I'm not one to wear perfume, but if you knew me as a teenager, then yes, I had a variety of scents (didn't we all)?! I don't know when it happened (perhaps it correlated with my Crohn's diagnosis) but a few years ago I developed a significant sensitivity to chemical smells, perfumy smells, detergents, hair spray, lotions, those plug-in scent things, shampoos and conditions, you name it. My symptoms are pretty uncomfortable: instant headache, nausea, dizziness, irritability, stomachache ache, lethargy, etc. I can only spend about 30 seconds in one of my favorite stores (Bed Bath and Beyond) before running for the door, desperate for fresh air. Perhaps some of you can relate to this? This all being said, I don't have a problem with essential oils, which is so nice, because I love them. I don't wear them everyday, but I like having this option and some on-hand for when I want a little scent on me. Last week I was browsing around in the health and beauty department at my local Coop and found some body spray (made with essential oils), and it caught my eye. It was a lovely fragrance, lemon, ginger and peppermint. I looked at the ingredients (3 included: essential oils, filtered water, vegetable glycerine). What! That's just too easy!! I have all these at home, so I made my own body spray- and LOVE it. I used one of my favorite smells (patchouli) and also made one with orange. You could go crazy with the combinations, the ideas are endless really. What a fun Mother's Day gift. And this would pair nicely with one of my homemade lotions, such as homemade cocoa and shea body butter.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
Orange Blossom Body Spray
-1 oz filtered water
-60 to 90 drops essential oil of orange (less or more to your liking)
-1/2 teaspoon vegetable glycerine
Bohemian Momma Patchouli Body Spray
-1 oz filtered water
-1/8 teaspoon essential oil of Tunisian Patchouli (less or more to your liking)
-1/2 teaspoon vegetable glycerine
How To
1. Mix ingredients together in small glass spray bottle and shake well. Always shake before using.
I think I might try making these! How long do you think they keep and do you think they should be stored in a cool place? I wonder if I can get glass spray bottles in the UK..mm I will look for those and the ingredients tomorrow..thank you, they look so simple to make!
ReplyDeleteI love this!
ReplyDeleteThe bohemian momma sounds so great ;)
Would love to try making these. And the recipes are so simple. Love that!
xo
I can't stand those artificial fragrances either - never could. I would suspect it corresponds w/ Chron's b/c candida sufferers typically are very sensitive to scents and that deals w/ intestinal health as well.
ReplyDeleteI love essential oils and am currently trying to sort out which company's to use and recommend. Very intense studying going on here :-).
Mountain rose herbs is a wonderful company you should check into....
DeleteMajestic Mountian Sage (MMS) not only has pure essential oils but are very helpful with any questions you might have. FD
DeleteLove handmade scents - nothing better and you get the benefits of the aromatherapy! Great post, thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks Sonia! :-)
DeleteAmber, I too am very sensitive to artificial scents, even as a little kid. I remember having a study partner in graduate school who wore Obsession and I would get a headache within a half an hour. I asked her several times to please not wear it as I got sick, she wore a little less-but it didn't help much. It's hard for others to understand the impact they have on other people's health, it's perfume pollution. Thanks for these wonderful alternatives. Jenilyn
ReplyDeleteGlad to know I am not alone in this! It's terrible isn't it. It's very difficult to be around people that smell like that. Good for you for speaking up...sorry to hear it didn't get much better for you. I don't think people realize how STRONG their chemical perfumes are. Bummer for us sensitive folks. :-)
DeleteI've tried making essential oil sprays before, but my little spray bottles get jammed up. Is there a solution for this?
ReplyDeleteHi Laura,
DeleteGreat question. Did you try the vegetable glycerine in there? I think this might be the magic ingredient. I've been experimenting with a bottle. Made it on May 4th (with the orange oil) and it still sprays great. No clogging. Let me know what you've tried in there along with the oil. And do you remember which oil?
Thanks,
--Amber
hi, i would love to make this for after gym. its so simple! i always try to look for natural body sprays because artifical scents give me a huge headache.
ReplyDeletei just have a few questions:
will the scent last long?
will it be okay in a plastic bottle?
is the scent going to go weird if the temp. is warm?
really helpful post :)
Hi Kristen,
DeleteGood questions!
I've had mine for over 2 months and the scent is still going strong. It's my assumption that the scent will last for the life of the spray.
I'm sure it will be fine in a plastic bottle. Just remember that oil leaches out the toxins found in plastic, and so then you'll be spraying it on your skin, and thus it will be absorbed by your body. If you can fine a stainless steel bottle, I would go with that.
And no, if the liquid gets warm it will not affect the smell, just perhaps the texture and integrity of the liquid. It may thicken up? Not sure? Then you may have issues with the spray. If this happens, just rinse off the sprayer to loosen.
Please let me know how it turns out.
Thanks,
--Amber
Amber,
ReplyDeleteI am in love with your website! You are such an inspiration. I am so excited about trying this body spray :) Where did you find your blue glass spray bottles?
Nicole
Hello Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your message. You made my day, :-)
I found these cute blue bottles at my local natural health food store. They have an entire section dedicated to DIY lotions, spays, etc.
