If you have had the flu this year, then you know what a terrible ordeal that can be! My whole family had it last week and let me tell you, it was the longest week of my life to be sure! I’m always looking for more natural ways to help feel better when sick, so I thought I would make a batch of eucalyptus shower melts to keep on hand for any other winter sickness that pops up this year. Eucalyptus oil is a great decongestant and combined with the lavender and rosemary (both have calming properties) and the bright lemon notes, you’ll get a relaxing shower that can also help clear your airways.
Supplies:–essential oils (I used 20 drops each of eucalyptus, lemon, lavender, and rosemary)
-1/4 cup epsom salts
-1/4 cup citric acid
-1 cup baking soda
-1 teaspoon crushed menthol crystals (optional)
-green food coloring (optional)
-spray bottle of water
–mold for shower melts
Combine your epsom salts, baking soda, and citric acid into a bowl and stir to combine. 
Spray your mixture with a few sprays of water and stir. Continue until your mixture is almost the consistency of damp sand. 
Add in your essential oil drops and stir again to combine. Squeeze a bit of your mixture together and make sure it holds its shape lightly. Add more water if needed to get to that point. If using, stir in your menthol crystals (I just put my crystals into a plastic bag and crushed them with a back of a spoon to break them up).
Spoon your mixture into your molds and press down with the back of a spoon to lightly pack them together.
To add a little bit of color, I filled my molds 3/4 of the way and then stirred in a drop of green food coloring to the remaining mixture and filled the molds to the top with the green. You can leave yours all white if you would like.
Once I pressed the mixture into the molds, I let them dry for 24 hours and checked to see if they were done (you may need up to 48 hours). Once they were dry, I popped them out of the molds and they were ready to use and store!
To use, simply place these just outside of the stream in your shower so they will get small bit of water on them to dissolve slowly. As the water and steam hits the melts, it should release all that essential oil goodness into your shower steam for you to breathe in. You can also put them in a shallow dish on the floor to keep any residue contained for easy cleanup. Keep your melts in an airtight container and they should keep for up to a month before they start to lose their effectiveness.
It’s funny because I still had these on my list to make when I got the flu, so I didn’t get to enjoy their aromatic properties this time. But Todd was still sick when I finished them, so he got to enjoy one while taking a hot shower to be the tester for me—he said it smelled great! Hope these help to make any of your winter illness a bit more manageable! xo. Laura
