Thread: adding essential oils to unscented products.

so i'd like to create my own clove aftershave with a bottle of thayers.. i'm wondering how many drops of clove oil would be good for a 12oz bottle of thayers? and also.. which other products it might be a good idea to try this with? do you think the regular nivea aftershave balm would be a good idea.. or does it already kind of have a smell?

any other thoughts or ideas?

hmm...good question sir!

I would google.com and look for a chemist you could get into contact with or wait til someone here replies with a answer that hep you out..just a thought and good luck!


PcDad

i tried google and came up with so many different responses.. some say 3 drops of essential oil will work for a 12oz bottle.. and others say 40 drops.. i think i'm just going to have to go with the trial and error method.

It is going to take some testing to see what you like and gauge how long the smell last.
I made some Witch hazel with lemon zest that smells great but the odor does not last long. When you make it with zest dont let it steep but 6 days as the zest develops an off smell that is not as fresh as to begin with.

Silver2

You need to experiment - all of the successful people do. Sometimes they hit it correct on first try - sometimes not.

I would add 1 drop at a time and record your results until you are satisfied.

Did I hear chemist? Before you concern yourself with how much to add, I would check whether the oil is soluble in the witch hazel . I have some clove oil and it is not very soluble. Alcohol helps but at depending on the concentrations of the three in the mix, you may end up with a nice cloudy concoction .

What I would do is to make a small test with a 1/4 tsp or so of witch hazel and add one drop of the clove oil and see if it is soluble. If it is, then add another drop and so on. This will serve two purposes: 1) tell you of how much you can add; 2) How much scent you can get out of each drop per drop; remember your nose will saturate after awhile, take a whiff of coffee beans. Unlike other EOs, you can use sizable amounts of clove oil without undesirable effects on the skin but you should read all about ingredients, methods, etc. before you start your experiements, if you have not done so already. Good luck and definitely let me know how it goes.

If you have any more questions shoot me a PM.

Al.

Originally Posted by vthomlinson

so i'd like to create my own clove aftershave with a bottle of thayers.. i'm wondering how many drops of clove oil would be good for a 12oz bottle of thayers? and also.. which other products it might be a good idea to try this with? do you think the regular nivea aftershave balm would be a good idea.. or does it already kind of have a smell?

any other thoughts or ideas?

Originally Posted by vthomlinson

so i'd like to create my own clove aftershave with a bottle of thayers.. i'm wondering how many drops of clove oil would be good for a 12oz bottle of thayers? and also.. which other products it might be a good idea to try this with? do you think the regular nivea aftershave balm would be a good idea.. or does it already kind of have a smell?

any other thoughts or ideas?

Essential Oils are just what the name says, oils (actually fats and/or microwaxes). As such they have minimal solubility in water and Theyers witch hazel (the stuff in the bottle, not the plant) is basically water (some other brands, and Thayers medicated also contain a small percentage of alcohol). You will need something with a much higher alcohol content to really disolve even small quantities of essential oils, 60 percent alcohol is common. Trace amounts of some essential oils are soluable in water solutions, these solutions are typically referred to as hydrosols, witch hazel is an example, so is rose water.

thanks for the replies gentlemen.. i'm still reading like crazy.. i was also looking at adding grape alcohol into the mix.. i had originally planned on using the thayers because i have a bottle laying around.. but i'm guessing this is going to balloon into a large project when it's all said and done.

Trial n error..sounds familiar...ahh!!...thats how scientists became who they are today and the discoveries they have found!!..good luck

Pcdad

i wish i knew more to add other than what has already been said, but i would love to know how it turns our, i love the smell of clove and think a clove aftershave would be awesome

-dan-