We all know that tea is great for drinking, but have you ever thought about bathing in it? I was at a cute little boutique not that long ago and they had huge premade sachets labelled as “tea baths”, which prompted me to go online to see if this was actually a thing (spoiler: it is!). Most tea baths out there don’t actually contain tea leaves, but calling it “tisane bath” just doesn’t have the same ring to it. Tea baths are good for relaxation, soothing sore muscles, and just help to add a bit of glow to your skin.
Creating a tea bath is as easy as taking a look through your tea stash to see what you have available. I utilized epsom salts and herbal ingredients as well tea in creating my Tea Bath. Tea Baths are definitely a bit of a luxury and aren’t an every day event, but it’s nice to treat yourself from time to time! You can even opt to have a Tea Bath on a smaller scale and do a foot soak in it one as well. Tea Baths are easy to make ahead and might make excellent presents – and Valentine’s Day is coming up! You can create a mix in a jar and wrap a cute ribbon around the lid…. Just sayin’.
For one Tea Bath, you will need:
2 cups epsom salts
1 cup steeped green tea¹
1 tablespoon of each type of flower²
1 tea bag
¹ I oversteeped some green tea on purpose for my Tea Bath, I’m not worried about the tea tasting astringent since I am not drinking it. I would recommend using straight/plain green tea.
² I used 1 tablespoon each of lavender buds and rose buds (you could also use rose petals). Some other floral ingredients that you may want to consider using include chamomile or jasmine petals. I would avoid heavily coloured flowers, like hibisicus, because they may dye your skin (or towels… or bath tub…).
As you prepare to draw the Tea Bath, put the floral ingredients into the tea bag and cinch it close. I added the epsom salts to my tub as the water was filling, to help the epsom salts dissolve. After I turned off the water, I added the steeped green tea and then the tea bag with the floral ingredients. You can opt to put the flowers directly into the water if you want them floating around you, but the tea bag does make cleaning up after your Tea Bath a lot easier.
If you are opting to do a foot soak instead of a full Tea Bath, use ½-1 cup of epsom salts in your foot bath.
Epsom salt helps to relieve inflammation your muscles, and soothe sore muscles. It also helps to soften your skin and promote relaxation.
Green tea is an antioxidant, it helps refresh your skin for healthier glow.
Lavender and chamomile are both flowers that promote relaxation, relieve stress, and help refresh the skin.
Jasmine helps promote relaxation, helps soothe sore muscles, and refreshes your skin.
Rose buds/petals contain antioxidants, can reduce redness in your skin, and softens and helps to refresh the skin.