Sophie's three "F's" for DIY homemade traditional potpourri:
Fixatives: Items you can find in your own backyard, like, bark, seedpods and pinecones.
Fillers: Materials that absorb scent and increase the staying power of the aroma. Try dehydrated lemons, oranges, eucalyptus, roses, cornflowers, lavender and calendula! These dried materials can be purchased in bulk from www.mountainroseherbs.com.
Fragrance: Add some drops of essential/fragrant oils to your mixture to enhance the perfume. try lavender oil, neroli oil, sandalwood oil, ylang ylang oils.
Particular oil blends recommended by Sophie:
For a Woody Essence: 20 drops vetiver, 15 drops sandalwood, 15 drops cypress.
For a Citrus Essence: 30 drops of sweet orange, 15 drops lemon, 15 drops grapefruit.
For a Floral Essence: 20 drops ylang ylang, 15 drops Neroli, 15 drops Geranium.
*If you just want to add one oil, choose either Geranium or Lavender. Recipe for "Simmering" Potpourri
In boiling water, drop in the following ingredients:
• 1 cut up orange • Handful of clove • Handful of cinnamon sticks • Vanilla pod • Nutmeg nuts Directions for DIY Cinnamon Stick Wreath
Ingredients:
• 2 different sized bowls
• Cardboard • A box cutter • Cinnamon sticks • A glue gun • Decorative ribbon
Instructions:
STEP 1: Take your larger bowl and trace its shape, then, using the smaller bowl, trace its shape within the larger bowl's outline. Your final drawing should look like a small circle perfectly centered in the middle of a larger circle.
STEP 2: Using a box cutter, cut along the traced lines. Now you have the wreath's shape!
STEP 3: Using your glue gun, simply place the cinnamon sticks along the cardboard wreath cut out.
STEP 4: Finish it off with a ribbon of your choice and hang!
For more from eco health and beauty expert Sophie Uliano go to:
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