Most shower steamers look the same: a pressed tablet in a box. What's in them, and how they're made, varies a lot. Here's what goes into ours.
What a steamer needs
Baking soda and citric acid. These are the reaction. Add water and they fizz, and the fizz breaks the tablet apart and lifts scent into the steam.
Something to bind it. A little moisture or a binder, so the powder holds its shape under the press and arrives in one piece.
The scent. Essential oils, fine fragrance or natural fragrance, depending on what the steamer is for.
That's the list. Our steamers are made of what the reaction needs and what the scent needs, so every part of the tablet is working in your shower. It's a formula we've refined over more than fourteen years of making them.
Three kinds of scent, three different jobs
Each scent type does something different in the shower, so we make all three.
Essential oils are aromatherapy: eucalyptus and peppermint in Breathe and Release, lavender and peppermint in Calm, lemongrass and spearmint in Energy Boost. The scent is what the plant gives you, so it's direct and quick, and it opens fast in the steam.
Fine fragrance is composed in layers, the way a perfume is, with a top, a middle and a base, so it holds longer in the room. Our Fine Fragrance Shower Steamers come in Amalfi Coast, White Tea and Tobacco Vanilla.
Natural fragrance draws on natural sources for a wider range of scents than a single essential oil can give.
All of our fragrances are phthalate-free, across everything we make. Read more in fragrance in bath and body.
Why the press matters as much as the recipe
Two steamers with the same ingredients can behave completely differently, and the reason is how hard they're pressed.
The right press holds the tablet together long enough to release scent steadily through your whole shower. Finding it for each formula is a manufacturing skill built over years, and it's the main reason we make our own steamers in our Texas studio.
How to read a shower steamer label
Look at the order. Ingredients are listed by quantity, so baking soda and citric acid should be at the top, with the scent close behind.
Look for the scent type. Essential oil, fine fragrance and natural fragrance are all good choices. What matters is knowing which one you're getting.
Look for phthalate-free, and check that it covers the whole range.
FAQ
Are essential oil steamers stronger?
Each is strong in its own way. Essential oils open quickly and bright, and a fine fragrance builds and lingers in the room. Pick by the experience you want.
How long do shower steamers keep?
Sealed and dry, they keep their full strength for up to a year.
How many come in a box?
Our aromatherapy and holiday steamers come three to a box, Fine Fragrance comes four to a box, and the Black Hatchet steamers come five to a pack.
What makes a shower steamer strong?
What's in it and how it's pressed. A tablet made of reaction and scent, pressed right, fills the shower from start to finish.
What it comes down to
A shower steamer is a short list of ingredients and the right press. We pay attention to both. See all our shower steamers, or read do shower steamers work.
