splashy sand's three favorite bath potion recipes

Looking for a fun and creative way to engage your little ones during bath time? Why not try making magical bath potions! This sensory play activity is not only entertaining but also educational, allowing kids to explore different scents, colors, and textures while having a blast. And most importantly, bath sensory play simply washes safely down the drain- no digging sensory dough or sand out of your rugs! 

What You'll Need:

To create these enchanting bath potions, these are our favorite supplies, many of which you may already have at home! You'll need:

• Bath safe bowls
• Bath safe bottles or cups. Bottles with squirt tops are the most fun! 
• Droppers
• Water
• Food coloring
• Body wash or baby soap
• Baking soda
• Epsom Salt
• Super chunky plastic-free eco-glitter (because everything is better with a little sparkle!)
• Clear packing tape
• Grape seed or coconut oil
• Dried chamomile 
• Kid safe essential oils 
• Coffee filter
• Black lava salt (epsom salt, or sea salt of any kind)
• Honey
• Cornstarch

Let the Magic Begin:

Start by filling three bath safe bowls- one each with 1/4 cup baking soda, body wash or baby wash, and epsom salt, leaving some room at the top for the other ingredients.

Next, combine 1 cup water and 1/4 cup citric acid. Pour into the three bottles or cups. Add a few drops of food coloring to each bottle to create vibrant hues. Be conservative with this, and mix the liquid ingredients well. Next, sprinkle in some glitter for a magical touch.

Now for the best part - hopping in the bath! Set the bowls on a bath safe stool, and allow kiddo to monitor what happens when they add a few drops of the liquid to each bowl. Do some bowls bubble and fizz? Which bowls have no reaction? 

Encourage your little ones to mix and match the potions, creating their own magical concoctions. They can swirl the bottles, watch the colors blend, and enjoy the fizzy reaction over and over again.

When potion time is over, just let the tub drain, and give kiddo a rinse! 

A Magic Soak:

Creating a calm soak can be so much fun! For this potion you will need a coffee filter, some flour, water, dried chamomile, epsom salt or black lava salt, or chunky sea salt, grape seed oil, and a child safe essential oil, like lavender, geranium, or chamomile. 

Flatten the coffee filter, and then fold it in half like a taco! Run your finger over the crease. Now it's time to create your magical bath soak. Add dried flowers, salts, a tablespoon of grape seed oil, and a drop of an essential oil to a bowl and stir. Add three spoonfuls of your potion into the center of your coffee filter. 

Next, using clear packing tape, tape the coffee filter closed completely. This is especially important if you have any specific concerns about materials going down the drain.

Next time kiddo is taking a warm bath, allow the bath soak pouch to join them- their skin will love this nourishing potion! 

Slime Time:

This sticky delight is a sensory wonderland! For this potion, you will need a large bowl, a medium bowl, honey, grape seed or coconut oil, cornstarch, and food coloring.

In a warm bath, set up a bath stool if you have one. If not- use a large plastic bowl to leverage floating power! Add 1 cup of warm bath water to the bowl. Next, add ¼ cup of honey to the water, by pouring the honey onto kiddos hands. Let kiddo squish and squash the honey in their hands, and then work to dissolve it in the warm water through play. Set that bowl aside.

In the medium size bowl, add 1 cup of cornstarch. Add a tablespoon at a time of grape seed or coconut oil to the cornstarch, up to 3 tablespoons. Work it into the cornstarch by mixing and mashing with the hands. 

Finally, add small amounts of the honey-water mixture to the cornstarch mixture, exploring the texture after each small amount. 

This bath potion slime is packed with our very favorite skin-nourishing ingredients!

 

Clean-Up Made Easy:

Don't worry about the mess - the beauty of this sensory play activity is that it all happens in the bath! Once the potions have been thoroughly mixed and enjoyed, simply rinse off the kids and supplies, and you're good to go. 

Need help with supplies? Check out this post for our very favorite bath sensory play gear! 

So next bath time, skip the traditional toys and opt for some magical bath potions instead. Your kids will have a blast exploring, creating, and playing with these sensory delights. The best part? No sensory play mess anxiety! Who knew bath time could be so enchanting?

A couple of notes of safety: 

• Only adults should handle the combining the citric acid and water. Kids can help with measuring and stirring under adult supervision.
• Keep away from eyes and mouth. Wash hands thoroughly after handling.
• Do not use small toys with children under 3. This activity is recommended for ages 6+.
• Do not put the potion ingredients near your mouth or nose. Do not allow kids to put their head under the water once the potion is in the bath. Do not allow kids to drink the bath water. It's optimal to do hair washing first! 
• Rinse eyes immediately with water for several minutes if product comes in contact with them.
• Do not use if you have any broken or irritated skin.
• Do not put any small figurines in the drain of your tub. Take toys out before draining the tub.
• Rinse the tub and body after use. This is especially important for potions with oil, as the tub may become slippery.
• Potions are not intended for cleansing the body, however, these are packed with skin-nourishing ingredients, so don't feel the need to do more than a simple rinse if you do not have sensitive skin. 
• In case of adverse reaction, stop using and contact a physician.
• Baking soda may cause an allergic reaction.
• Use bath potion play sparingly.