Seamus Hammond
Incense has been used in various cultures and settings, from religious ceremonies to aromatherapy. Making your own incense is a therapeutic, rewarding, and meditative process that allows you to create aromatic spaces and exercise your creativity. It is a simple and inexpensive process that involves choosing your ingredients, creating a recipe, and forming the incense into the desired shape. You can use natural resins, woods, and herbs, and essential oils to craft unique fragrances that enhance your environment and elevate your rituals. Whether you opt for combustible or non-combustible incense, the process of making your own allows you to customise your sensory experience.
How to Make Your Own Incense
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | Easy |
| Therapeutic | Yes |
| Rewarding | Yes |
| Creative | Yes |
| Meditative | Yes |
| Inexpensive | Yes |
| Aromatic | Yes |
| Interconnected with nature | Yes |
| Religious | Yes |
| Used in rituals | Yes |
| Used in aromatherapy | Yes |
| Used in medicine | Yes |
| Materials | Natural incense resins, woods, herbs, essential oils, decoctions, hydrosols, extracts, gum arabic, tragacanth, charcoal, makko, mica, gum binders, water |
| Tools | Heat-resistant bowl, parchment or wax paper, salt or sand, piping bags, coffee grinder, mortar and pestle |
| Drying time | Minimum of 12 hours |
| Burn time | Approximately 1 hour |
| Safety | Keep away from children and pets. Do not consume. Use a heat-resistant surface. Ensure it is extinguished and cool before discarding. Consult a physician if you are pregnant, nursing, asthmatic, or have respiratory issues. |
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What You'll Learn
Choosing your ingredients and tools
Ingredients:
- Natural resins, woods, and herbs: These are the traditional base ingredients for incense and can be used to create a variety of fragrances. Examples include sandalwood, cedar, pine, juniper, and alder. These ingredients can be purchased in powdered form or ground yourself using a mortar and pestle or hand-cranked coffee grinder.
- Essential oils and other liquid scents: Essential oils are highly concentrated plant extracts that can be added to enhance the fragrance of your incense. Other liquid scents such as decoctions, hydrosols, and extracts can also be used. However, keep in mind that essential oils and other liquid ingredients must be supplemented with a water-based liquid to activate the binder.
- Binders and combustibles: Binders are necessary to hold your incense mixture together. Common choices include gum arabic, tragacanth, guar gum, xanthan gum, and wood binders like joss powder or "tabu no ki" (also known as makko). Combustible materials, such as charcoal or makko, will help your incense burn. Makko is made from the bark of the Thunbergi or tabu-no-ki tree and is a natural combustible that is also water-soluble.
- Other additives: Depending on your desired fragrance and texture, you may want to experiment with other additives such as dried fruits, honey, resins, balsams, or raisins.
Tools:
- Mixing tools: You will need a container to mix your ingredients in, such as a bowl or a shallow dish. A spoon or spatula can help with mixing, and a mortar and pestle or hand-cranked coffee grinder can be used to grind and pulverize ingredients into a fine powder.
- Molds: If you want to shape your incense into cones or sticks, you will need molds. You can purchase cone molds or use kitchen piping bags, which have detachable metal tips that make perfect cone molds.
- Drying surface: Once your incense is mixed and shaped, you will need a surface to dry them on. Parchment or wax paper is recommended to prevent sticking.
- Burner: Finally, you will need an incense burner or bowl that is heat-resistant to burn your incense safely.
Remember, the key to choosing the right ingredients and tools is to understand the role each component plays in the incense-making process. Experiment with different ingredients and tools to find the combination that works best for your desired fragrance and incense type.
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Creating your recipe
Creating your own incense recipe is a fun and creative process. You can use natural incense resins, woods, and herbs to create unique aromatic blends. Here are some steps to guide you through the process of creating your own incense recipe:
Choose your ingredients:
Select the ingredients you want to use in your incense. This can include dried and powdered aromatics such as resins, woods, herbs, and spices. Common choices include sandalwood, cedar, pine, juniper, and hibiscus. You can also add liquid scents like essential oils, decoctions, or hydrosols for extra fragrance.
Determine your base:
Choose a base material that will act as a binder and help your incense burn evenly. Common choices include wood binders such as joss powder or "tabu no ki" (also known as makko). Alternatively, you can use gum binders like guar gum or xanthan gum, which are stronger but add no scent to the blend. Consider the scent of your base and how it will complement or interfere with your other ingredients.
Decide on measurements:
Determine how much of each ingredient you will use. You can create your own measurements, such as using “parts” to represent a consistent unit of measurement (e.g., 1-3 grams or 1 teaspoon). Play around with different ratios of fragrances until you find a combination that you like. It is recommended to start with 2-3 scents, using 1-2 tablespoons of each.
Prepare your ingredients:
Grind your ingredients into a very fine powder using a mortar and pestle or a hand-cranked coffee grinder. This step is crucial for creating incense cones or sticks that will burn properly. If you are using essential oils or other liquid scents, measure and add them to your powdered ingredients.
Mix and form your incense:
Once you have your powdered ingredients and liquid scents (if any) mixed together, slowly add water to create a dough-like consistency. You can form this dough into any shape you like, such as sticks or cones. If making cones, you can use a small conical mold or a piping bag with the metal tip detached. For sticks, you can hand-roll the dough into the desired shape.
