An Easy Way to Add Natural Fragrance to Your Home

I really dislike artificial fragrances, especially those plug-in types of air fresheners that are full of chemicals. Give me essential oils any day. However, many of the nicer reed diffusers are also pretty pricey. Paying $20 or $30 for a store-bought one seems rather silly when many of us have the raw materials to make our own lying around the house.

Here’s how to DIY a reed diffuser for a hit of natural aromatherapy at home.

• Glass or ceramic container (glazed inside, so it doesn’t leak) with a narrow opening at the top
• Essential oils of your choice. I have lavender and eucalyptus.
• I’ve heard of using mineral oil as your “base,” but I wanted to avoid petroleum-based products. Sweet almond oil or safflower oil are other options. But I was intrigued when I read about using vodka and water, mostly because I have some in the freezer, it’s not my favorite libation, and it won’t leave a greasy mess if it does get knocked over. Though I’ve also read that vodka will evaporate more quickly than something totally oil-based. It’s your call.
• Reeds or bamboo skewers. You can find reed diffuser sticks online pretty inexpensively, but if you have bamboo skewers in the kitchen or craft room, just trim off the pointy ends before use.

1. If you’re using an oil base, you will blend a mix of 30% essential oil to 70% base oil. You can experiment with the percentages to see what works best for you. If you’re using the vodka and water mixture, you will want to add approximately 12 drops of essential oils to about 1/4 cup of water, then add a little vodka (the vodka helps bind the oils to the water).

2. Pour the mixture into your receptacle and place one end of the reeds or skewers into the solution, allowing it to saturate the reeds. Then take them out, and place the opposite ends into the bottle. Rotate which ends are in the scent solution about once a week.

• The smaller the neck on the bottle, the slower the liquid will evaporate. I’m about to learn how much more quickly mine will evaporate with the wider opening of my vase.
• Experiment with different essential oil combinations until you find one or two you really like. You can then increase your batches and keep them in sealed containers (like a canning jar) to save prep time later on.
• If you have pets, know that essential oils can sometimes be harmful to your dog or cat. Do your research before you make a reed diffuser and find out if your chosen oil is considered toxic.
• Have any of you made your own diffusers before? Which works better? The oil or the vodka and water? I’ve love to know!

This post originally ran on Apartment Therapy. See it there: How To Make Homemade Reed Diffusers