DIY Massage Soap Bars

If you love the massage bars from Lush you’re going to really love these DIY massage soap bars. You can make them for as little as $3.50 each, customize the colors and the scents. Not to mention, they make great gifts for men or women.

What is a massage bar?

A massage bar is simply a bar of soap with nubs on it that massage your muscles while you clean your body. They also contain essential oils that moisturize your skin.

When you rub the soap bar on your body it heats the oils and allows them to melt onto your skin. It’s a great way to moisturize your skin without the grease that you would get when using oils out of the shower/bath.

Massage bars are a great addition to your shower/bath routine if you are looking to reduce stress. Trust me, you’ll be more relaxed after using one of these amazing bars.

How to Make Massage Soap Bars

Here is how to make your own DIY version of the massage bars from Lush. If you only need to buy the melt and pour soap base, each bar will cost around $3.50.

If you need to also purchase the mold, soap colorant and essential oils they will be about $9.00 per bar. With the Lush massage bars costing $14.00 each you can save a lot of money making your own!

You will use very little colorant and essential oils so they can be used for a lot of batches. The molds are completely reusable as well so you won’t need to purchase those again.

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Materials

Massage Soap Bar Mold
Melt and Pour Soap Base
Soap Colorant
Essential Oils
Cutting Board
Knife
Microwavable bowl

Directions

Step 1 – Cut the soap base into cubes

Using a cutting board and knife, chop the soap base into cubes so that it will melt faster in the microwave. Start with one of the blocks of soap base. Each block of soap base will make 4 soap bars so a block will fill one mold.

Step 2 – Melt the soap base

Place the cubes from one block of soap base into a microwaveable safe bowl. I like to use a 4 cup measuring cup because it allows for easy pouring of the melted soap base into the molds.

Place the bowl into the microwave and heat for 30 second increments until the soap base is completely melted.

For me it took 90 seconds total.

Microwave soap base in 30 second increments

Step 3 – Add essential oils

Add 8-10 drops of your favorite essential oil to the melted soap base and stir.

Adding essential oil to melt and pour soap base

Step 4 – Add colorant

This step is optional. If you would like to color your massage soap bars you can use a few drops of soap colorant. If you do not have soap colorant food coloring will work as well.

Adding soap colorant to melt and pour soap base.

This was what it looked like after I added 3 drops of colorant and stirred it.

Step 5 – Pour soap into mold

Now that the soap base is ready to go, you can pour it into the mold. As mentioned previously, each block of soap base will make about 4 soap bars.

Step 6 – Optional – remove bubbles

If you want to remove the bubbles on the top of the poured soap (bottom of the actual soap bar) you can easily do this by spraying them with alcohol. Just spritz the top of it and they will disappear.

This was before I sprayed the alcohol.

And here is what it looked like after!

Step 7 – Let the soap cure

The final step is to let the soap cure per the manufacturers recommendations.

I repeated steps 1 – 6 to make 4 more bars using the second block of soap base. Then I let the soaps sit and cure for a few hours before I removed them from the molds.

Massage Soap Bar Benefits

Reduce Stress

Massage bars are very relaxing and a great way to help reduce stress. The gentle massage that you get from the nubs on the soap along with the essential oils provide the perfect bath experience to relax your entire body.

Moisturize Your Skin

As you use the soap bars the essential oils begin to heat up and moisturize your skin. Not only do these bars smell great but they act as a great moisturizer as well!

Wash Your Body

This may be obvious, but soap bars are indeed made of soap so they are perfect for washing your body. Simply use the massage bar in place of your normal soap bar or body wash.

How To Use a Massage Bar

Using a massage bar is as simple as using a bar of regular soap. Just be sure to have the nub side facing your skin.

Rub the massage bar directly on your skin paying special attention to spots where you have tension. The essential oils in the bar will heat up and melt onto your skin when you use the bar.