DIY Shower Steamers Recipe

DIY Shower Steamers: Your Home. Your Recipe.

Forget the $8-a-piece steamers stacked at the chemist. This one's three pantry ingredients, ten minutes, and a scent you chose yourself.

Shower steamers work on the same principle as a bath bomb, without the bath. Drop one on the shower floor, let the water hit it, and the fizz releases whatever essential oil you've mixed in - no soaking required. If you don't have a bathtub, or you just don't have the time for one, this is how you still get the ritual.

What You'll Need

• 1 cup (200g) sodium bicarbonate
• ½ cup (100g) citric acid
• ¾ cup (100g) corn starch
• A spray bottle filled with clean water
• Essential oil of your choice (eucalyptus and peppermint are shower-steamer classics)
• A silicone mould - check out By Me 15 Cavity Silicone Mould here

The Method

1. Combine the dry ingredients. Sift the sodium bicarbonate, citric acid, and corn starch into a mixing bowl. Break up any clumps as you go - a smooth mix means an even fizz later. 
2. Mist, don't pour. This is the step people rush and regret. Spritz the mixture with your water bottle, one or two pumps at a time, mixing with your hands between each spray. You're adding moisture gradually so the citric acid doesn't react early - if it starts fizzing, you've added water too fast.
3. Check the texture. Stop misting once the mixture holds its shape when pressed - think damp sand, not wet dough. Squeeze a handful: if it clumps together and holds, you're ready.
4. Add your oil. Mix in 40–60 drops of essential oil once your base is at the right texture. Eucalyptus for clearing your head, peppermint for waking up, lavender if the steamer's for the end of the day, not the start of it.
5. Pack and press. Press the mixture firmly into your mould, packing it in tight so it holds together once it dries.
6. Let it dry. Leave the steamers in the mould for 24–48 hours, somewhere dry and out of direct sun. Don't rush this part - a steamer that hasn't fully cured will crumble the moment it hits the shower floor.
7. Unmould and store. Once fully hardened, pop them out and store in an airtight container. Kept dry, they'll last for months.
   

Gifting Idea

Add shower steamers to old jars for a low-waste gift that costs you nothing but the ribbon. Save a jam jar or a sauce jar, wash out the label, and drop in your DIY steamers once they've cured. Tie some string or ribbon around the neck, write the scent on a tag, and that's the whole gift - no box, no plastic wrap, nothing to throw out once it's opened. The jar keeps doing its job long after the steamers are gone.

To Use

Place one steamer on the shower floor, just out of the direct stream of water. The steam and splashback will slowly dissolve it and release the scent - no need to stand it directly under the tap.

Essential Oil Suggestions

Revitalising
15 drops Lemon Myrtle
15 drop Eucalyptus

Refreshing
20 drops Eucalyptus
20 drops Peppermint

Calming
20 drops Bergamot
10 drops Lavender

Relaxing
15 drops Lavender
5 drops Clary Sage

Adding Colour

To add colour to your steamers, here are some recommendations;
Yellow: Turmeric powder - 1 tbsp
Green: Matcha powder - 1 tbsp
Pink: Beetroot powder - 1 tbsp

A Note on Ingredients

Sodium bicarbonate and citric acid are the same two ingredients behind most of the DIY recipes on this site - cleaning kits included. That's the whole idea behind By Me: a small pantry of honest ingredients that do more than one job, so you're not buying a different bottle of chemicals for every task in the house.

By Me. Create a Beautiful, Sustainable, Low-Tox Home.