Do you love the classy look of reed diffusers but always cringe at the price point, especially those that come with more natural and organic oils? Well, the good news is that you can easily make your own DIY reed diffuser with essential oils at a fraction of the cost you would pay at an aromatherapy boutique.
The entire process (and I mean entire process – from the retrieving of items, to placing onto the table, to the making of the reed diffuser) only takes less than 30 minutes! Bad news is that it does require JUST A LITTLE BIT of effort on your end. Honestly, the bad news is really not that bad. To get started with making your own reed diffuser, all you need to do is to go ahead and get what you need, and then start making it!
There are 5 critical items that are required to make a quality DIY reed diffuser and then there are 4 additional optional items that you can do without.
In this article, I will share with you the 9 items (4 optional) that you need to make your own DIY reed diffuser with essential oils, as well as the steps required, so that your DIY reed diffuser will be a total success.
9 items you need to make your own DIY Reed Diffuser (4 are optional!)
1. Reed Diffuser Container
The first item you need is a reed diffuser container. How else are you going to contain the oil and the reed sticks?
You should not simply use any random bottle for your reed diffuser container though. The bottle needs to be made of a material that does not react easily with essential oils, such as ceramic, glass or stainless steel. Do not use a bottle made of plastic as essential oils can react with plastic. Also, as essential oils are sensitive to light, it is best to use a dark tinted bottle so that you can maximize the shelf-life and freshness of the oils inside the container.
2. Carrier Oil
The second key item that you need for your reed diffuser is a carrier oil. This is the oil that will ‘carry’ your essential oils. Since the purpose of the reed diffuser is to enjoy the benefits of the essential oils, it is best if the carrier oil does not have too much scent (the best if it is scentless), is inexpensive, and also has a long shelf life. A carrier oil with a long shelf life will help ensure that the oils will not go rancid so quickly – this is especially useful if you are making your oils in bulk.
Here is a table with recommended carrier oils for your reed diffuser. Based on the table below, fractionated coconut oil is the best carrier oil for reed diffuser. However if you are not able to find fractionated coconut oil in your area, you can consider using the other carrier oils below.
| Carrier Oil | Shelf-life | Scent |
|---|---|---|
| Fractionated Coconut Oil | Indefinite (However, may become rancid after 1-2 years) | Described as ‘scentless’ |
| Sweet almond oil | 6 months to 1 year | Low scent, nothing remarkable. |
| Safflower oil | 1 year | Vaguely oily, nothing remarkable. |
| Grapeseed oil | 3 months to 1 year | Pretty much none |
| Apricot kernel oil | 1 year | Almost none |
Table: Recommended carrier oils for your reed diffuser
3. Essential Oils
The third key item and also the star of a reed diffuser is the essential oil(s) . You can either stick with 1 type of essential oils (popular essential oils are lemongrass or lavender for their calming effects. Citronella or Peppermint oils are also frequently used to freshen up the air and repel mosquitoes. If you are feeling more creative, you can create your very own concoction of essential oils. There are plenty of concoction ideas that you can find on Pinterest!
4. Reed Sticks
The fourth key item you need for your reed diffuser are of course, reed sticks! Reed Sticks help to disperse the scent from the essential oils out to its surroundings. For the best results, use reed sticks that are made from rattan.
Rattan sticks have a clear channel that enables easy and simple wicking that releases long-lasting scents. Choosing rattan ensures that you get the absolute maximum benefit from the essential oils.
You may be tempted to use a sustainable option like bamboo for your reed sticks. However, bamboo sticks have something called nodes, which prevent the essential oil from going up the stick, and hence inhibits the wicking process.
5. Weighing scale
The 5th and also last critical item you need for your reed diffuser is a weighing scale. Essential oils can be rather potent and hence, it is important to put in the RIGHT amount of essential oils into your reed diffuser. A good rule of thumb is for the essential oils to be around 30% of the entire solution. This means that if your reed diffuser is 100g in net weight (Nett weight refers to the amount of liquid that the bottle can carry), you should have 30g of essential oil and 70g of carrier oil.
Using a weighing scale can also help you get the same winning formula every single time you make your reed diffuser. You can easily scale up the amount of oil you use and make the reed diffuser oil in bulk.
6. Fancier Reed Sticks (Optional)
Nowadays, you will be able to find cute reed sticks that are in the shape of various types of flowers, or some abstract shapes. Place 1-2 pieces of these fancier reed sticks into your reed diffuser to make your reed diffuser look even more chic and stylish.
7. Vitamin E (Optional)
If you want to optimize the shelf life of the oils in your reed diffuser as much as possible, you need to take the necessary measures to prevent your oils from going rancid. As covered earlier in this article, the right bottle type and also the right carrier oil can help maintain the freshness of your reed diffuser.
