How to Make and Sell Bath Bombs
So you want to start a bath bomb business!? While this isn't going to qualify for the businesses to start for less than $150 list, you can start your bath bomb business in an affordable way by sticking to the basics. Bath bombs will fit perfectly in your Egg Your Yard upsell baskets, too!
How to make bath bombs at home
Learning how to make bath bombs at home isn't too difficult, but you have to be accurate with the ingredients you're mixing in, or you're going to end up with a mess. A crumbly, useless mess.
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Supplies for bath bombs
You can make bath bombs as simple or as fancy as you want. This list is a basic one to get started with the foundation of your bath bomb business.
If you have the budget to go all in, buying supplies in bulk/wholesale is the way to go. If you're just dipping your feet in to get them wet, or are on a budget, sites like Amazon are going to be a great resource for you. My affiliate links are used in this post. 🙂
Bath bomb making supplies:
- bath bomb molds
- baking soda (can get at the grocery store or Amazon)
- cream of tartar
- SLSA
- citric acid
- corn starch
- epsom salt (Dr. Teal's are my favorite!)
- essential oils
- coconut oil or shea butter
- clay
- sweet almond oil
- polysorbate 80
- isopropyl alcohol 99%
- kitchen scale (important for accuracy)
- mixer
Your bath bomb recipes will vary, but this list will get you started. Remember, bath bombs are being used in… the bath! So including ingredients like clay, coconut oil, etc is a great idea because of their benefits.
Best basic bath bomb recipe
This recipe is from Jerika. I love her channel! She's been super helpful in setting up lots of bath bomb businesses.
Recipe (makes 18-20 bath bombs):
- 1341 g baking soda
- 54 g cream of tartar
- 35 g SLSA
- 25 g kaolin clay
- 5 g shea butter
- 9g hemp or sweet almond oil
- 8 g polysorbate 80
- 24 g isopropyl alcohol 99%
- 24 g fragrance
- 902 g citric acid
Another bath bomb recipe with a video:
- 500g Baking Soda
- 250g Citric Acid
- 15g Kaolin/ Cream of Tartar
- 20g SLSA/ Milk Powder
- 20g Skin Safe Fragrance Oil
- 20g Oil or Butter of Choice
- 10g Binder (will vary based on climate)
- 4g Polysorbate 80 (optional)
Videos showing how to make bath bombs
I learn best by watching videos! If you're like me, you'll love these videos.
Have extra money to invest? Try this bath bomb press! It's wonderful!!
How to use colorants for bath bombs
Bath bombs fall under the cosmetic umbrella for the FDA. It's important that you're purchasing dyes that are batch certified. Go to fda.gov and click on the “colorants” tab for more information.
There are four main ways to color bath bombs:
- dyes
- micas
- lakes
- liquid colorants
This video shows you an example of each type of colorant in action, and she goes into the pros and cons of each colorant option.
A few suppliers that offer FDA-approved colorants include:
YouTubers to follow to learn more about making bath bombs
I follow these channels and have learned a TON about making bath bombs from them. Be sure to like and subscribe, and leave comments so they know you appreciate the content they put out! 🙂
- Our Raw Beauty
- Soap & Clay
- Miss Kraftie Soap
- Brambleberry
- Jerika Zimmerman
- Sonia Castenada
- Desert Cloud Soapworks
Pro tip: Be unique to make your business soar!
Bath bombs aren't that difficult to make, and there aren't a ton of hidden “trade secrets” to discover, so most people can make them. There's good and bad to that: now everyone is selling them. So, as always, you've gotta figure out how to stand out.
These cute “taco” bath bombs are so freakin' cute and I'd buy them in a heartbeat. There are also themes you can do, like “horror” bath bombs, where they're red and look like blood when you put them in the bath. Or, black with glitter. Your possibilities are endless, but you need to put some thought into how you're going to set yourself apart.
Also, you've gotta always come back to this question: who is your target demographic? Who are you serving? With the above two examples, taco bath bombs will fit with anyone who likes cute, funny, quirky stuff – and they'd make GREAT gifts so I'd present them as such.
The unicorn bath bombs, those will be great for the younger crowd or anyone who just loves “all things unicorn”. Again, these are great gift ideas so offering them as gift sets, or offering gift wrapping, is going to be a great opportunity for you to sell more bath bombs.
You can make bath bombs for kids with a simple recipe and some natural dyes. I love glitter so I'd include glitter as an option, but I bet most moms hate it LOL so be careful with that one.
Lavender bath bombs are another option, or any essential oils really, just be sure to buy high quality oils and use only a little bit so there are no issues with burning or skin irritation.
How else can you be unique?
Be all natural. Skip the food coloring.
Use eco-friendly supplies and packaging as much as possible.
Add in glitter, sprinkles, etc. for embellishments and to make your bath bombs stand out among others.
Come up with fun themes – like food (tacos, desserts, etc) or horror (black, red, deep purple with fun names), or anything else you may like.
