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Growing up in the countryside, I often found myself walking through meadows, with my hands brushing against the wildflowers as their scent filled my nostrils. From the calming scent of lavender to the earthiness of calendula, their beautiful scent reminds me of those simpler, carefree childhood days.
As I began experimenting with essential oils, I first started looking into how to use them to recreate my favourite memories. Still, I soon realised how a scent alters mood and energy. Inspired by this, I began combining essential oils to create my own bouquets to boost my mood, calm nerves after a tough day, or improve my focus.
This article will guide you on creating your own body mists, whatever your preferred scent or need.
Table of Contents
- What Are Body Mists with Essential Oils?
- How Do Body Mist with Essential Oils Work?
- 6 Reasons to Use Body Mists With Essential Oils
- The Best Way To Apply Body Mists with Essential Oils
- How to Make Your Own Body Mist With Essential Oils
- Uplifting Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil Body Mist Recipe
- My Favourite Essential Oil Body Mists Blends
- Looking for more recipes?
- Essential Oil Safety
- Wrapping Up
- FAQs
What Are Body Mists with Essential Oils?
Rejuvenating and hydrating, body mist with essential oils is a lighter version of fragrance designed to keep you smelling fresh without being overpowering. Whether you are travelling, going to the gym, or looking for a light scent to wear at the office, they are a perfect way to refresh throughout the day.
While the blend of water, hydrosols, botanical extracts, and other nourishing ingredients can help improve your skin health, essential oils, on the other hand, help improve overall wellbeing.
As they are less concentrated than a fragrance, you’ll need to top up your body mist throughout the day. All the more reason to reapply.
How Do Body Mist with Essential Oils Work?
Dry air, staying out in the sun for too long, air conditioning, and swimming can leave your skin feeling dry.
Spritzing hydrating body mist enriched with humectants such as hyaluronic acid can help revive and maintain the skin’s natural barrier function, smooth and soften the skin, giving you a plumper look.
Essential oils have been used to help treat an array of concerns, from improving mood, encouraging restful sleep, alleviating anxiety and depression, to improving your skin health.
Combining hydrating ingredients with essential oils results in a light, subtle body mist that can help soothe your body and mind, leaving you refreshed.
6 Reasons to Use Body Mists With Essential Oils
You might consider adding body mist with essential oils to your daily skincare regimen for several reasons. Apart from their beautiful scent and hydrating effect, body mists:
– enhance penetration of other moisturising products like lotions, body oils, and balms.
– are perfect to layer with complimentary skincare products like body lotions, balms, or even other body mists.
– are great for your skin as they are formulated with natural ingredients
– are pretty simple to formulate.
– they come in various scents allowing you to customise the fragrance to suit your needs and liking.
– super convenient to use. Keep them in your bag and spritz them on whenever and wherever you feel like it.
The Best Way To Apply Body Mists with Essential Oils
To apply, spray it directly to the skin after you step out of the shower, before and after applying complementary body oil or lotion. It will help to lock the scent and moisture. You can reapply the mist throughout the day whenever you need to refresh or elevate your mood. I like to keep it in the fridge during hot summer days. It’s pretty refreshing. Avoid spraying your face, which is much more sensitive. Spritzing body mist with essential oil on your delicate facial skin can irritate it, causing redness, itching, burning, and stinging.
How to Make Your Own Body Mist With Essential Oils
The secret to creating quality body mists with lasting, pleasant fragrance is to use high-quality essential oils in the right proportion of top, middle and base notes.
Top notes are typically very light and fresh. They are the ones that evaporate fastest like a citrus aroma of bergamot, lemon and sweet orange, a floral aroma of neroli and petitgrain, or a spicy aroma of anise and bay laurel.
Middle notes are the heart of the aroma; they are heavier and linger on the skin after the scent of top notes has disappeared. Lighter than the base notes, they range from floral notes of rose, geranium and jasmine to herbal notes of rosemary, tea tree and yarrow.
