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Starting Guide on colouring Bath Bombs

In this file, we are delving a little bit more into the different parts of a bath bomb. Understanding why different colours are used will take your products to the next level in appearance and performance.

There are three main colour parts to a bath bomb to consider

-the appearance of a bomb dry and ready to be sold etc.

Its outside shape, colour, and smell are what 90% of people decide upon. Bright colours (if that is your aesthetic) Painting, drizzle, botanicals, glitter all help.

Some people use only water-soluble dye for this stage and this works with some blooming and skill. (Please see blooming note at bottom of the file) Others boost the colour with Neons, Mica and Lakes into the mix which is to only help colour this part of the bomb.

-Bath bomb performing -embeds and foam.

This part is when the bomb is put in the water and when all the ‘magic’ and ‘performance’ happens. Those amazing rainbows and bath art as the bombs go whizzing, spinning and shooting around spewing colour and excitement.

Water-soluble dyes are used for embeds and to colour foam and the water.

-bath bomb watercolour - the bit you get in

Once everything settles this is the final colour and part you actually get to soak in, and sometimes this is overlooked. We get so focused on the rainbows or unusual clashing of colours that sometimes the water leftover can be a less than desirable colour. Think browns and yellows and yeah... it is not great. Colour charts can help you a lot with this and the design stages (such as yellow and blue bombs will make green water... red and blue will make purple water)

Water Soluble dyes are what gives this tub its final soaking glory, mica can be added to give a glitter appearance in the water. A newer trend is to use a large amount of Fluorphlogopite mica to give the water an almost liquid metal appearance.

**Blooming An important thing to note**

Many people “bloom” their dyes. This simply means adding liquid to dye powders and then basically dyeing your bicarb. Water is the best choice because you will get maximum results being that these are water-soluble dyes. With some colours, alcohol can morph and change the look of the dyes. With blooming, you can get the most vibrancy without the fear of activation because you’re letting the mixture fully dry before using it in your recipe. With black and red as mentioned above, it is recommended that more dye is used, but also water with hot water being best. It will help dissolve the dyes better and adding more water with this colour will bring out more vibrancy. Remember to mix very well, the more you mix the more the colour will develop. It is recommended that you sift your bloomed bicarb before using because it can dry clumpy. Simply use this the same as you would uncoloured bicarb in your recipe.

Note on Red and Black-

These are the hardest colours to get a rich intense colour using only water-soluble dyes. This is because you are starting with a white base so this instantly turns these into pink and grey. Because these colours are normally wanted in dark/solid it is recommended a higher use than the other dyes.

Humidity -

This seems like something that comes up a lot once you start making a few batches of bath bombs. This can also impact to different degrees depending on where you live of course. Ideally, you want the humidity of your drying area to be below 35% and a dehumidifier can help if you have an enclosed space to dedicate to your bath bombs.