How to package bath bombs for shipping
Shipping stuff can get tricky, especially if it's fragile. You need your bath bombs to arrive in one piece, so be sure to take extra care in packaging them.
Supplies needed for packaging bath bombs:
- shrink wrap bags
- heat sealer
- heat gun or blow dryer
- these cups for display; also works to protect during shipping
- optional: shredded paper (I hate shredded paper but it is popular!)
- soap boxes for shipping
- poly mailers
I like to include a sticker, business card, and coupon in my packages. I get all of these from gotprint.com – their quality is amazing and they are super inexpensive!!
Have you seen my “how to make stickers” tutorial yet?!
How to safely ship bath bombs
I've seen MANY customers complain that their bath bombs did not arrive safely, even though they were wrapped in several layers of bubble wrap. This could be due to the bath bombs not being made well, or it could be due to how rough the shipping companies handle all of the packages.
Either way, it's up to YOU to figure out how to get your products to your customers safely, right? So, spare no expense on this one.
Make sure there's no extra space inside your box for the bath bombs to roll around. Use a few layers of bubble wrap, or use packing peanuts, to help ensure their safe arrival.
Here are some more packaging and shipping tips:
Wrapping your bath bomb with two layers of shrink wrap can help keep moisture out during shipping, as well.
How to price your handmade bath bombs
As with everything, pricing is subjective and a very personal choice because it comes down to these things:
- cost of supplies, shipping, and fees
- your hourly wage + how long it takes to create
- how much profit you want to make
I don't pay much attention to the “going rate” on any one platform. While it's true that there is a general price across the board, it can also vary wildly – and there's enough room for everyone to be successful.
How much does it cost to make bath bombs?
The actual supplies you use for your bath bombs will vary, so this is something you'll have to start a spreadsheet for. Do this as soon as you possibly can, because you need to know how much everything costs – down to the penny.
Tip: If you get something on sale, calculate it as full-price. You won't always have the option to grab that sale, and you don't want to have to rely on sales when it comes to calculating your prices!
Some supply costs to consider:
- supplies: everything you use to create your bath bombs
- platform fees: Etsy fees, Shopify fees, Paypal fees, etc
- packaging supplies: boxes, tissue paper, shrink wrap, stickers, business cards, and anything else you include in your shipments.
Where to sell bath bombs
When it comes to selling bath bombs, you have many options! During lockdowns, fairs and craft booths aren't really an option (STAY TF HOME, PEOPLE), so let's talk about your online and local options.
Selling bath bombs on Etsy
If you've been around my blog for any amount of time, you know I'm a huge fan of selling on Etsy. There are tons of pros, and very few cons, and I highly recommend EVERYONE have an Etsy shop... even if they have shops elsewhere!
Etsy has so many built-in customers, if you have a great product, and can figure out your Etsy SEO, you'll be golden.
Interested in dominating Etsy? Take my Etsy course.
Selling on Facebook Marketplace and locally
I personally have not put much effort into selling locally. While I love Arizona, I don't love the people who live here and I'd rather not interact with them. That means I don't sell on Marketplace.
With that being said, Facebook Marketplace is a great option – depending on your area. You've gotta try it before you say you “failed” at it, so if you're going to try it, give it a real chance. Or, skip it all together.
Either way, it's another option for selling your homemade bath bombs and getting your business launched.
Shopify (Lite!)
I am a HUGE fan of Shopify Lite… not so much the full Shopify site (too expensive and clunky). I'm not an affiliate for them, but I do recommend Shopify Lite all the time!
If you already have your own website, Shopify Lite makes sense. It's only $9/mo to get a “buy” button, and your shop can be set up in just a few minutes!
Here are a few examples of my pages that use the Shopify Lite buy button:
- Etsy SEO Cheat Sheets
- PLR and Ready-for-You Content
- Motivational Tees & Things
- Just Resist – my husband's t-shirt shop
There's no plug-in to install, no code to write. You literally create the product in your Shopify dashboard, and copy the code over to your website. Bam! Easy peasy!
If I had to choose today, I'd set a shop up on Etsy (use my link to get 40 free listings), and I'd also set up a Shopify Lite store on my blog.
How much money can you make selling bath bombs?
Well, these teenage sisters made over $20 million selling bath bombs, so I'm gonna say what I always do… the sky's the limit!
Remember: Make it an experience!
All of the extras mentioned above as far as shipping and presentation are so you can make this a special shopping experience for your customers.
If you've been in any of the Etsy groups, there are two very clear camps: sellers who think “extras” and “frills” are ridiculous, and sellers who think their customers should get a 1-of-a-kind shopping experience for home so they come back for more.
I always include a crystal with each of my orders, because crystals are the most popular item in my shop! Nobody knows this until after they receive my package, but it's almost always mentioned when customers PM me to thank me for an awesome order.
Going above and beyond for your customers is something I highly recommend: always over-deliver has been my motto for at least a decade now! 🙂
Have questions about making and selling bath bombs? Leave them below and I'll answer ASAP! 🙂
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What fda requirements do you have to follow