Although we don't celebrate Valentine's Day by spending a lot of money on gifts, I do like the cutesy crafts for the holiday. Christmas is over, and the house seems so bare without having any decorations.
Valentine's Day is just fun with pink and purple and fun scents. I'm over the heavier fall and winter scents and ready to move to light and fun scents in the house.
I added some dried flowers just to make them pretty. This is optional, but I love how they turned out!
Valentine's Day Wax Air Freshener DIY With Essential Oils
Yes, I did just make potpourri with essential oils air fresheners last week. I'm giving those to some volunteers at a nonprofit I work with to say thanks. I'm keeping these wax air freshener DIYs for myself because I love them so much.
Before we get on to the recipe and how the ingredients work together, I do want to mention that these can be used for wax melts in a burner or used as an air freshener.
To use as an air freshener, you can use a pencil or straw to poke a hole in them just before they set up and attach string. I'm going to set them in a cute bowl and set one in a drawer, so I did not bother
with string.
Soy Wax
I prefer soy wax
to paraffin wax because it's renewable and supports the farmers. I live in the country. The field beside my house was soy last year. I'd rather support our farmers than use paraffin. I also want to use a natural product.Soy wax is a great alternative, but it is a soft wax. If you use only soy, these will be soft and prone to bending or breaking.
Beeswax
Beeswax is a firmer wax. When combined with the soy wax, it helps firm these wax air fresheners so they don't get dented or bent.
So why mix the two waxes? Why not just use beeswax?
Because beeswax doesn't hold a scent very well.
By using both beeswax and soy, you get the best of each one and a blend that works beautifully.
I used the Simply Earth white beeswax pellets that were leftover from my bonus box. Originally, I wanted these wax air fresheners to be pale so the dried flowers contracted and popped.
I didn't have enough white, so I added about 1/4 of the beeswax in Crafty Bubbles beeswax
. It's a yellow beeswax, so it darkened them a little bit.It's personal preference as to which one you use. I almost always use yellow; I just wanted these to be a little lighter.
Dried Flowers
You don't have to add dried flowers to the top, but I wanted to make them pretty. I always have to be a little extra.
I used dried rose petals
and cornflower
. Even though it's Valentine's Day and roses are the most popular flowers, I did not use a rose essential oil. Normally I'd match the scent with the flower, but I wanted the pink roses without the scent.I added cornflower just because I thought they were pretty with their deep blue hue.
You can use any dried flower or spice to top these. Just make sure that anything you add to the top is completely dried out and doesn't have any moisture that could grow mold or get bacteria.
I really like this rose petal confetti. It has a variety of shades from pink to purple, and it would be so pretty on top of these wax air fresheners.
If you want a certain type of dried flower, you can get one of several kinds in different sizes. They have small rose buds that would be very pretty atop the wax.
Mold
I picked up my heart shaped silicone mold at Aldi a few years ago. This heart shaped mold on Amazon is similar in size.
One batch will make 6 approximately one-fourth inch thick hearts in that size mold. You can scale this up or down easily for larger or smaller molds.
Essential Oils
Rose essential oil probably would have been the obvious choice, but rose is very expensive. Instead, I used a blend.
I used:
- 2 drops juniper berry
- 2 drops lime
- 1 drop clary sage
This is a light and fun scent that I like for an air freshener. The lime helps balance the juniper berry and make it lighter.
Check out this post for essential oil blends for Valentine's Day.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup beeswax
- 1/2 cup soy wax
- 2 teaspoons essential oils
- Dried rose petals
- Dried cornflowers
Supplies
- Heart mold
- Double boiler
Directions
Step #1
Place the beeswax and soy wax in a double boiler and heat until melted.
If you don't have a double boiler, set a Pyrex measuring cup on a canning jar ring inside a pan of water. Always keep the waxes off of direct heat.
Step #2
When the waxes are melted, carefully remove from heat. Use a hot pad because it will be hot.
Step #3
Add the essential oils and stir for one minute.
Step #4
Carefully pour the melted wax into the molds. I filled mine about 1/4 inch.
If you want to hang them, place a straw in the wax to create a hole. Hold it until the wax gets firm.
Step #5
Top with dried flowers as desired. Let cool completely.
Let them cool completely and then unmold. You can use them in a drawer or set them in a dish for a pretty scented decoration.
Yield: 6 hearts
Estimated cost: $10
Wax Air Freshener
prep time: 15 Mperform time: 1 hourtotal time: 1 H & 15 M
These cute air fresheners are easy to make with only three ingredients plus dried flowers.
materials:
- 1/2 cup beeswax
- 1/2 cup soy wax
- 2 teaspoons essential oils
- Dried rose petals
- Dried cornflowers
tools:
- Heart mold
- Double boiler
steps:
- Place the beeswax and soy wax in a double boiler and heat until melted. If you don't have a double boiler, set a Pyrex measuring cup on a canning jar ring inside a pan of water. Always keep the waxes off of direct heat.
- When the waxes are melted, carefully remove from heat. Use a hot pad because it will be hot.
- Add the essential oils and stir for one minute.
- Carefully pour the melted wax into the molds. I filled mine about 1/4 inch.
- If you want to hang them, place a straw in the wax to create a hole. Hold it until the wax gets firm.
- Top with dried flowers as desired. Let cool completely.
- Let them cool completely and then unmold. You can use them in a drawer or set them in a dish for a pretty scented decoration.
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