Hops this helps.
Be Well,
--Amber
WHAT size are these bottles? I'd like to try these recipes however I don't want a bottle that is too big. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteHello Andrea,
DeleteThe blue bottles are 1 ounce.
Hope this helps.
Thanks,
-Amber
And P.S. You can make them as big as you want - especially if you use a lot of spray or want to use it for a room.
Hello Amber!
ReplyDeleteCan i just use distilled water and essential oil (skip the glycerin). What is the purpose of the glycerin? How do you stick your selfmade labels on the bottle? Do you use sticker labels and cut them to fit the bottle? It looked so pretty! But when we wash the bottles, the labels will come off right?
You can try to skip the glycerin. Let me know how it turns out? I would venture to say the glycerin is like a carrier for the oil and thus scent. But I guess you can just spray the water and oil on your body and it would be fine. I use mailing labels found at any office supply store. Take the labels off before you wash. They are only made of paper. Hope all this helps.
DeleteDo you normally make a fresh spray (start all over again in a fresh or washed bottle) or do you top up the water in your bottle when it runs low?
ReplyDeleteI would start over again. :-)
DeleteHello!! Love your site and thank you for the vast information found on your site. I have a question or two for you, is this mixture safe for clothes...i make my son a blend of essential oils as a cologne mixed with distilled water and vodka and make it in very small batches for him. Secondly what is the advantage of using glycerin vs alcohol mix, or is this just a personal preference for you?
ReplyDeleteGreat questions. I cannot answer the question about it being safe for clothes, sorry. I would just be cautious if using around something delicate...the essential oils are oils and will stain I am sure. I would think that the alcohol and glycerin serve the same exact purpose. I made this body spray after reading the ingredients off a bottle of body spray at my Natural Foods Coop. They were: essential oil, glycerin, and water. So, I decided to just make my own because I did not like the scents they had (too strong as well). Making my own allows me to adjust the level of scent to my preference. That all being said, I have not experimented with other forms of body spray or ingredients, so I have never thought about using alcohol. I happen to really like vegetable glycerin and it's a great moisturizer, so that's why I use it. Let me know how it turns out for you and your son. Thanks.
DeleteI found a bottle of glycerin and I am not sure if it is the vegetable kind or not...is there different kinds? Thank you and I cant wait to try it out! Oh an can you buy it at walmart?
ReplyDeleteHello Megan,
DeletePlease see my link above to the glycerin I use. I am not sure about what brand you purchased. And not to sound like too much of a snob on my end, but I don't shop at Walmart. Sorry I can't help you out with any products there. I found all my supplies at my Natural Foods Coop, but I am sure you can find similar things at Rite Aid or any drug store would carry glycerin. Good luck and I hope it works out for you. I am having fun with different scents and they are well received as gifts.
I was searching for a recipe to make essential oil body spray to use in a yoga class for my students and came across this recipe. I find the addition of glycerine interesting and, like someone else, was wondering exactly why it's included. I was wondering: does it help the oils distribute evenly through the water? It also moisturizes the skin, so maybe that could be the reason? Has anyone found how is better with the glycerin than without?
ReplyDeleteHi There,
DeleteGood question. First, I want to be honest and tell you I don't know exactly why glycerin is used, but I believe it is perhaps used as a carrier of the oil. It might distribute it more evenly when sprayed, with the added bonus of moisturizing.
I don't think there is any harm in using just water, but you could do an experiment and make one with just water and the other with glycerin and water.
As mentioned in the post, I simply used what I found in the store on a bottle of body spray that was WAY too expensive to purchase, it was pennies to make and so I followed the ingredients list from the store product. I have not made any spray with just the essential oil and water.
I don't think leaving it out would make that big of a difference, that being said, I have not tried it so I cannot say for sure. I am still using my spray that I made in November. It still work great and smells the same. When I run out maybe I will just refill with water and essential oil and see how that works for the long-term.
Thanks and have a great day.
Hello Ladies,
ReplyDeleteI was searching for a way to make natural body sprays and came across your website. This is fantastic, thank you for the recipe!! I wanted to offer an answer to your most common question as a thank you. Glycerin is used in body sprays as a preservative and a moisturizer. If you leave out the glycerin, the fragrance will only last a few days in the water.
Have a great day!
Heather
Hi Heather,
DeleteThank you, thank you!!! :-)
I am so glad I found this recipe. I received Zum Mist as a gift for Christmas and I LOVE it. It is labeled as a body mist/aromatherapy room spray. It has lasted a long time, and I love that it doesn't start smelling like alcohol after awhile (like most other sprays do over time). Like you, I looked at the ingredients and thought, "Surely I can make this!" I didn't know what amounts of each thing to use, so I'm happy for your info! Thanks so much. I can't wait to try it!
ReplyDeleteThanks Sarah. You'll have to tell me how it works out for you. This recipe/post is one of my most popular (I get a ton of hits on it) but I always wonder if anyone has tried making it and how it worked for them.
DeleteHave a great rest of your week and have a fabulous weekend.
Be Well,
--Amber