How to Make Lavender Milk Bath

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It takes just minutes and a few household ingredients to mix up a batch of Lavender Milk Bath. Perfect for relaxing or giving as a gift, this homemade milk bath is super frugal and a great way to DIY on a dime.

Include this luxurious milk bath in a DIY Spa Gift Basket along with Lavender Hand Scrub and a Microwaveable Heat Pack for a super fun self-care treat.

open jar of lavender milk bath

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Years ago I had the best time putting together spa gift baskets for the ladies among my friends and family. In addition to a few bath items like loofahs, puffs, and wash cloths, I also included a homemade milk bath scented with lavender.

What is Lavender Milk Bath?

A milk bath is when you mix liquid or powdered milk into warm water in the bath tub. You can simply add milk to the bath water or prepare a milk bath mixture with other things added in to increase relaxation and health benefits.

Uses

This lavender milk bath can be made to use for yourself or given as a gift. It is for use in the bathtub, for external use only.

Please keep away from children.

ingredients for lavender milk bath

Ingredients

As always, please use common sense and discretion when making a home remedy or beauty product. Read the packaging carefully and be mindful of any health concerns.

Epsom salt – Regularly available in the pharmacy section of your store, epsom salt is used in baths to alleviate pain and stress as well as to soften the skin.

Dry milk powder – Available in the coffee/tea or baking aisles of the grocery store, dry milk powder is just that, powdered or dehydrated milk. It provides a number of health benefits to your skin.

Thanks to the general affordability of dry milk powder, a milk bath is super easy to prepare and lovely to bathe in.

Baking soda A baking soda bath is often used to treat a number of skin conditions and can aid in relaxation and pain relief

lavender (oil and flowers) – Lavender is known for its relaxation properties and gives this bath mix a lovely scent.

The lavender flowers are pretty, but they may weird your family out if you forget to rinse the tub. Don’t forget to rinse the tub!

Instructions

Project costs

This is a frugal gift depending on how you source your items and if you will make good use of the extras.

Epsom salt was cheap  at 22 cents at Walmart. Baking soda costs a few pennies. The lavender flowers cost about 25 cents. The powdered milk about 50 cents.

The lavender essential oil, however, was $10/bottle. While you’re just using a little amount, it’s still an investment on supplies that you may or may not use.

Containers

You’ll want to store the milk bath in a closed container. Repurpose pretty jars or bottles that you already have, such as milk bottles or Frappucino or iced coffee bottles. Or you can purchase new containers, like this apothecary jar, for the purpose.

But if you don’t want to spend the cash on containers and you don’t have anything for repurposing, just use clear plastic goodie bags or ziptop sandwich bags.

Be sure to add some kind of label so they know what they’re getting and what it’s made of.

Leftover supplies?

All in all, you’re not going to spend more than $2 or $3 per batch of milk bath (plus container), but you’ll need to buy the ingredients for more than one batch.

Got leftovers? Make Lavender Hand Scrub or Homemade Lavender Soap!

milk bath in plastic apothecary jar

More Fun Gifts to Make

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milk bath in plastic jar with lid off

How to Make Lavender Milk Bath

It takes just minutes and a few household ingredients to mix up a batch of Lavender Milk BathPerfect for relaxing or giving as a gift, this homemade milk bath is super frugal and a great way to DIY on a dime.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Action Time 0 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes

Equipment

  • mixing bowl
  • spoon
  • measuring cups
  • jar or other closed storage container

Supplies
  

  • 1 cup epsom salt
  • 1 cup powdered milk
  • 1/4 cup lavender flowers
  • 1/4 cup baking soda
  • 4 drops lavender essential oil

Instructions
 

  • In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients.
  • Store in airtight containers.
  • To use in bath: add 1/4 cup mixture to hot water in tub. Soak and relax.

Notes

As always, please use common sense and discretion when making a home remedy or beauty product. Read the packaging carefully and be mindful of any health concerns.
Tried this project?Let us know how it went!
DIY on a Dime graphic, with text overlay reading Great Gifts.

More DIY on a Dime

This post was originally published on December 9, 2012 as part of the DIY on a Dime: Great Gifts series. It has been updated for content and clarity. Check out more easy and frugal gift ideas.

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14 Comments

  1. Can you use Instant nonfat dry milk? I looked at several stores today for powdered milk and rather than order something I can’t consume (I’m lactose intolerant), I’d rather know if I can substitute with something from the local store. I was going to make this for a gift and I don’t want to make up something that would be a weird blob in the tub! 😉 Thanks!

    1. It is better to use whole milk powder. I finally found it in the ethnic foods section of Walmart- Hispanic.

  2. Hi! I would just like to ask if the sugar in powdered milk will affect the mixture? And how long will a batch keep? I live in a tropical area so Im just worried that it wouldnt be able to last long here

    1. My powdered milk doesn’t have sugar added to it. So, I’m not really sure how to answer that. I’d keep it a couple months probably in an airtight container.

  3. Where did you get your lavendar flowers? I’m not sure where to begin to look. I’m sure the answer is going to give me a Duh moment.

      1. We like to use our dried lavender for laundry sachet ls in the dryer. Use a 4×6 draw string bag tied very tight! Pop in the dryer! Your sheets will never be the same , you can use this bag 6 times per load for drying. Thank you!

  4. I have never heard of a milk bath! Sounds lovely though 🙂 One thing you can do with the essential oil is to dab a little on the hand towel in the bathroom right after you clean it. It will scent the bathroom nicely, and coming into a freshly-cleaned and sweet smelling bathroom is SO fun!

  5. Thanks for the idea! I found some really cute jelly mason jars on clearance & I’m looking for recipes like bath salts & body scrubs. I never would of thought to add powdered milk to the bath stuff. Hopefully I can find cheap this week (the price of powdered milk has skyrocketed! in the past year here)

  6. Silly question, but are we talking fresh lavendar flowers? Are they commonly sold at a florist, grocer, etc..??

    1. They are dried as far as I know. But, lavender always seems “dry” to me. I have some that I dried myself. The rest I bought in the spice aisle of the health food store — in bulk.

  7. Any suggestions for the type of powdered milk to use? I always see it at the store and never know which one to buy. I would love to make these and also use the powdered milk for other recipes. Thanks for a great idea.

  8. I LOVE taking baths, and I have an addiction to bath products of all kinds, but in my efforts to purge as many chemicals from my daily life as possible, I love finding all natural DIY recipes I can use to make yummy spas. Thanks for sharing!