Base notes are the least volatile fragrances that slow down the evaporation of more volatile top and middle notes, lend a unique note to the aroma, balance the overall scent and extend its longevity. My favourite base notes include benzoin, sandalwood, vanilla and ylang-ylang essential oil.
| TOP | MIDDLE | BASE |
|---|---|---|
| Anise | Bay | Angelica |
| Basil | Cardamom | Benzoin |
| Bay Laurel | Chamomile | Cedarwood |
| Bergamot | Cinnamon | Frankincense |
| Eucalyptus | Clary Sage | Patchouli |
| Galbanum | Clove | Sandalwood |
| Grapefruit | Elemi | Vanilla |
| Lemon | Fir needle | Vetiver |
| Lemongrass | Geranium | |
| Lime | Ginger | |
| Mandarin | Jasmine | |
| Neroli | Melissa | |
| Orange (Sweet) | Myrrh | |
| Peppermint | Palmarosa | |
| Petitgrain | Rose | |
| Pine | Rosemary | |
| Spearmint | Tea Tree | |
| Tangerine | Thyme | |
| Violet Leaf | ||
| Yarrow | ||
| Ylang-Ylang |
Apart from essential oils, you’ll also need hydrating ingredients like floral waters, aloe vera juice, nourishing botanical extracts, solubiliser, a preservative and something to store your product in like spray bottles. You’ll be able to spray bottles online at Amazon or other suppliers.
A complete list of ingredients used to make body mists with essential oils would be too long to include. The following are the most commonly used in body mists.
Floral waters: These natural waters have an extremely light scent and work like a tonic on your skin. Packed with therapeutic properties, they work to balance and hydrate the skin.
Humectants: Hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid, aloe vera juice, and glycerin help moisten the skin by drawing water molecules from their surroundings into the skin, fighting dryness, helping maintain a healthy moisture barrier, smoothing the skin, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Glycerites, tinctures and herbal infusions deliver restorative properties to the skin. They often work to regenerate and rejuvenate the skin, even out its tone, repair damage and restore its natural glow.
Additives, adding vitamins, minerals, and moisturising ingredients like panthenol and allantoin is another excellent way to enhance your skin’s health.
Solubiliser allows you to disperse a small amount of essential oils in water and/or floral water, allowing the final product to appear transparent.
Preservatives help prevent mould, yeast and bacteria from growing in the body mists and typically come in the form of a liquid.
Uplifting Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil Body Mist Recipe
Uplifting Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil Body Mist Recipe
Difficulty: Beginner Formulator100
grams10
minutes10
minutes20
minutesA sweet and creamy aroma of sandalwood essential oil helps induce calm and balance. When paired with the uplifting scent of ylang-ylang essential oil and zesty orange, it creates a beautiful fragrance that will keep you inspired and optimistic.
Ingredients
- Phase A
50.00g rose floral water
30.40g manuka floral water
10.00g aloe vera juice
2.00g rose glycerite (for directions on how to make glycerites click here). You can replace it with veg glycerin.
- Phase B
5.50g solubiliser symbiosolv clear plus
- Phase C
1.00g preservative Eco
Note: Add a few drops of saffron glycerite to phase A to add a shade of yellow to the product, if you like.
Directions
- In a disinfected glass beaker, weigh phase A ingredients. Stir until well combined and set aside.
- Weight solubiliser and essential oils (phase B) in another glass beaker and mix them until well combined.
- Disperse the solubiliser-essential oil mixture (phase B) into the water blend (phase A) using a whisk or a milk frother until thoroughly blended.
- Measure the pH of the mist using ph strips or ph meter and adjust it to 5.0 – 5.5 if necessary. You can lower it using a drop or two of a citric acid solution (0% citric acid to 90% distilled water) or increase pH by adding a drop or two sodium bicarbonate solutions (10% sodium bicarbonate to 90% distilled water).
- Add preservative eco.
- Measure the pH again and adjust it to 5.0 – 5.5 if necessary.
- Pour the body mist into a bottle with a spray mist nozzle, label and date.
Skin Patch Test
- Carry out a skin patch test before incorporating body mist with essential oils into your skincare regimen. Although ingredients used may be well-tolerated by most people, some may be sensitive or even allergic to them. Apply a small amount of the product onto a clear skin patch and leave it for 24-48 hours. If your skin turns red, itchy, or you experience any irritations, discontinue using the product.
Shelf Life and Storage
Body mists should keep well for three to six months if preserved and stored well. To keep them fresh for as long as possible, keep them away from direct sunlight in a dry, cool room, a drawer or a fridge. If they change colour, smell or texture, dispose of them and prepare a new batch.
Tools
Apart from high-precision scale, glass beakers and milk frother, you don’t require a special kit to make body mists. You can use standard household tools you already have in your kitchen. Even though essential oils are some of the most exciting ingredients to work with, some of them can also be very sensitising. Hence, you must measure them precisely.
Here is the list of equipment I found most helpful:
high-precision scale (to two decimal places)
glass beakers
glass rod for string or a mini whisk
milk frother
ph strips
spray bottles
My Favourite Essential Oil Body Mists Blends
Now that you understand the basics of body mist making and why it’s beneficial to use essential oils in them, here are my personal favourite blends.
