I gave you a peek into Lupine's perfume making kit yesterday but thought I'd share a bit more with you about it today. Because she was wild for this gift and has hardly stopped blending oils since she opened the box.

Honestly, the whole thing was a bit of an after-though when I didn't cast off her cowl in time. I put it together in an evening, including painting and decoupaging the box.

And because it was a cinch to put together and such a runaway hit for Lupine, I thought it might make a wonderful gift for your teen or preteen who is interested in essential oils, perfumes, or scent blending!

(Yes, I have access to a mind boggling array of essential oils at LüSa Organics (and even relabeled a few I had kicking around at home leftover from Lupine's play dough business days). You don't. But this kit could be simplified and made with affordable and safe oils for your budding perfumer to play with, even using some you already have on hand. And by diluting the essential oils with a base oil in the dropper bottles you could control the intensity of the oils as well.)

And I think useful, thoughtful, fun gift ideas for teens or pre-teens are always welcome. Don't you? 

DIY Perfume Kit

Essential Oils

Less is more. I went a little overboard because we're LüSa (how could I not?) but I suggest providing just four to six varied oils to allow for a good deal of exploration. 

Below are some essential oils that are kid-pleasing and affordable. (If you choose an oil that is not on this list, please research it for safety before offering to your child.)

• Sweet Orange
• Lavender
• Peppermint
• Tangerine
• Lemon
• Lime
• Pine
• Lemongrass

* BUDGET TIP: To be extra kind to your budget, fill empty glass dropper bottles almost full with jojoba or another neutral oil. Then top off with a few drops of the essential oils you already have at home. (Olive oil would work as well, but unlike jojoba oil will go rancid with time.)

Empty glass roll-on bottles

Six to twelve perfume bottles should be plenty to get you started.

Base Oil

Since essential oils should never be used undiluted on the skin, (see below for proper dilution information) include a base oil for blending with. I love jojoba oil. It can never become rancid and therefore is a wonderful choice for scent blends.

* BUDGET TIP: To be more mindful of your budget, use any mildly scented, liquid oil you have at home (sunflower, olive, etc.).

Storage box or bin

Find a sturdy, non-cardboard box or bin to store your supplies.

* BUDGET TIP: Scrounge your basement or hit the thrift store before you buy new! Twelve hours before Lupine's birthday this had "WISCONSIN cheese" emblazoned across the top. Two coats of paint and a little mod podge and it was a custom EO kit.

Optional but nice to have:

Safety Goggles

Mixing pitcher

A small, thrift-store measuring cup works perfectly. (And keeps your kitchen tools from becoming fragrant!)

Work tray

Lupine is using the lid from a broken gallon-sized mason jar. Find something that will catch drips to simplify clean-up.

Paper towels or a few clean, absorbent rags

A small funnel or some plastic pipettes

For filling perfume bottles or blending scents.

Homemade "scent strips"

Basically a small zip bag full of narrow strips of cardstock or heavy paper. To use, your child will add one drop of a single scent to a strip for any oils he or she is working with. Then they can hold several together to see how the scents combine. A great tool for learning about blending oils!

Blank Labels or Washi Tape

for labeling new scent blends and the dropper bottles of essential oils.

Small Notebook and pencil

Give your child a place to jot down recipes and keep track of blends they love and blends they don't!

Fine Glitter

Because. Well, glitter. The fun-factor of the gift goes up tenfold with this simple addition.

Beeswax pastilles or coconut oil and small metal tins

For making solid scents.

Essential oils book

What a wonderful way to learn the basics of not only scent blending but also essential oil safety and use! I love this book (but I'm not sure how appealing it would be to a pre-teen), but this might also be promising.

 

Please remember: essential oils are powerful medicine! This gift is appropriate for a younger child only with focused adult supervision or by an older child. (While my Lu is only 9, she has been learning about EOs and helping me scent blend since she was small. In general I suggest this gift for a slightly older child, say ages 12 and up.)

For proper EO dilution aim for 10 to 20 drops of essential oils per ounce of carrier oil in the final perfume.

 

P.S. If a kit of the basics supplies would be appealing to you leave a comment below letting me know! I might be able to put something together to offer up.