need to make your skin feel nice and soft when the weather gets colder.

Recommended reading: How to Make Bath Bombs

Ingredients

Ground Oats

Ground Oats are very nourishing and moisturizing for the skin. They're well known for their ability to soothe itchy skin and inflammation thanks to a substance called avenanthramides that is solely found in oats. They can also gently cleanse the skin due to small amounts of saponins.

Colloidal oatmeal is a term used to describe whole oats (including the bran) that have been very finely ground. You can prepare colloidal oatmeal at home using a coffee grinder or a food processor. When added to your bath it will dissolve and turn the water milky. For this tutorial I didn't grind the oats down too much since I like the textured look in the finished bath bomb. If you wish to try finely ground oats in your bath bombs simply grind them until they're a very fine powder.

Sweet Almond Oil

Sweet Almond Oil is packed with powerful antioxidants like vitamin A and E. It's known to soothe irritated skin, remedy sunburn and even help with stretch marks.

Adding liquid oils or even melted butters to your bath bomb recipe helps the mixture achieve the wet sand consistency you need in order for it to hold it's shape. Oil however will leave a slick film on the bottom of your tub. That's why I always add polysorbate 80 to my bath bombs.

Polysorbate 80

Polysorbate 80 is an emulsifier and solubilizer it helps disperse oil more evenly in the bath water instead of pooling on top. It also prevents micas and other colorants from clinging to the side of the tub and leaving a ring around your bath tub. Polysorbate 80 is considered safe and is often used in food items, if you wish to use a more natural alternative you could try liquid sunflower lecithin (some folks report similar results with it).

Kaolin Clay

Kaolin Clay is a gentle cleanser and exfoliator. It has the ability to absorb excess oil from the skin and to draw out toxins. It is soothing to sensitive and irritated skin and can help with bug bites and rashes.

In bath bombs I like to use it to help harden them after they dry. You can substitute Kaolin clay with cream of tartar in order to make your bath bombs harder, but you won't get the same skin benefits.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you will I earn a commission if you decide to click through and make a purchase.

What you'll need:

• Two medium sized bowls
• Whisk
• Gloves and dust mask (optional)
• Cupcake bath bomb molds
• Spray bottle

Recipe for 3 Bath Bomb Cupcakes:

• Baking Soda: 1 ½ cups
• Citric Acid: ¾ cups
• Rolled Oats: ¾ cups
• Kaolin Clay: 3 Tbsp
• Sweet Almond Oil: 1 ½ Tbsp
• Polysorbate 80: 1 ½ Tbsp
• Lavender Essential Oil: 25 - 30 drops
• Purple Mica: 1 teaspoon (alternatively you can use purple gel food coloring)
• Witch Hazel: as needed (alternatively 92% isopropyl alcohol or even water can work)
• Dried Lavender Buds: a couple of pinches

How to Make Cupcake Bath Bombs

1. You may wish to wear gloves and dust mask - baking soda can go airborne quickly and might irritate your lungs
2. Transfer witch hazel into a spray bottle
3. Sift all your dry ingredients in order to avoid any clumps
4. Mix baking soda, citric acid and kaolin clay until combined
5. Put oats in a food processor or coffee grinder and pulse until most of them are ground to a coarse flour with some bigger pieces remaining
6. Add ground oats, sweet almond oil, polysorbate 80 and lavender essential oil to your baking soda mix
7. With your hands work out clumps until you have a uniform mixture
8. Split your batch into two equal parts
9. Add mica powder to one part and combine until evenly colored
10. Test the consistency of your mix by squeezing a little bit in your fist and see if it's firm enough to hold it's shape and won't crumble if you tap it gently with your finger. It should have the feel of wet sand, if it doesn't continue with step 11
11. Spray your mixture with witch hazel while whisking your mix, check the consistency often so your mixture doesn't get too wet
12. Once you've reached the proper consistency in both bowls fill the uncolored mix into the bottom part of the cupcake mold. Gently pack the mix in (you don't want it to be too dense) and then loosely pile it up on top (pictured above)
13. Place a pinch of dried lavender buds on the bottom of the top part of the cupcake mold, shift them around with your finger so that they're a little spread out (pictured above)
14. Gently pack the violet mix on top of the lavender buds and then pile some of it loosely on top
15. Line up the two halves of the cupcake mold so that the two latches are aligned and firmly press the two halves together until they interlock
16. Let the cupcake bath bombs sit in the mold for 18 - 24 hours
17. Gently release cupcake bath bombs from their molds by gently tugging the two latches away from each other
18. Store in an airtight container or keep them in the plastic mold until ready to use or be gifted

You can read more tips, tricks & troubleshooting on how to make bath bombs here.

Until next time. Happy Tinkering!