Calming Lavender Body Mist
Lavender essential oil helps soothe and relax the mind and is often used in aromatherapy. Blending it with sweet and creamy sandalwood and cedarwood essential oil creates a soothing scent that helps ease the mind. Perfect scent for bedtime.
Blend: 0.6% lavender essential oil, 0.2% cedarwood essential oil, 0.1% sandalwood essential oil
Energising Orange Body Mist
Orange essential oil’s sweet aroma helps uplift and energise, while benzoin essential oil’s calming nature soothes the mind. This uplifting blend helps to re-energise and encourages calmness.
Blend: 0.7% sweet orange essential oil, 0.3% benzoin essential oil
Refreshing Lime Body Mist
Cheerful and refreshing, lime essential oil’s zesty aroma helps renew the mind. Paired with sandalwood’s woody scent and clary sage’s calming scent, it makes for a bright body mist. Do not use it if you plan to spend a day out in the sun.
Blend: 0.3% lime essential oil, 0.10% sandalwood essential oil, 0.1% clary sage essential oil
For full recipes, check out my ebook: DIY Body Mist, The Art Of A Homemade Beaut.
Looking for more recipes?
If you are looking for even more body mist ideas, I have put together a handy ebook with 18 recipes you’ll find on Amazon. To check it out, click the link below.
Essential Oil Safety
Essential oils are natural products with wide-ranging therapeutic properties that can help maintain our general health and encourage a greater sense of wellbeing. However, they are also concentrated chemical compounds; therefore, you must follow simple safety tips:
- Always dilute essential oils before applying them to your skin. In general, don’t include more than 1% per recipe. (If you are making 100g of body mist, don’t use more than 1g of essential oils). You can learn more about Essential Oil Safety in the book by Robert Tisserand and Rodney Young or by enrolling for Diploma In Organic Skincare Formulations by Formula Botanica.
- Work in a well-ventilated room.
- If you are pregnant, please consult your healthcare professional as some essential oils, such as clary sage, peppermint or rosemary, are not safe to use while expecting.
- Consult a professional aromatherapist or healthcare professional before using essential oils if you have any health conditions.
- Patch test first before using essential oils by diluting a drop of essential oil in a teaspoon of oil and leaving for 24-48 hours. If there is no reaction, you should be fine. However, discontinue using the product if your skin turns red, itchy, or you experience any irritations.
- Avoid contact with eyes.
- Keep away from children and pets.
- Certain essential oils, such as citrus oils, are phototoxic and can cause an adverse reaction if you apply them to the skin and expose it to sunlight. Pick FCF-free essential oils, such as Bergamot (FCF-free version). If you are not sure, check with the supplier. Citrus oils that aren’t phototoxic include Lemon (distilled) essential oi, Lime (distilled) essential oil, Mandarin (expressed) essential oil, Orange (sweet) essential oil, Tangelo (expressed) essential oil, and Tangerine (expressed) essential oil.
- Avoid applying body mists to your skin containing citrus essential oils if you plan a day in the sun.
Wrapping Up
Body mists with essential oils are refreshing, hydrating products designed to keep you smelling fresh during the day. They are also concentrated extracts packed with wide-ranging remedial properties that can help support your general health and encourage a greater sense of wellbeing.
FAQs
Do I have to use a preservative?
I would highly recommend using preservatives in your body mists. They are water-based products that attract mould, bacteria and fungus. Without a preservative, you risk the product being contaminated by microorganisms and a health risk to yourself. You might like to shop around to find the one that works for you; luckily, there are many on the market, such as LEUCIDAL® SF MAX.
Why did my body mist turn cloudy?
Solubilisers are an excellent ingredient to work with as they allow us to incorporate essential oils into water-based products. However, natural solubilisers are also much pricier than their synthetic counterparts. You might be tempted to use less than recommended amount to cut costs. It is essential that you follow recommended dilution rate.
Some essential oils like ylang-ylang or cedarwood might require a little more solubiliser. Add a tad more but within the recommended supplier’s use limits. If you use too little, your body mist can turn cloudy and essential oils won’t disperse properly in the product, ending up floating on top.
Why is my skin itchy, red and/or irritated?
Although essential oils are natural ingredients, some people may be sensitive or allergic to them; consider using floral waters only instead if that sounds like you. Rose, geranium or peppermint floral water will add a beautiful scent to your mists.
