Reed Scent Diffuser

Elegant Home Decor

Make Your Own Reed Scent Diffusers

How to make decorative reed scent diffusers to beautify and perfume any space.

You can buy reed scent diffusers for $15 and up or make your own for mere pennies.

These make terrific gifts, especially if you add decorative touches to suggest a theme.

The one above has a beach theme. Tiny seashells line the bottom of the bottle and a larger shell hangs from a chain around the bottleneck.

I made the one below for a friend who is battling cancer.

The Chinese luck coin dangling from a leather cord symbolizes health. Smooth pebbles line the bottom of the bottle.

Use your imagination to decorate your scent diffuser. The basic steps for making the diffuser follow.

Scent Diffuser Materials

• Small glass or plastic bottle with a narrow neck (6 to 8 oz. is a good size)
• 10-12 reeds about twice the height of the bottle
• Decorative cap (optional) - I had a friend with a lathe make a bunch for me. See the close-up below. The cap must have a hole through the center and fit over the bottleneck.
• Denatured alcohol
• Glycerine
• Fragrance oil
• Food coloring
• Decorative items

Assembling the Scent Diffuser

1. Clean and dry the bottle thoroughly.

2. Create any decorative "neckpiece" or talisman to hang around the bottleneck.

3. Fill with half denatured alcohol and half glycerine. The glycerine is a carrier for the scent. The alcohol allows evaporation of the scent into the air.

4. Shake well.

5. Add a few drops of fragrance oil and shake again. Repeat until you are happy with the strength of the scent.

6. Add a few drops of food coloring to match your theme and shake well.

7. Drop decorative items like pebbles or small shells into the bottle until the bottom is covered.

8. Cap the bottle until ready to use.

9. Place the decorative cap over the screw cap.

If the diffuser is a gift, tie the reeds together into a bundle and be sure the bottle is tightly capped.

Here is the finished bottle ready for gifting.

It's also nice to include a little card with directions.

How to Enjoy Your Reed Scent Diffuser

1. Remove the decorative cap and the screw cap.

2. Replace the decorative cap.

3. Un-bundle the reeds and put them into the bottle, fanning them out as you would a bouquet.

4. It will take some time for the scent to wick up into the air. You can speed this up by removing the scent-moistened reeds and turning them over to insert the dry ends into the bottle.

You can flip the reeds like this any time you want to intensify the scent.