Making Mosquito-Repelling Candles With Essential Oil Blends
2021-01-08
Citronella essential oil is a great mosquito repellent in candles, but you don’t have settle for just that scent in your outdoor candles. There are a number of widely available essential oils that are also known to help repel mosquitoes including:
1.Citronella
2.Clove
3.Cedarwood
4.Lavender
5.Eucalyptus
6.Peppermint
7.Rosemary
8.Lemongrass
9.Rose Geranium
Each oil has its own characteristics that blend differently with the citronella. Here are some blends to use as a starting point. If you don’t have a particular oil, feel free to substitute or adjust as you see fit. Each of the recipes has at least 1/3 citronella.
Simple and Spicy
A simple natural blend with the wonderfully sweet and spicy notes of the clove oil.
5 parts Citronella
5 parts Lavender
5 parts Clove
Bright and Energetic
Likewise a simple blend, but substituting the peppermint for the clove changes it into a bright, energetic, and sweet blend.
5 parts Citronella
5 parts Lavender
5 parts Peppermint
Deep and Green
A more complex blend with mostly “green” scents including wonderfully dark and smoky cedarwood.
10 parts Citronella
10 parts Cedarwood
5 parts Eucalyptus
5 parts Rosemary
Sweet and Citrus
Just a little lemongrass added to the mix blends well with the citronella. The rosemary and cedarwood add complexity and a base note to the blend. Note: The lemongrass has a fair amount of the same constituents as the citronella oil, the amount of citronella is reduced.
5 parts Citronella
5 parts Lemongrass
5 parts Lavender
5 parts Rosemary
5 parts Cedarwood
Lightly Floral
Here just a little bit of Egyptian Rose Geranium brings out the floral qualities of the lavender and balances out the citronella.
5 parts Citronella
5 parts Lavender
5 parts Geranium
5 parts Rosemary
Remember, these are just starting points for your own experimentation. Enjoy your citronella candles and the outdoors!
The original written by David Fisher
