Creating Fragrance Sprays: A Beginner's Guide To Aromatics

Creating your own fragrance spray is a simple process that allows you to make your home smell wonderful. The basic ingredients are water, fragrance or essential oil, and an emulsifier to bind the oil and water together. Common emulsifiers include alcohol, witch hazel, and salt. You can also add preservatives like Liquid Germall Plus to extend the shelf life of your fragrance spray. The process is straightforward: simply combine the ingredients in a mixing jug, pour the mixture into a spray bottle, and shake before use. With a few tweaks to the recipe, you can create a unique scent that suits your preferences.

Choosing a scent: Essential oils like lavender or lemon can be energising or relaxing

When choosing a scent for your fragrance spray, it's important to consider the effect you want to achieve. Essential oils like lavender or lemon can be energising or relaxing, depending on the blend.

Lavender is a classic choice for its fresh and soothing properties, often used in bedtime products to promote relaxation. It blends well with other floral scents like jasmine and ylang-ylang, as well as citrus oils like bergamot and vanilla.

Lemon, on the other hand, is a citrus scent known for its uplifting and energising qualities. It can relieve stress and anxiety while aiding digestion. In a fragrance spray, lemon blends well with other citrus oils like bergamot, orange, and grapefruit, as well as herbal scents like rosemary.

If you're looking for a scent to promote relaxation, you might also consider chamomile, which has a calming effect. For an energising blend, spearmint is a great option, offering a cooling and invigorating aroma.

When creating your fragrance spray, it's important to experiment and find the blend that works best for you. You can also adjust the intensity of the scent by changing the number of drops of each essential oil used.

Using an emulsifier: An emulsifier like alcohol or salt is needed to bind the oil and water

To make a fragrance spray, you'll need to use an emulsifier to bind the oil and water. Emulsifiers are a type of surfactant that help to blend and emulsify oils and water. They are particularly useful for oils and other lipophilic ingredients with larger, heavier molecules.

There are a few different emulsifiers that you can use. One option is to use alcohol, such as denatured alcohol (SD alcohol), ethanol, or ethyl alcohol. Alcohol is a preferred choice because of its composition of polar molecules, which have both positive and negative aspects. It is less polar than water, so it evaporates more quickly and boils at a lower temperature. When you blend essential oils with alcohol and water, they become one homogeneous substance that cannot be separated.

Another option for an emulsifier is salt. Salt will dissolve in water but not in oil. This is because salt is a polar compound, and can only dissolve into other polar compounds.

You can also use a solubiliser, which is similar to an emulsifier but is more soluble in water and forms clear or translucent solutions. Solubilisers are used to incorporate small amounts of light lipophilic ingredients. However, they cannot be used to solubilise triglycerides (plant oils) in water.

When creating your fragrance spray, it's important to use the correct ratio of emulsifier to oil. If you use too much emulsifier, you may have a cloudy solution. If you don't use enough, you may have a layer of oil floating on top. For example, when blending essential oils with polysorbate 20, a natural emulsifier derived from coconut oil, you'll need to blend them for at least 24 hours. Heavier oils like lavender absolute will require more emulsifier.

Proportions: Typically, 20 drops of essential oil are added to 2 cups of water

When making a fragrance spray, the amount of essential oil you add to your mixture is crucial to achieving the desired scent strength. Adding too much essential oil can result in an overpowering scent, while adding too little may not provide the desired intensity.

The standard proportion of essential oil to water for fragrance sprays is typically 20 drops of essential oil to 2 cups of water (or 470 ml). This ratio ensures that the scent is well-distributed and not too concentrated. However, it's important to note that this ratio may vary depending on the desired strength of the fragrance spray and the size of the spray bottle being used. For instance, if you prefer a stronger scent, you can increase the number of drops or use a higher concentration of essential oil. Conversely, if you want a more subtle fragrance, you can reduce the number of drops or dilute the essential oil with a carrier oil.

The type of essential oil used will also impact the potency and fragrance of the spray. Some essential oils have stronger scents than others, so it's important to consider the desired fragrance note when choosing your essential oil. For example, citrus and herbal essential oils tend to have lighter, more uplifting scents, while floral and spice essential oils often have deeper, more complex aromas.

Additionally, the quality of the essential oil can affect the fragrance spray's overall quality. Therapeutic-grade essential oils, which are typically more concentrated and less diluted, will produce a more intense and long-lasting fragrance. On the other hand, fragrance oils, which are diluted essential oils, provide a milder scent and may not offer the same therapeutic benefits.

When creating your fragrance spray, it's always a good idea to start with a smaller amount of essential oil and gradually increase it until you achieve the desired scent strength. This will help you avoid adding too much and ensure that your fragrance spray is well-balanced.

Mixing: Combine fragrance and emulsifier first, then add water and mix

When creating a fragrance spray, the mixing process is crucial to ensure a well-blended and stable product. Here's a step-by-step guide to the mixing process:

Combine Fragrance and Emulsifier

Firstly, you'll need to select an appropriate emulsifier. Emulsifiers are substances that help mix oil and water-based components, which naturally don't blend well. Some common emulsifiers include alcohol (such as vodka), witch hazel, sea salt, or polysorbate 20. It's important to choose a non-toxic emulsifier, especially if your fragrance spray will be applied to the skin.

Once you've chosen your emulsifier, add it to your chosen fragrance oil. The general recommendation is to use a 1:1 ratio of fragrance oil to emulsifier, but this may vary depending on the specific oil you're using, so it's always good to check and adjust as needed. Combine these two ingredients and give them a good shake or stir.

Add Water

After mixing the fragrance oil and emulsifier, it's time to introduce the water component. For fragrance sprays, it's best to use distilled water, as it won't leave any residue on surfaces. Add the water to your mixture, and again, give it a good shake or stir.

Understanding Emulsification

The science behind emulsification is quite fascinating. Emulsifiers consist of a hydrophilic (water-loving) head and a hydrophobic (water-hating/oil-loving) tail. When you add essential oils to the emulsifier, the hydrophilic head moves towards the water, while the hydrophobic tail moves towards the oil. This positioning of the emulsifier helps to stabilize the mixture, reducing surface tension and preventing the oil and water from separating.

Benefits of Emulsification

Emulsification is particularly important when creating fragrance sprays or any water-based products. Without it, you may end up with a layer of oil floating on top of the water, and your spray won't be effectively blended. Emulsification ensures a uniform dispersion of the oil in the water, creating a stable and well-combined final product.

Bottling: Pour into a spray bottle, leaving space to shake before use

When bottling your fragrance spray, use a spray bottle with a fine mist setting. Pour your fragrance into the bottle, leaving some space at the top so that you can shake the bottle before each use.

If you are using a 100ml bottle, add 20-30 (10-15ml) drops of your chosen fragrance oil or essential oil. For a 2oz/60ml bottle, add 15-20 drops.

If you are using a solubilizer such as Polysorbate 80 or isopropyl alcohol, be sure to mix this with your fragrance first. This is an important step to avoid lumps in your fragrance. Then, add the measured water and mix.

Your fragrance spray is now ready to use. Shake the bottle and spray lightly in the room.

Frequently asked questions