09/09/2025
Shower Steamers Recipe
Yield: 12 large shower steamers or 24 small shower tablets
Prep Time: 1 hour
Additional Time: 12 hours
Total Time: 13 hours
See how to make the best DIY shower steamers! Aromatherapy shower steamers create an at-home spa experience, elevating your everyday shower into an opportunity to relax and recharge. This easy step-by-step tutorial includes a unique shower steamer recipe and 8 different scent ideas for every mood.
Ingredients
Basic Shower Steamer Mixture
1 cup / 225 g / 8 oz baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1 cup / 200 g / 7 oz citric acid
1/3 cup / 70 g / 2.5 oz Sorbitan oleate (can sub for Polysorbate 80)
260 drops essential oil (or more/less according to your preferences)
1/4 – 1/2 tsp mica powder
Breathe
80 drops peppermint essential oil
45 drops eucalyptus essential oils
30 drops pine essential oil
25 drops lemon essential oil
20 drops rosemary essential oil
Energy
90 drops sweet orange essential oil
65 drops tangerine essential oil
30 drops cedarwood essential oil
15 drops balsam fir essential oil
1/2 tsp yellow mica
Wake
85 drops grapefruit essential oil
65 drops lemon essential oil
30 drops peppermint essential oil
20 drops Scotts pine essential oil
1/4 tsp orange mica
Uplift
120 drops ylang ylang essential oil
50 drops lime essential oil
30 drops sandalwood essential oil
1/4 tsp pink mica
Focus
90 drops rosemary essential oil
70 drops grapefruit essential oil
40 drops petitgrain essential oil
1 tsp purple mica
Relax
80 drops lavender essential oil
50 drops rose geranium essential oil
25 drops black spruce essential oil
1/2 violet mica
Sleep
100 drops botanical vanilla extract
55 drops copaiba oleoresin
30 drops vetiver essential oil
15 drops cypress essential oil
1/2 tsp blue mica
Calm
120 drops bergamot essential oil
50 drops patchouli essential oil
30 drops lavender essential oil
1/4 tsp aqua mica
Hands-Free Mode:
Instructions
Prep work
Wear gloves. Start by putting on nitrile gloves and a face cover. You can take the face cover off once the shower steamer mixture is mixed.
Measure. Weigh out the ingredients.
Make shower steamer mixture
Combine dry ingredients. Sift the baking soda and citric acid into a glass mixing bowl and stir to combine.
Add colourant. To make colored aromatherapy steamers, stir in the mica powder or plant powder. Without colouring, the aromatherapy shower steamers will appear white, which is also pretty. Set aside.
Mix liquid ingredients. Pour the Sorbitan oleate (or Polysorbate 80) into a small mixing bowl. Add the essential oil and swirl together until well blended and you no longer see streaks of the essential oil.
Make the shower steamer mixture. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry materials and whisk to combine. Using your hands, knead until the liquids are well distributed and the dry mixture is evenly moistened. The mixture should have the consistency of wet sand and maintain its shape when pressed together.
Adjust texture. If you live in a dry environment, you can add 1 to 2 additional tbsp of Sorbitan oleate. I don't recommend this step in humid areas because baking soda and citric acid absorb moisture from the air. Adding more liquid would make the mixture too wet.
Method 1: Silicone mold
Add decorations. Optionally, sprinkle a few botanicals at the bottom of each mould. Go lightly and avoid placing the botanicals too close to the edge.
Fill mould. Next, fill the mold with the mixture and press down with your fingertips, paying particular attention to the edges. Continue to load and compress the mixture until the cavity is completely full. I like to use the bottom of a 1/8 measuring cup to press down each shower tablet and achieve a flat bottom.
Dry. Let the shower steamers dry in the mold undisturbed for 24 hours. Room temperature is fine, and you can leave the mold uncovered.
Unmold. Before unmolding, gently tap the back of a steamer. Does it feel and sound solid? Then it's time to unmold. To unmold the steamers, carefully pull the silicone away. Using your thumbs, gently push the steamer out of the cavity.
