How to Use Essential Oils Around Your Home

Make Your Laundry Smell Good

Add a few drops of essential oils directly to wool dryer balls to help distribute the scent to clothes via the dryer's heat. Essential oils can also be added to a rag or dryer sheet for a refreshing scent.

Freshen Up Your Vacuuming

Add a strongly scented essential oil (such as lavender) to tissue or a paper towel and place it in your vacuum bag or dust bin. This will help mask any musky smells stuck in your vacuum and lightly infuse the air and carpeting when in use.

DIY an All-Purpose Cleaner

For a DIY cleaner that can handle bathroom clean-ups and mildew removal, look to this recipe: Mix equal parts white vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Add 3 tablespoons of baking soda to the mixture and shake until dissolved. With reportedly antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, tea tree oil is a great addition to this all-natural cleaning formula. Add about 10 drops of oil per two cups of cleaning solution. It'll help neutralize odors and disinfect surfaces.

Add Selective Scent

One of the most basic ways to diffuse the scent of essential oils is to saturate a cotton ball or cotton pad and tuck it out of sight. This allows the fragrance to waft through the air without the use of diffusers, the need for space, or spending money on additional supplies. It's especially effective in small spaces like closets, cabinets, and powder rooms.

Note: If small kids or pets are around, you may want to skip this method in case of a potential choking hazard. Some essential oils can also be toxic to animals.

Bottle Your Own Mosquito Repellent

In lieu of store-bought repellents and their harsh chemicals, you can use essential oil to make an all-natural mosquito repellent.

Mosquito-repelling essential oils include the following and can be used in our homemade mosquito repellent recipe here:

• Eucalyptus
• Lavender
• Tea tree
• Rosemary
• Citronella
  

Create (and Customize) Foaming Hand Soap

There are quite a few pros to making your own hand soap at home: As you'll be keeping used soap bottles out of landfills, it's a more sustainable choice. Not to mention, it can be a fun way to spend the afternoon.

But the best part is that you're in charge of the ingredients that goes into the formula and can customize the scent exactly to your liking with the inclusion of essential oils. Using your favorite essential oil fragrances, DIY foaming hand soap with the instructions here.

Use in Dried Flower Arranging and Crafting

Amp up a dried floral bouquet or faux flowers by adorning it with a few drops of complimentary essential oil. You can also dip wooden sticks or wooden balls in essential oil and use them in a floral or craft display to scent it. 

Make a Home Scent Spray

To infuse a room with a fresh scent, make your own fragrance with your favorite essential oil. Add a few drops to a spray bottle filled with scentless alcohol (like vodka) and use it to freshen up any space. Costume designers and stage crew will also use this formula to freshen and scent wardrobes, so try spritzing it in any closet that's been smelling musty.