Perfume Glass Bottles

How to Mix Essential Oils for Perfume

Making your own perfume is a fun and easy way to design new fragrances and make customized, one-of-a-kind gifts. Whether you mix and match essential oils in a vast array of new perfumes or whether you stick to one or two tried and true aromas, you will love the money you save and the novelty of having a fragrance that is truly your very own signature blend.

If you have ever bought a bottle of perfume, then opened it and thought, "What were they thinking when they made this horrible stench, dyed it pink and put it in this pretty bottle?" then mixing essential oils to make perfume probably sounds like a great idea to you. This fun, exciting way to make your own signature scent is not only cost effective, but it also gives you total control over how your new perfume smells. This project is one that you will want to repeat over and over, and even try with friends. However, the first few concoctions that you try may not be as aromatic as you planned, so be patient with yourself and allow yourself to make mistakes. Remember, what smells like a rose to one person may smell like manure to someone else, so do not mix anything too strong until you have a scent that you are confident will make everyone around you happy to be in your delicious smelling presence.

There is no limit to the possibilities when you are mixing essential oils for perfume.

To start out, you will need a number of things. Most of them are probably already in your kitchen or craft cabinets. You will need measuring spoons, an eye dropper, an a funnel. You will also need several dark glass bottles with stoppers. You can get these bottles at a cooking store or at a craft or hobby store. Once you find a fragrance you really like, you may wish to purchase some beautiful old perfume bottles from a thrift shop or antique store and bottle your perfumes in them. While you are in the testing stages, however, you should stick to the dark glass bottles because it can be very hard to get the smell out of a perfume bottle once you have stored a fragrance inside it. To create your fragrances, you will also need essential oils. Use jojoba oil or almond oil as your base. Then supplement these sweet, mild scents with stronger scents like citrus, frankincense, sandalwood, rosemary, jasmine, rose, or bergamot. All of these essential oils can be purchased at natural foods stores or craft and hobby stores. You can also purchase them in bulk online if you want to buy at a discount. Finally, you will need a bottle of vodka. Remember, you are going to wear the perfume, not drink it, so it can be inexpensive vodka. You will not be able to smell the liquor at all once you have mixed in the essential oils, so do not worry about driving and wearing your perfume at the same time.

Once you have all your ingredients, start out by mixing your base. You can do this in a small bowl if you plan on making multiple fragrances, or you can mix the base directly in one of the small glass bottles. If you are going to mix the perfume directly in the bottle, then you will need 1 teaspoon of jojoba or almond oil and one teaspoon of vodka to start. Once you have both of these in the bottle, cover the top and shake it well. Then smell it to see if you like the scent. If you do, then you can stop where you are or add a little more of the basic oil scent to the mix. You might wish to only use the vodka and the base scent at first. However, if you want to add and mix additional scents, then fill the bottle the rest of the way to the halfway mark with the almond or jojoba oil. Some people like to mix these two base scents as well. Once you are halfway, then start adding other essential oils that have a stronger aroma. Each time you add a new essential oil, cover the top of the bottle and shake it thoroughly. Then, smell your new perfume to see what you have created. Once you have a scent you like, go ahead and stop even if the bottle is not full. You can remix the ingredients in another bottle and add more ingredients if you want, but that way you will know you have a scent that you like. You may also wish to keep notes on what you are putting in each bottle so that you will be able to replicate your recipe later.

You can put your perfume in a prettier bottle once it is done, or decorate the dark glass bottle with paint pens.

Once you have completed your mixes, you will need to stopper the bottles and store them in a cool, dark place for at least ten days. Shake them thoroughly at least three times each day. At the end of this period, your perfume will be complete. Do not be surprised if the way your perfume smells changes slightly over the ten days. This is not unusual, and you may need to compensate for this in your next batch. For example, if the perfume smells sweeter than you want, then you might need to add less of a sweet smell and a little more of a stronger spicier smell next time.

As you mix your perfumes, think about what smells will be compatible together. You might try several popular mixtures and then alter them to suit your taste. For example, many experts in aromatherapy believe that a combination of sandalwood, bergamot, jasmine and rosemary will inspire happiness, while frankincense, grapefruit and rosemary will help fuel inspiration. Add just one drop of each of these scents at first, then adjust to make the scent exactly what you want. Be careful when working with peppermint essential oil because it can be overwhelming, but it is also very invigorating and can be a great aromatherapeutic treatment when worn in moderation.

As you mix more and more perfumes, you will develop a sense for what smells good and what does not work together. You may enjoy developing your new fragrances, or you might like using proven recipes. Before you wear your perfumes, make sure to test them on the inside of your elbow or your wrist to make sure that you do not react badly to the combination of essential oils in your perfume. Once you have mixed your perfume that you like, enjoy wearing it out and make it your custom fragrance.