An additional great ingredient you can use to further prevent your oils from getting rancid, is Vitamin E. I highly recommend that you also include Vitamin E into your formula, because it is an oil-soluble (this means that it can dissolve in oils) antioxidant that can help to delay the onset of rancidity. This means that the oils in your reed diffuser will last as long as they should. Also, the percentage of vitamin E that you need in your formula is only 0.5%. This means that if you use 30% essential oils, you need 69.5% carrier oil and 0.5% vitamin E. Using so little Vitamin E for each reed diffuser means that you will have more than enough Vitamin E for quite a while.
On a side note, you may think that your reed diffuser is only 100g and the oils will be used up in no time, hence there is no need to include vitamin E. I agree with you if you only intend to make 100g.
However, if you want to easily refill your reed diffuser once all the oil has been diffused, you need to make your oils in bulk. If you intend to make your oils in bulk, I highly recommend including vitamin E into your formula.
That being said, Vitamin E is not mandatory to have as it will not hinder the performance of the reed diffuser – your reed diffuser will still perform the same even without Vitamin E, especially if you only intend to make one reed diffuser at a time.
8. Disposable Rubber Gloves (Optional)
If you are making the reed diffusers to sell or to give to others, it is necessary to wear disposable rubber gloves. Wearing disposable rubber gloves helps to minimize any skin contact with the oils, and therefore, is more hygienic as compared to using your bare hands.
That being said, it is not required to wear disposable rubber gloves if you are making your reed diffuser for yourself. I personally do not wear disposable rubber gloves when making my own reed diffuser(s). However, If you want your reed diffuser to be as clean as possible and not get contaminated, do take the necessary precautions and use gloves when you are making your reed diffuser.
9. Sticker Papers for Label (Optional)
Easily identify what is inside your reed diffuser by putting labels on the bottle. This is especially useful if you have more than 1 reed diffuser in your home, and each reed diffuser has a different scent. An easy and budget friendly way to do this is to use sticker papers. I recommend that you use the type of sticker paper that is waterproof. Do also take note to ensure that the sticker paper is compatible with your printer (either laser or inkjet).
To play safe, you can get the sort of waterproof sticker paper that is compatible with both laser and inkjet sticker paper. If you do not want to go through so much hassle to use software like Photoshop or Canva to make your label, you can create a handwritten label instead.
Recommended text to place on your label:
- Name of scent
- Creation date of formula
Create your own DIY Reed Diffuser in just 7 Steps
Ingredients you needs
- Essential oil(s) of your choice: 30%
(bring this percentage down to 20% if your essential oil is too potent [eg peppermint can be quite potent])
- Carrier oil: 69.5%
(use 70% if you are not including Vitamin E. If you are using less essential oil, make sure that you use more carrier oil so the total formula adds up to 100%)
- Vitamin E: 0.5%
Tools/Items you need
-
1x reed diffuser container
-
5-7 rattan reed sticks
-
1x large bottle to contain the oils (if you are making in bulk)
-
1x Dropper
Now that you have all the items you need, here are the steps you need to take to create your very own reed diffuser.
Making for: 1x reed diffuser container
Step 1: Use an excel sheet and take note of the amount of each ingredient you need to use for the formulation.
Step 2: Pour the essential oil(s) into the container.
Step 3: Pour the carrier oil into the bottle. You can use a dropper if the opening of your reed diffuser bottle is too small.
Step 4: Drop the vitamin E into the container
Step 5: Gently swirl the container to let the oils mix with each other
Step 6: Place in the reed sticks
Step 7: Find a spot to place the reed diffuser at (make sure that the reed diffuser will not be easily toppled over!)
Making for: More than 1x reed diffuser container/Making in bulk
Step 1: Use an excel sheet and take note of the amount of each ingredient you need to use for the bulk formulation.
Step 2: Pour the essential oil(s) into the bottle that you will be storing the bulk formulation in.
Step 3: Pour the carrier oil into the same bottle as Step 1.
Step 4: Drop the vitamin E into the same bottle as Step 1 and 2.
Step 5: Gently swirl the bottle to let the oils mix with each other
Step 6: Pour the formulation into the reed diffuser container of your choice
Step 7: Place in the reed sticks
Step 8: Find a spot to place the reed diffuser at (make sure that the reed diffuser will not be easily toppled over!)
I hope that this article is useful in helping you with your DIY Reed Diffuser!
A home should be a personal sanctuary, a place of positiveness, and a place where we can retreat back to after a long day of work. A reed diffuser is just one of the items needed for a sanctuary experience at home. Here are 10 other tips to help you have a relaxing and zen home that is truly yours, so you do not need a staycation, ever again.