Capture Spring's Essence with this DIY solid perfume technique!

You might not be able to tell from my blog, but I'm an avid gardener.  I am the gardener who prunes and deadheads and moves plants and fertilizes and pleads desperately with Mother Nature trying with all my might to extend and capture the very best of the season.   My excitement for certain blooms in the spring leaves me feeling like a kid at Christmas.  The first week of tulips, lilacs, irises, and peonies - these fleetingly quick and breathtaking blooms are my absolute favorite thing!  

Well, this year I am determined to capture the bounty or at least, the essence of my favorite flowers, hence the creation of this DIY solid perfume with lilac! 

Now, this DIY solid perfume technique works great for delicate petals and is an easier and less intensive version of essential oil and doesn't require a distiller. The key to making a good DIY solid perfume is to make the solution as concentrated as possible to capture the fragrance, so this works best if you have access to a lot of petals.  

I'm making a DIY solid perfume with lilac, but this technique is very versatile, so use any flower and any fatty oil that has a neutral smell.  

The first step to making your DIY solid perfume is to gather your supplies and trim your lilac bush. You should aim to take as little of the stems and branches as possible.  This type of trimming actually encourages more blooms the next year!  If you aren't using lilac for your DIY solid perfume, check trimming instructions for your species. 

Place the fresh cut flowers and coconut oil in a heat-proof vessel and double boil on low for up to 2 hours.  During the double boiling process, keep squeezing down and adding flowers. I like to use a wooden pestle to "rub" the fragrance out to ensure the DIY solid perfume is as fragrant as possible.  Be sure to monitor the temp and keep it very low because you don't want the coconut oil to simmer.

After two hours, remove the coconut oil from the heat and strain the solution, squeezing out the access oil from the flower.  And that's that! Store your DIY solid perfume in an airtight vessel and allow it to cool completely.  Use your DIY solid perfume as you would a spray on perfume. 

I hope you liked this DIY solid perfume recipe as much as I did.  Be sure to check out some other DIY recipes from Louloudi, like the DIY Seaweed Poultice and Tonic or the DIY Medicinal Mushroom Powder.  If you aren't feeling up to mixing your own mushrooms, we have our own Myceliyumm Morning Blend available here.  And you should know, these make great popsicles too!  But you'll need to stay tuned for that one ;)