Make your own perfume

By Jane

Make Life Easy

I’ve been making my own perfumes since my parents gave me a perfume making kit (a child’s one) when I was about 8 or 9. I love it. Mixing my own essential oils and coming up with my own signature fragrance is seriously gratifying. And the great thing is, it’s so easy. Just take your favourite essential oils, mix them with a carrier oil and then into melted beeswax. And there you have a solid perfume.

There are other perfumes you can make – those just with oils, perfumed talcs, scented shower gels and soaps, and wash balls – all natural.

The point is, you can make your own perfumes too. You don’t have to be a perfumier to make your own scents. And it doesn’t have to be technical. Just an oil (like almond oil) and two essential oils will give you a delicious scent.

(You can learn more about making perfumes and other scented gifts using herbs and essential oils in my online herb course. Click here for more information.)

I love solid perfumes because they make great gifts You can pour the perfume into a locket, or a mirror compact, as I’ve done here, and you will have a beautiful smelling and beautiful looking gift. They can then be carried in your purse or, in the case of a locket, around your neck.

Making a solid perfume

For these mirror compacts, I removed the bottom mirror to expose the cavity and left the top mirror intact. You can experiment with different essential oils to find your favourite blend.

Materials for a basic sold perfume

• 3 teaspoons (15ml) sweet almond oil (or jojoba oil)
• 40-50 drops essential oils of your choice (see recipes below)
• 2 teaspoons grated beeswax, or beeswax pellets

1. Measure the carrier oil in a mini glass measuring container. Add the essential oils and blend. Set aside.

2. Melt the beeswax in a double boiler or a heatproof container placed in a shallow saucepan of boiling water.

3. Once the beeswax has melted, remove from the heat and stir in the almond oil/essential oil blend. Immediately pour into your perfume container. Allow to set (30 minutes or less).

Makes enough for one mirror compact.

Spicy perfume (my favourite)

15 drops ylang ylang
6 drops sandalwood
11 drops rose geranium
9 drops sweet orange
4 drops neroli – (I used neroli essential oil in a 3% jojoba mix – pure neroli essential oil is very expensive)

Floral (for those who prefer less ‘spice’ and more floral)

6 drops rose geraminum
16 drops lavender
18 drops clary sage
20 drops jasmine (I used jasmine essential oil in a 3% jojoba mix. Use less if using pure jasmine essential oil)

Want more?

Check out my online herb course. Learn about:

• Herbs for stress, anxiety and sleep
• Herbs for beauty (make your own creams, spa products, perfumes)
• Herbs for medicine (make salves, tinctures, etc)
• Cooking with herbs (herb mixes, preserving herbs)
• Herbs for cleaning
• Growing your own herbs

Get more information here

Jane is Editor of Sweet Living magazine; Editor of HerbNews (the quarterly magazine for the NZ Herb Federation); Herb columnist for NZ Gardener magazine; and Weekly gardening columnist for Waikato Times, Southland Times, Manawatu Standard, Taranaki Daily News, Nelson Mail, Marlborough Express and Timaru Herald. She frequently give talks and runs workshops across the country.