Essential Oil Bath Salts With Sharon Falsetto

We're thrilled to have Sharon Falsetto of Sedona Aromatherapie guest blogging for us today.  Sharon is a UK certified Aromatherapy Practitioner, a teacher, and a writer.  She also writes blogs at Aromatherapy Notes.  You can also connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.  Sharon has graciously shared some great tips on creating aromatherapy bath salts.  Thank you, Sharon, for guest blogging at The Natural Beauty Workshop today!

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Essential Oil Bath Salts
by Sharon Falsetto 

If you are new to making your own aromatherapy products, I think that bath salts are one of the simplest and most economical products to start out experimenting with! There are various types of salts that you can use to make bath salts. Which to use really comes down to personal preference. I like to add pure essential oils to my bath salts to finish up with a one hundred percent therapeutic product.

Types of Salts to Use in Making Bath Salts

Epsom Salt and Dead Sea Salt are two of my favorite base salts to use for making bath salts. If you want to add a bit of natural color to your bath salts, try using Himalayan Pink Salt instead. Here's a summary of each type of salt:

• Epsom Salt - Epsom salts were named after the town of Epsom in Surrey, England, although today the name Epsom salts refers to any type of salt that occurs in a similar geological environment. Epsom salts exfoliate the skin, relieve muscle pain and alleviate stress. 
• Dead Sea Salt - Dead Sea salts originate from the Dead Sea, a salt lake that is located on the borders of Jordan, Israel and the West Bank. The lake is made up of 27% salts whereas normal sea water is made up of just 3% salts. Dead Sea salts help to balance skin moisture, energize the body and calm the nervous system. 
• Himalayan Pink Salt – Himalayan salts are crystal salts which are hand mined from ancient ocean beds underneath the Himalayan mountains. They are naturally colored pink due to trace elements, such as iron, which make up the crystal salts. Himalayan salts have the ability to balance the body's pH, help to lower blood pressure and improve circulation in the body. 

Types of Essential Oils to Add to Bath Salts
Essential oils are naturally extracted from plants. They have various therapeutic properties, depending upon the type of plant from which the essential oil was extracted. Essential oils are extracted from different parts of trees, flowers, grasses and fruits.

Essential oils such as Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), Rose (Rosa damascena), Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens), Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin), Sweet Orange (Citrus sinensis) and Grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) are good choices for adding to bath salts, although there many others too!

Creating a Simple Bath Salts Recipe with Essential Oils
I usually like to add between two and three different types of essential oils to my bath salts recipe, but sometimes less is more. One of the classic ingredients for bath salts is lavender; another popular ingredient is rose. However, pure rose essential oil is expensive, so try substituting geranium essential oil for rose if your budget is tight; geranium oil has a similar scent to rose and is often used to adulterated rose oil.

Use the following formula for quantities in your recipe: (This formula can be doubled or halved as appropriate.)

• 4 ounce of Salt
• 25 – 35 drops of Essential Oil, depending upon the oil. (Some oils are a lot more potent than others.)

Aromatherapy Bath Salts Recipe for Jet Lag

I will leave you with the following aromatherapy bath salts recipe which I created after a long haul flight home from the UK this summer. The lavender essential oil helps to relax your body, whereas the grapefruit essential oil provides stimulation to try to get your body back into rhythm with the current time zone. Add a small amount of salts to your bath before going to bed at night:

Ingredients

• 4 ounces Epsom Salt
• 5 drops Grapefruit Essential Oil
• 20 drops Lavender Essential Oil

Directions
Add the Essential Oils to the Epsom Salt, and mix together in a jar.   That's it!

About the Author:
Sharon Falsetto is a UK certified clinical aromatherapy practitioner with an online aromatherapy business located in Arizona, United States. She custom blends essential oils for individual clients, spas and therapists for both clinical and scent purposes. Sharon also tutors aromatherapy courses and has written e-books specifically for the aromatherapy beginner. Sharon is a professional writer, with articles published both online and offline.