No one likes a stinky home! Everyday smells such as cooking, pets, and smoking can make the air in your home smell less than fragrant. While commercial air fresheners do a great job of neutralising odours, they can also contain chemicals contributing to indoor air pollution. If you make your own home fragrance, you know exactly what the ingredients are and can avoid allergens. This is helpful if anyone in your household has asthma or other respiratory issues.
The recipes that follow use natural ingredients and are eco-friendly. However, while using natural ingredients to make your own home fragrances will make allergies less likely, some people may still be sensitive to certain essential oils. Therefore, each new fragrance should be introduced individually to identify anything causing a problem quickly.
Ingredients To Make Your Own Home Fragrance
Essential Oils
Essential oils are concentrated extracts of plants and are the basis for many homemade fragrances. Some good choices include lavender, rosemary, ginger, bergamot, and frankincense. Those oils are generally safe for use around pets. If you don’t have pets, you could also use eucalyptus, lemon, peppermint, and tea tree oil.
Dried Herbs and Flowers
Lavender buds, rose petals, and rosemary sprigs can be picked from your garden and dried or purchased cheaply online or from natural health stores.
Citrus Peels
Never waste your citrus peel again. Keep it and use it to fragrance your home. Lemon, orange, and grapefruit peels provide a fresh, natural scent.
Witch Hazel
Witch hazel preserves fragrance and disperses essential oils in water-based solutions. It can be bought in any chemist or health shop.
Beeswax or Soy Wax
Soy wax is used to create candles, and wax melts. It is more eco-friendly than paraffin wax and burns for 15-20% longer than paraffin wax.
Glass Jars and Spray Bottle
Repurpose your used candle jars and spray bottles to minimise waste. If you are making your own candles, ensure that any container you use is heat-proof and suitable for candles. Otherwise, it could shatter or cause a fire. Keep old candle jars and remove any left-over wax with a hair dryer.
Silicone Molds
If you are making wax melts, silicone moulds are a handy way of making various shapes or sizes. They are not essential, as you can use any container and then cut the melts into segments. But silicone moulds are very cheap on Ebay and give your wax melts that professional touch if you are thinking of gifting them.
Easy DIY Home Fragrance Ideas
Essential Oil Room Sprays
Ingredients
- 1 cup distilled water – this can be purchased “ready-made” or make your own using this recipe
- 1 tablespoon witch hazel (you can also use vodka)
- 15-20 drops of essential oils.
Instructions
Combine the water and witch hazel/vodka in a spray bottle. Add essential oils. Shake well before each use and spritz around your home.
Citrus Diffuser
Ingredients
- small glass jar
- carrier oil (almond, coconut, olive oil)
- essential oils
- dried citrus peels
- dried herbs
- reed sticks (these are available very cheaply online)
Instructions
Fill the jar with carrier oil, add 20-30 drops of essential oils, and insert the reed sticks. Flip the reeds every few days to refresh the scent.
Scented Sachets
Ingredients
- dried lavender, rose petals, or other fragrant herbs.
- two squares of fabric
- needle and thread
- ribbon or string (optional)
Instructions
Place the fabric squares together. Sew together three sides of the square.
Fill the fabric square with dried herbs and flowers. Secure the fourth side either by sewing or tying it up with ribbon. Tying rather than sewing will make the sachets refillable.
Place sachets in drawers, wardrobes, or under pillows for a subtle, continuous fragrance.
Beeswax Candles
Ingredients
- beeswax
- essential oils
- candle wicks
- heat-proof containers.
Instructions
Melt beeswax in a double boiler, add essential oils, and pour into containers with a secured wick. Allow to cool and harden before use.
Beeswax Candles (Alternative recipe)
- beeswax sheets
- essential oil
- paintbrush
- candle wick
Instructions
Sprinkle a few drops of essential oil over the beeswax sheets. Spread out using a paintbrush to distribute the scent evenly.
Place the wick at one of the short sides of the beeswax sheet. Tightly roll up the sheet with the wick inside.
Wax Melts
Ingredients
- soy wax or beeswax
- essential oils
- dried herbs (optional)
- silicone molds
Instructions
Melt the wax in a double boiler. Once fully melted, remove from heat and add essential oils (approximately 30 drops per cup of wax) and dried herbs if using.
Pour the mixture into silicone moulds and let it cool completely.
Once hardened, pop the wax melts out of the moulds and store them in a jar.
You can enjoy beautiful, natural home scents that contribute to a healthier planet with a few simple ingredients and creativity. Why not also check out our article on homemade laundry detergent?
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