DIY // floral bath salts in a dip dyed pouch (a pretty Valentine’s Day gift for your BFF)

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and this year, instead of obsessing over cupid’s arrow, I’m making a special treat for my girlfriends to enjoy. Both Joanna and I have been focusing on taking better care of ourselves, essentially taking time to indulge in all-important self-care. So why not treat your best friend to the gift of self-care for Valentine’s Day? We whipped up a batch of bath salts filled with dried flowers and packaged them in easy dip dyed canvas bags for the perfect heart-felt gift.

Floral Bath Salts

Materials

• epsom bath salt
• himalayan pink crystal salt
• dried calendula flowers
• dried rose buds and petals
• dried hibiscus petals

When picking out your dried flowers, don’t be afraid to mix things up. I picked these up from a local apothecary shop in Seattle and spent forever smelling different flowers until I settled on a combination of calendula, rose, and hibiscus.

Start by adding a cup and a half of epsom salt to a small bowl. Then, sprinkle in the Himalayan pink salt crystals, roughly two tablespoons, but feel free to adjust based on the size and texture of your salts. Next, pick the yellow calendula petals from the flower buds and add to the salt mixture. Finally, add dried rose buds and hibiscus petals for an extra floral finish.

Give your bath salt mixture a good stir until all of the ingredients are fully incorporated. Next, it’s time to make dip dye canvas bags, the perfect gift packaging!

Dip Dyed Bag

Tools

• bucket
• clips
• drying rack

Materials

• plain muslin bag
• procion mx dye
• soda ash
• salt

I love this project because it’s really simple. There’s no need to stress about exact measurements, or angles. It’s just a thoughtful way to add a handmade touch to your already lovely gift!

Start by pre-washing your muslin bags to remove any fabric treatment, starch, or dirt and prepare your dye area. Make sure your work surface can get messy in case the dye spills, and that you have a plan on where to hang your bags to dry before you start dying them.

Next, prepare your dye bath. For dip dying, it’s slightly different than prepping for normal tub dying, mainly that instead of pre-treating your fabric with soda ash, it’s incorporated right into the dye bath. Fill your bucket with warm water and add 1/4 cup of salt and .5 oz of soda ash per quart. Stir until well dissolved, then slowly start adding your dye. For a project like this, it’s not an exact science, just keep in mind that you want it more concentrated than normal.

Now for the fun part! For a subtle cross-over design, hold the bag at an angle and submerge halfway, clip to the bucket or hold in place for a few minutes, then repeat in the opposite direction.

Clip to your drying rack and place a tray beneath to catch any drips. Allow to hang for a day or two.

Once your dip dyed bags are completely dry, fill them with floral bath salt mixture and spread the Valentine’s Day love… and don’t forget to save some for yourself!

Photography and styling by Jojotastic. DIY by Material Delight for Jojotastic.

Leave a comment and let us know what you think of this floral bath salts tutorial! And if you make a batch, be sure to post a photo and tag @jojotastic on Instagram so we can see.