In addition to adding an absolutely perfect soft, gentle fragrance to every room of your home, reed diffusers are also very pretty on a counter, table or shelf. Just like everyone else, I used to love having scented candles, room sprays, powders and plug-in things to keep my home smelling nice. However, now that most of us know that most of those products contain chemicals we don't really want our children breathing, I joined the millions before me and got rid of them. It sure is a lot cheaper without all those products, but truthfully, I felt my house smelled kinda 'blah'.
I tried honey candles with essential oils, but they just weren't strong enough. Also, with little ones and pets around, it was time to do away with scented candles anyway. So I tried essential oils on potpourri - but that ended up all over the house as a perfect ingredient in pretend cooking preparations by my kids. Then I went with reed stick diffusers. Ahhh, finally, the perfect solution for a great-smelling home.
A container with a base larger than the top is best for homes with pets and little ones to reduce the risk of spilling. Add a cork to the top and drill holes for teh reeds if you place your reed diffuser in a high-traffic area such as a hallway or bathroom to keep the oil from spilling out all over the place if the container does get knocked over.
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Creating the fragrance for a reed stick diffuser is easy and only takes a few minutes for months worth of fragrance. You'll need 1/2 cup of vegetable oil - I like sunflower best, but any other thin oil will work fine. Choose an essential oil and add about 15 - 20 drops of the essential oil to the vegetable oil. Adding an alochol greatly increases the amount of fragrance wicked up into the reeds. Add about a tablespoon of vodka or isopropyl alcohol to the vegetable oil and essential oil mixture. Stir well, or even shake if the container you chose has a lid.
Pop the reeds into the mixture. If you use a cork to prevent spillage, make sure the reeds are not tight in the holes, it will make the reeds more like a cork and the mixture won't wick up properly. Once a week or so, turn the reeds to extend their life. After about a month, the reeds will be blocked up too much to wick the mixture so you'll need to replace the reeds with new ones.
A nice thing about reed diffusers is that you can choose different aromas or create your own blends, for a unique fragrance in every room. I like lemongrass, lemon and orange in the bathroom; lavender and eucalyptus in the bedrooms and lavender with geranium and lemongrass in the family room. The most important thing is to use your imagination, adding your own personal touch to your home is a wonderful thing :o)
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