61. Solid Perfume

This is an inexpensive and easy way to create a personalized scent for a nifty gift.

The only ingredient that can get expensive is the essential oils, especially if you make a complex scent blend requiring an initial investment of many different essentials. Of course, there's nothing wrong with picking a single pleasant scent. One bottle of an essential oil will make lots and lots of perfume; you use only drops at a time!

MATERIALS:

1 tablespoon Beeswax (available at craft shop)
1 tablespoon Almond Oil (or Jojoba Oil or Vitamin E - available at natural foods/health store)
8 - 15 drops Essential Oils (available at natural foods/health store)
a pan
a small glass bowl or jar (to use in conjunction with the pan as a double boiler)
a straw (used for stirring wax when melted)
1 container (preferably glass, ceramic or stone but plastic is acceptable)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Put about an inch of water in a small saucepan, then put a small glass jar or pyrex bowl in the water. Measure out the wax and almond oil into the jar/bowl and bring the water around it to a boil.
   
   The wax will melt gradually; when it is 100% liquid, remove from heat and stir in the other ingredients with a straw (the wax will start to form solid on whatever you do your stirring with — a straw has little surface area so you lose less of the end product, and it's disposable so you don't have to clean it off). When everything is thoroughly mixed together, pour the liquid wax immediately into your final container. In about 30 minutes, it will be cooled, solid and ready to use.
2. To use the perfume, simply rub a finger around on the surface of the waxy perfume, then rub that finger on the area you want to smell good — the inside of your wrists and behind the ears works well.

Some tips for devising the ultimate scent recipe:

• combine drops of various essentials, totalling 8 -15 drops in all
• pick a primary scent and use more of that one, then one or two "background" scents, using less of each
• check out various aromatherapy sites for info on the psychological properties of various scents

Some nice essentials for background scents are:

• clary sage (a slightly smoky herbal scent that's supposed to help creativity and concentration)
• orange or ginger provide a warming sensation (good for people who are always cold)
• ylang-ylang is a floral that isn't too sweet or girly for guys, but it's a happy smell and subtle enough for a backdrop
• cedar (repels insects)

Scent Recipes (and purported aromatherapy effects):

1. For Men:
   6 drops essential oil of pine (confidence)
   4 drops essential oil of ylang-ylang (mood-elevating, energizing)
   3 drops essential oil of clary sage (concentration and creativity)
2. For Women:
   5 drops essential oil of ginger (sweet and warming)
   4 drops essential oil of orange (warming, mood-elevating)
   2 drops essential oil of ylang-ylang (mood-elevating, energizing)
   2 drops of clary sage (concentration and creativity)

Source: Instructables.com

If you dig this, you may also dig Jan Berry's book:

101 Easy Homemade Products for Your Skin Health & Home A Nerdy Farm Wifes All Natural DIY Projects Using Commonly Found Herbs Flowers & Other Pl
by Jan BerryTrade Paperback