Dry and store:
Place your freshly formed incense on parchment or wax paper and let it air dry for at least 12 hours, turning them over halfway through to ensure even drying. After they are dry, store them in a cool, dry place until you are ready to burn them.
Remember to keep notes on your measurements and the combinations you try so that you can recreate your favourite scents and make adjustments as needed. Incense making is a creative and therapeutic process, so enjoy experimenting with different ingredients and fragrances to find your perfect recipe.
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Mixing and shaping your incense
First, decide on your herb mixture and grind them into a powder. You can use a mortar and pestle to do this. You can use a combination of bitter and sweet herbs to add balance to your blend. Popular choices include cedar, lavender, sage, sweetgrass, sagebrush, mugwort, yarrow leaves, juniper berries, wormwood, white sage, rosemary, thyme, rose petals, fir needles, and cinnamon. You can also add a few drops of your favourite essential oil at this point, but be careful not to overpower the other scents in your blend.
Once you have your herb powder, add your resin. It's best to use pre-powdered resin, but if you're grinding your own, be sure to freeze it first so it becomes brittle. You should aim for a 50:50 ratio of herbs to resin.
Next, add your binder. Binders hold the incense powder together and give the incense its shape. Common binders include wood powder, plant gums, and Makko powder. The binder typically makes up 15% of the total mixture, while the incense powder makes up 85%. You can add a little water to activate the binder and form a dough-like consistency. The dough should be stiff, smooth, slightly flexible, and firm enough to hold its shape. If it's too sticky, add a little more incense powder or binder. If it's too dry, add a little more water, but be cautious not to add too much. Knead the mixture by hand for 3-5 minutes to ensure it's well-mixed and the binder is fully activated.
Now you can shape your incense. You can roll the mixture into pea-sized balls and roll them in powdered herbs to keep them from sticking. Or, you can shape them into cones by hand or using a mould. You can also roll the dough into cones, sticks, or coils by hand, or use an extruder for joss sticks. If you're making sticks, be sure to create a clean, smooth shape to promote even burning. The length of your incense sticks can vary depending on your preference and cultural tradition.
Place your shaped incense on a ceramic plate or parchment paper and let it dry. It's important to ensure your incense is completely dry before burning it to improve its burn time and overall quality. This can take several days to a couple of weeks, depending on the humidity.
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Drying your incense
For incense cones, place them on parchment or wax paper and let them air dry for at least 12 hours. It is important to turn them over halfway through the drying process to ensure even drying. This will allow the bottoms of the cones to dry as well.
If you are making incense sticks, the drying process can take up to 5 days. After coating the sticks with essential oils and dipropylene glycol (DPG), let them dry for the recommended time. The drying environment is crucial, especially if you live in a humid climate, as mould can form on your incense sticks. Place them in a well-ventilated area, such as near an open window or in front of a fan, to speed up the drying process.
For those creating incense pellets, a longer drying period of 2-3 weeks is recommended. Place the pellets in a ceramic jar with a lid to allow them to dry slowly and evenly. This extended drying time ensures that the pellets harden and retain their shape.
Additionally, when drying herbal incense, you can bundle dried herbs together with cotton twine. Wrap the twine tightly, as it will loosen as the herbs continue to dry and shrink. This method provides a convenient handle for lighting the incense.
Remember, the drying process is just as important as the mixing and forming stages of incense-making. It ensures that your incense burns properly and releases the desired fragrance. By following these drying instructions, you'll be well on your way to enjoying your homemade incense creations.
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Burning your incense
To burn incense sticks, light one end of the stick and then fan out the flame to allow it to burn slowly by itself. You can also blow out the flame after a few seconds, and the stick should continue to smoke. Alternatively, you can use an oil diffuser to enjoy the scent without lighting the incense. When burning incense cones, place them in a small, heat-resistant bowl filled with salt or sand, light the tip, and blow it out after a few seconds.
It is important to never burn incense on flammable surfaces such as wood or fabric. Falling ash from incense can be a fire hazard, so ensure it falls onto a fireproof surface. Make sure all incense is completely extinguished and cool to the touch before disposing of it. One way to extinguish incense is to place the burning end in a bowl of sand or water.
Burning incense may pose certain health risks, particularly for those with respiratory issues. Research has linked incense smoke to respiratory allergies, asthma, and chronic inflammation in the body. It is recommended that you consult a physician before burning incense if you are pregnant, nursing, asthmatic, or have respiratory issues or other medical conditions.
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Frequently asked questions
You can use dried and powdered aromatics, essential oils, decoctions, hydrosols, and other extracts. Common aromatics include resins, woods, and herbs. Common wood aromatics include sandalwood, cedar, and pine.
You will need a heat source, such as charcoal or a lighter. You will also need a bowl or cup to mix your ingredients and a surface to roll out your incense dough. If you are making incense sticks, you will need a set of unscented incense sticks. If you are making incense cones, you may want to use a small conical mold.
First, purchase a set of unscented incense sticks and your favourite essential oils. Mix 20 drops of oil per incense stick in a shallow dish and place up to 5 sticks in the dish. Turn and gently press the sticks in the oil until all of the oil is absorbed into the sticks. Place the sticks incense-end up in a mug or cup and let them dry for 12 to 15 hours before burning.
