Mint Madness!

Mint continues to be a running theme in our holiday crafting this year! This past week, my daughters and I whipped up Candy Cane Bath Salts, Peppermint Lip Butter and handmade Victorian candy canes.

We've never made candy canes before and it was nothing short of hysterical! The recipe was easy enough, but the actual production takes a lot of finesse as the candy cools quickly and you need to work fast pulling and shaping the canes! Our experience was a cross between three monkeys with pans and a bag of sugar and an I Love Lucy episode. I'm still picking bits off candy off the floor! Lets just say I have a new respect for candy makers!

The product of our candy making experiment. Not gonna quit my day job! LOL!

So, on to the Candy Cane Bath Salts - an oldie but a goodie! We made these little jars for our nieces and nephews. They make really fun, affordable handmade gifts and are super easy to make! 

Candy Cane Bath Salts

This recipe makes 6 jars of salts.

3 cups epsom salts (found at your local drug store)

6 teaspoons shelf-stable carrier oil (I used safflower because it is what I had on hand.)

 8 drops Red food-safe coloring (try India Tree Natural Decorating Colors for safe, plant-based 

dyes)

20 drops peppermint essential oil

Crushed candy canes

6 clean, dry 8oz. jelly jars

1. Place 1 1/2 cups of the salts in two medium sized bowls.
2. Mix the oil with the food coloring and add to one of the bowls of salts. Stir gently until the salts turn a pinkish red.
3. Add 10 drops of peppermint essential oil to each bowl of salts (Note: Different essential oil brands and harvests can have different aromatic potency. Use a few more or a few less drops if needed, without ODing on the mint :))
4. Layer the salts, alternating colors like candy cane stripes, into a clean jelly jar. Sprinkle a few bits of crushed candy cane on top before sealing the lid. Decorate with a tag, ribbon and a small candy cane.

Here is the gift label that I made to attach to the lids if you'd like to use it, too! (Please note: This is simply a gift label. It does not follow labeling guidelines for retail items.)

I will share the Peppermint Lip Butter recipe in another post. Until then, may your day be minty and bright!