Pot-Pourri

Fragrant Flowers, Scented with Essential Oils

Pot-pourri has been used for centuries as a room freshener, to repel moths from your precious woolens and to bring back that rush of memories of summer in the depth of darkest winter.

I make pot-pourri and put it in sachets in the linen closet to freshen sheets. 

There is nothing like it to snuggle down in your bed and be immersed in the lovely scent of lavender or roses.

Offer it as a gift to your hostess at a party or housewarming, or to your old auntie, bottled in a tightly capped old canning jar with a ribbon wrapped around for Christmas.

However you display it, whether in a bowl to allow the scent to disperse, or sewn into sachets to hang in your closet, this old fashioned favorite room freshener will be gladly received.

Collect petals from your flowers during the summer and dry them on a piece of window screen. They absolutely must be dried completely and quickly, so there is no chance of mold forming.

Add a fixative such as orris root, powdered, and your choice of essential oils. I prefer lavender and rose, but there are a multitude of great oils to choose from. Find them in your health food store, or crafts store. Pay a little extra for good quality oils.

The scent will fully develop when the mixture is dry, so allow enough time to let it reach its full potential before adding more. Remember, a few drops goes a long way.

Refresh tired pot-pourri with a few drops of oil, and stir to release the scent.

Store your finished pot-pourri in a sealed container, and only open it when you want to release the scent. Some people find the fragrance a bit overpowering, so use it carefully.

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An alternate way of using your modern canning jars, and making them look vintage, even though they're not.

The metal rings that hold the lid in place are usually some kind of cheap metal, and I discovered that they are easy to age and weather over a bonfire. 

I hung six of them on the tines of my old pitchfork and turned them constantly, burning off the finish. 

After they cool, a quick burnish with super fine steel wool is all they need. 

The lid itself gets a coat of black paint, then a circle of vintage burlap sack is glued onto it.

The pot pourri is inside a plastic bag, in the jar.  Opening the lid will let the scent out, but air tight storage will keep the perfume indefinitely. 

This pot pourri has lasted over 15 years, as an example.