What Can I Use For Potpourri?
A mixture of flowers, spices and herbs, potpourri adds both a visual element and a pleasant scent to a room. It can be made with either fresh or dried flowers, leaves and even vegetable scraps. Creating your own potpourri is not only a fun and therapeutic hobby, but it can save you money on expensive potpourri. Plus, it will fill your home with a natural fragrance that can’t be duplicated by artificial sprays and candles.
The most common ingredients used in homemade potpourri are oranges, cinnamon sticks and pine needles. These scents are very popular because they are pleasing to the majority of people’s noses, but you can use a variety of other ingredients to create unique potpourri scents. For example, you can try a mix of citrus fruits or herbs like lavender and rosemary. You can also use spices that smell good, such as vanilla or cinnamon. You can find a lot of different recipes for homemade potpourri on the Internet, but they all include a few essential ingredients such as a fixative, which helps to retain the scent, and fragrance oils, which help to make the potpourri smell wonderful.
When choosing what to use for potpourri, look for flowers that hold their color well when dry, such as bachelor buttons, calendula, chamomile, echinops, geraniums, larkspur and roses. These flowers will not only look pretty, but they will also release their fragrant scent when crushed up. To give your potpourri a longer-lasting scent, use a fixative like powdered orris root, oak moss, cellulose or ground gum benzoin. If you don’t have a fixative, your potpourri will lose its scent much more quickly.
You can use a dehydrator to speed up the drying process of your homemade potpourri. It will also help to preserve the color and appearance of your potpourri, especially if you place it in a clean jar. To keep your homemade potpourri smelling fresh, move it around gently in its container or sachet every so often. You can also spritz it with a little rose oil or another fragranced oil to refresh the scent.
Potpourri can also be used to freshen the scent of your clothing, or to add a nice aroma to the air in your car or closet. It can even be sprinkled on your bed or pillow for a relaxing night’s sleep. The scents will also last longer if you place your potpourri in a dark, cool spot away from direct sunlight and drafty areas.
Making your own homemade potpourri is a fun and inexpensive hobby that can be enjoyed by the whole family. It makes a nice gift for friends and family members as well. You can put the finished potpourri into a cellophane bag and tie it with a ribbon, or simply place it into an attractive jar for a simple but thoughtful present. Adding a printable tag and some decorative ribbon can turn this easy potpourri into a gorgeous gift.
