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Fizz Bomb Workshop
Article cutesy of Jackie Phillips @
The Soap Barn
Before we start let’s quickly go through everything you will need:
• One kilo of baking soda (bicarbonate
of soda)
• One kilo of corn starch (corn flour)
• One half kilo of citric acid
• 100ml sweet oil
• 100ml coconut oil
• 100ml witch hazel
• One powder colouring
• One fragrance oil
• One large ball mould
• One small ball mould
• One heart mould
• One rose mould
• One pack of cellophane bags for packaging
• A pair of scissors
• A set of measuring cups
• A teaspoon
• A dessertspoon for mixing
• One medium size glass mixing bowl
• One small glass mixing bowl
• A large plastic tray or a wooden tray lined with plastic or foil
Buy all of these items from
The Soap Barn
Last thing before we start making a mixture, you need to cut out the moulds.
Take each of the moulds and cut the shapes out of the plastic sheet. Cut
each shape out with a 1cm border around all the edges. That border is
very important because it frames the shape and gives it body. It also
gives you handling space.
Now that the moulds are cut out you need to find a good space to work. Don't
work in a space where there is a draught because that will dry your bombs
out too fast on the outside and cause lots of cracks. Don't work where there
is steam either from your kettle or from dinner cooking on the stove. That
moisture will cause the citric acid on the outside of your bombs to explode
and your bomb will be covered by loads of small pimples. Not nice! So beware
of draughts and steam. Make sure you have loads of open working space, put
on some fun music and let's begin…
The Best Fizz Bomb Recipe
You will need:
1 Cup baking soda
½ Cup cornstarch
½ Cup citric acid
1 Teaspoon sweet oil
1 Teaspoon coconut oil
10-20 drops fragrance oil
3 Teaspoons witch-hazel
A tiny amount of powder colouring (measure with a matchstick)
Okay, are you ready? Let's get making!
In your large bowl mix together the baking soda, cornstarch and citric acid.
Now would be the time to add some dry petals, herbs or glitter if you wish.
Don't use too much of any of them because it will make moulding difficult
later.
Take a handful of your mixture out and place it in the small mixing bowl.
Add to this handful of dry mixture the sweet oil, coconut oil, fragrance and
a tiny amount of powder colouring.
Mash ingredients in the small bowl into a paste (it only forms a paste if
you used a small handful of dry mixture. If it doesn't form a paste it
doesn't matter) and then throw it back into the dry mixture in the large
bowl.
Stir the paste through the dry mixture till they are one evenly coloured
mixture.
Make a well in the centre of the dry mixture and very quickly add the
witch-hazel.
Mix the witch-hazel through very fast so you lose as little fizz as
possible.
Remember the more liquid you add to the mixture the more fizz you lose. The
mixture must just be a little damp, so that when you squeeze some in your
hand it sticks together and forms the shape of the inside of your hand.
Once you have mixed the witch-hazel in
you have to start working fast because the mixture expires really quickly.
That means in the beginning the mixture moulds really well but after a few
minutes it becomes more difficult to make balls and cracks start to form.
To make half balls, roses and hearts take some mixture and pack it very
tight into a mould so that it feels rock hard. Then turn the mould upside
down over the tray (as close to the tray as you can get it), tap it and see
the shape drop out of the mould onto the tray.
 To
make round balls fill both sides of the ball mould very high with loose
mixture. (Do not pack the mixture tight into both sides; the mixture must be
heaped into high mountains on each side). Now carefully bring the two heaped
mountains together and push the two sides of the mould together very tight.
(Do not adjust or straighten the sides at this point because you will break
the bond that just formed and the two sides will not stick together). Flick
the outside rim to get rid of all the excess mixture around the join line.
Hold the ball in one palm and flick the top of the mould to release the
first side.
When the first side is released gently
turn that into your other palm and release the second side of the mould.
Very gently place that ball on
your tray to set. Round balls are best made when your mixture is very fresh.
As the mixture becomes older (ten minutes later) balls become more difficult
to make and you should then only use your mixture to mould one sided or flat
fizzies.
So, what else do you need to know about making Fizz bombs?
You need to know that making great fizz bombs takes practice. You need to
know the conditions of your work environment and understand how they affect
the setting of your bombs. Never leave the bombs to set in a draught nor in
a place where they come in contact with water or steam. Don't leave them in
the sun to set either. The best is really to leave them in a cool room for
two to three days to set solidly without being disturbed.
Once set they can be attractively packaged in cellophane bags, coloured
netting or PVC cylinders.
Why do your bombs keep cracking?
• You didn't pack the mixture tightly enough in the moulds.
• You made your mixture to moist
• You left them in a draught to set
• You used up your mixture too slowly
Remember practice makes perfect fizz bombs
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