Romanticize 15: Soak It Out
A simple bath salt recipe.
I’m forever in mourning for nightly soaks in my Brooklyn bathtub—my current cottage doesn’t have one, which feels like a crime against the laws of cozy cottagecore. I’ve made do with foot soaks using a small collapsible foot spa (before I bought this I stuck my feet in a large out-of-commission salad bowl). I light candles, put on calming music or grab a book, and lean back in my living room chair with my feet in the fragranced hot water. It’s not quite the same, but it’ll do for now. I used to take baths regardless of season, but they’re obviously most popular during these chilly, dry winter months, which is why today’s Romanticize focuses on my favorite easy customizable bath salt mix.
The Romanticize
Mix up a custom bath or foot soak.
The Advice
The base recipe is super simple: one part Epsom salt and one part pink Himalayan salt. Mix them together and then add any essential oils and/or dried flowers and herbs you love. You can even throw in tea bags to keep the loose herbs contained! Black tea reduces inflammation, green tea is good for muscle pain, and chamomile is deeply relaxing.
If you want to include an odor-busting element, sprinkle in some baking soda. For anti-fungal power, add a few drops of tea tree oil. This is especially helpful in the summertime, though baking soda is also excellent for easing muscle aches (I used to add a whole box to my nightly baths!)
These salts make an excellent homemade gift—create a unique mixture for someone you love and add it to a pretty jar. Place a handwritten label on the front, or just tie a bow around it, and voila!
The Inspiration
I’ve been helping a dear friend at her bakery these past few weeks, and the long days on my feet have really taken a toll. Time to show them some TLC! I still have a bag full of the go-to essential oils I used in my evening baths, so I unearthed them from the back of my bathroom cabinet and got to concocting. I grabbed a handful of red rose petals sourced from a local herb farm and a few sprigs of dried English lavender I cut at a nearby lavender farm a couple of seasons back. After mixing the salts, I sprinkled in the loose flowers and added five drops of each oil. The combination of scents took me right back to those long, lazy Brooklyn soaks.
I poured the bath salt mixture into my foot spa and filled it with the hottest water my tap would allow, then I placed it beneath my living room chair, stacked some towels next to it, and put on Gilmore Girls (it’s my comfort show and I’m in a perpetual rewatch cycle). I let the tension melt from my feet for a full episode and gave them a pumice scrub at the end for good measure. Then I lotioned and massaged them and slid on some super warm wool socks. Take that, winter doldrums!
I’d love to know the results of your Romanticize—feel free to share your experience in the comments, or tag me on Instagram. Until next Wednesday, fellow romantics!