I really love winter, but I hate the cold and flu season that comes with it! The last thing I need is to get sick, so when I start to feel a twinge of illness, I make up a batch of homemade DIY Vicks shower disks. Hot steamy showers are a great way to loosen up all the gunk in your head, and if you add a shower disk, the eucalyptus and other essential oils will give you a little extra boost!
The eucalyptus in these DIY shower disks really helps open up my sinuses, and the peppermint helps me wake up and be more alert, which is great to combat fatigue!
DIY Vicks Shower Disks
Here’s what you need to make a batch of these shower disks for yourself: (affiliate links below)
- 1 C baking soda
- ⅓ C water
- muffin tins or molds (silicone is best if you have it, but if you don’t, a metal muffin tin with cupcake liners will work too)
- glass mixing bowl
- Eucalyptus, Peppermint, and Lavender essential oils (learn more about essential oils here)
It’s really easy to make these things! Put the baking soda in the mixing bowl and slowly add water, stirring the whole time, until the baking soda mixture has the consistency of paste. It should be about ⅓ C of water, but it can be more or less, so just add it slowly and see how it goes!
Add about ten drops each of the eucalyptus, peppermint, and lavender oils to the mixture and stir well.
Then spoon the mixture into your muffin tins or silicone molds. If you’re using muffin tins, make sure to put a cupcake liner in each cup before spooning in the baking soda mixture.
If you’re in a hurry, you can bake the shower disks in the oven at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Or if you just let them sit on the counter overnight, they’ll be dry by the morning!
Once the shower disks are dry, pop them out of the silicone molds or muffin tins and store them in an airtight jar. Add one to the floor of your shower in the morning, and let the essential oils and steam help clear out the gunk in your head!
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P.S. if you liked this project, check out these other great ways to use essential oils!
If you’re interested in learning more about essential oils, just let me know or join our Facebook group! I’d be happy to get you more info or get you a sample to try out!
Or if you are ready to start using essential oils, you can get the all of the must-have essential oils in the Young Living Premium Starter kit at a HUGE discount. Plus you 24% off every purchase you make for life when you sign up as a wholesale member. The starter kit is everything you need to get started living a happier, healthier, more natural life with essential oils, and the 24% discount on any future purchases of Young Living oils and products doesn’t hurt either! Check out this page for more details.
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Megan says
About how long do these last? Do they loose their potency after time?
Jessi Wohlwend says
I haven’t ever stored them for longer than about a month (that’s how long a batch usually lasts me when I make one). Essential oils stay potent for a long time in their bottles, but once you use them they can lose their potency faster. It all just depends on how fast the oils evaporate out of the shower disks; if you seal them in an airtight jar and only open it to remove one when you want to use it, I expect they’d last about three months, but that’s just my best guess!
Amanda C. says
Thank you so much for this!! I can’t handle Vicks ( have a hard time breathing around it since childhood) so having a recipe without Vicks is awesome! I will have to leave eucalyptus out because I have family who are allergic to it. But I do peppermint and lavender with a carrier oil as a rub on my chest and throat when I’m sick massively helps with my breathing.
Jessi Wohlwend says
So glad to hear it, I really hope this works for you!
Kayla Logan says
Hi Jessi, I also blog about natural remedies, and beauty. I found this article very helpful, and practical. I do have a question, if you don’t have Eucalyptus essential oil, what could I use as a substitute? Also do I really need it at all?
Thanks,
Kayla @ http://naturalglitz.com
Jessi Wohlwend says
Eucalyptus helps clear your sinuses, that’s why that menthol smell is in most over the counter products! You can skip it if you want, but you’ll just miss out on the extra sinus clearing benefits! You can probably find it at your local health food store; I found mine at Whole Foods.
judy says
Can these be used as fizzles in a bath.
Jessi Wohlwend says
I don’t think they’d last long enough, but I wrote a post about how to make your own bath fizzies a while back, you can try that instead if you want! https://www.practicallyfunctional.com/make-your-own-bath-fizzies/
Christal says
What an amazing idea Jessi! I am an avid essential oils user and I luckily have all the oils needed in my stash! I can’t wait to make em and give them a try. Thanks so much for sharing!
Jessi Wohlwend says
Good luck with them!
victoria says
Can you make this without the oils? I don’t have any oils yet but am curious if making them without would be pointless?
Jessi Wohlwend says
You can make them without the oils, but the oils are what give it the scent. And the scent is what helps open up your sinuses, so it would probably be pointless to do without. But you can find essential oils like eucalyptus and peppermint at places like Whole Foods if you need to find them locally!
lisa says
Are these safe for children?I am only asking as I am new to the essential oils.and am so eager to learn!
Thank you
Lisa
Jessi Wohlwend says
Great question! These are safe for children because they are only inhaled (definitely don’t let your kids eat them accidentally!), but there are oils that are not safe for children if you apply them topically. Most oils are safe to be inhaled but it’s always safer to ask first!
lisa says
Great.. Thank you so much..
Lisa
A says
It would help to know how many this should make. Just got out of bed and made some in a muffin tin and got six from the recipe. Are they too big? It thought I should’ve gotten more, but they’d have been tiny if I got too many more. I will say that my sinuses are clearer just from making them. I can’t wait to try one in the shower in the morning. Thank you for a lovely idea. I have a feeling I’ll be making these again. There’s plenty of winter left!
Jessi Wohlwend says
How many it makes depends on how big you make them. In a regular-sized muffin tin, six is about right. I used a small square silicone baking pan and got about ten. But it’s really just up to personal preference on how big you want to make them! If you fill a muffin tin all the way full then they will last longer in the shower, but if you take shorter showers you can fill the tins halfway full and it will make more!
A says
Thank you so much for the quick reply. I would say that I had a successful first go at this. I let them dry overnight and did not have to bake them, so extra points for being so easy. None fell apart, and the smell was amazing. I used my first one this morning, and it was a nice treat. There are so many wonderful bath products, but not much for the shower. I will be making these again soon.
Jessi Wohlwend says
So glad it worked out for you!
Holly says
I make these ALL the time! Except I use Peppermint, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary. I’ll have to try this combination as well, it sounds lovely. I make them all the time for my friends and family.
Perhaps it’s because of the humidity where I live – but they never work out when I only leave them overnight to dry out, or if I bake them straight away. So I usually have to leave them out to dry overnight, and THEN I’ll bake them for 20 minutes at 225 degrees. And once their dry I’ll add the oils to the tops of the discs. Pop them out, toss them in a mason jar – good to go!!
Maybe that will help anyone who is having trouble with them holding their form 🙂
Jessi Wohlwend says
Ooh Rosemary would be great in these! And that’s a great tip about making these in a humid environment, thank you for sharing!
Gwen says
I could use those right now! I had a rough night last night, but I’m feeling better tonigh. I’m going to try these, but I need to get a pan like that. I love it!
Jacque says
These are great!!! Matt would love these when he isn’t feeling well. Ill take 20 please haha
Courtenay @ The Creek Line House says
Such a great idea! I wish I thought of it! I’m a huge fan of homemade cold and flu remedies!
Angie @ CCC says
Must try some of these! Thanks so much for sharing!
Laura Beth says
Ummmm….this is genius! Can’t wait to try them 🙂
Jocie@OPC The Better Half says
AWESOME idea! pinning for later!
jenny@birdsandsoap says
Love these! I’ve made them before and they smell so good! I’m going to try this recipe!
keri @ shaken together says
I can’t wait to make these – winter colds are the worst!