Popular Etsy shop opens store in downtown Tacoma with bath bombs, scrubs, more
A successful Etsy shop selling bath bombs and other bath products is now a brick-and-mortar store in downtown Tacoma.
The Lazy Lily opened April 11 at 743 Broadway, taking a spot on the middle floor of Sanford & Sons Antiques. Along with a large variety of creative bath bombs, customers will find items like sugar scrubs and Epsom salts, plus lots of other things that can be used for some “me” time.
Erin Gallagher, the woman behind The Lazy Lily, opened her Etsy shop in 2017.
“I’ve always been a DIYer,” Gallagher said. “My dad taught me how to crochet at a really young age, and I think that’s what started it. I always loved making my own stuff.”
When Gallagher moved to Washington over a decade ago, she had a craft night with friends where they made bath bombs, and she was hooked.
Plus, making her own was cheaper than buying them from major chains like Lush, where you can find individual bath bombs for upwards of $10.
The dissolving balls of fragrance, essential oils and other bath products are made up of three basic ingredients: baking soda, citric acid and water (Gallagher uses witch hazel). But getting those ingredients to mesh perfectly is not a simple task.
“If you don’t get the formula right, it’s either too dry and it won’t work, or too wet and it won’t work,” Gallagher said.
She found she could do a lot with the medium, mixing in different additives for different skin sensitivities and hiding surprise toys inside.
Her bath bombs with Disney character toys inside got the attention of Buzzfeed.
“That blew [my business] up and blew my confidence up,” Gallagher said.
After moving again, Gallagher eventually took a break from the Etsy shop, but decided to start again in August of last year. She said she never expected she would open her own store just a few months later.
After re-upping her Etsy shop, selling her products as a vendor at local markets and partnering with other local businesses, she visited the middle floor of Sanford & Sons, aka the Middle Floor Merchants.
There was a space open on the floor, and she was encouraged to take it.
“I was like, I’m just gonna go for it,” Gallagher said. “I had to really talk to myself, being like, if I get it, then I can say I’ve opened my own business, and I’ve tried it … but, yeah, I’m still in shock that this happened.”
The store is small, but is packed with lots of fragrant products, all handmade by Gallagher.
There are bath bombs with smaller bath bombs inside of them, Harry Potter-themed bath bombs, hand-painted bath bombs — you name it, she’ll make it.
A custom Epsom salt bar takes up a section of the store as well, along with essential oils, sugar scrubs, customized dry shampoo, shower steamers and bath dust, which is like a deconstructed bath bomb.
Lots of the bath bombs are $3 to $5, while other products stay in the $5 to $10 range.
Gallagher is full of ideas for new products she can make, like shimmering body oils, perfume powder and an allergen-friendly line of products.
The Lazy Lily is open 1-5 p.m. Wednesday, noon to 5:45 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, and is closed Monday and Tuesday. The Etsy shop is also still running.
