One of my favorite activities while traveling is to pop into a fragrance shop or stand. It’s intriguing to savor the scents of a local region and I often learn more about the history and culture of the place from the vendors than from a museum next door. Over and over I am attracted to scents of the Mediterranean with splashes of citrus, lavender, neroli, bergamot, rosemary, eucalyptus, peony, and more. Since travel remains on the horizon for most of us this summer, I think it’s lovely to bring the fragrances of our favorite destinations home.

Benefits of using essential oils in a diffuser:

1. Create a relaxing environment

2. Anxiety reduction  

3. Improved sleep

4. Improved well-being

5. Signature fragrance can be transportive to a favorite destination

6. No fire hazard (as in candles)

To create your signature fragrance for the home:

*Fractionalized coconut oil (liquid) here

*Organic Essential Oils here (My favorite - neroli here)

*Small Funnel

*Glass jars for diffusing and diffuser sticks (I’ve collected diffusers over the years to reuse)

I create my signature fragrance by adding a 1/2 cup of liquid coconut oil to a lidded glass jar. I add 15 drops of my preferred essential oil base to start building the fragrance. I then add additional fragrance oils, drop by drop, to create the signature blend. Along the way, sniff and sniff, adding drops until you have your perfected your signature scent. When your desired result is achieved, use the funnel to slowly pour small amounts of your blend into the diffuser jars. Add diffuser sticks if you like. Save any unused blend in the lidded jar to refresh diffusers on a weekly basis.

My current favorite scents are neroli, lemon, sweet orange, bergamot, lavender, and vetiver.

If you want to perfect your fragrance building process learn more The Art of Pairing.

On a side note, it’s not easy to feel inspired as a travel advisor/ blogger during a pandemic and I’m sorry for my lack of regular posting on the blog. I started several posts this month but I must confess to some writer’s ‘roadblock’. How apropos! Despite that, I hope you are staying healthy and faring well during these challenging times. Message me on Instagram or drop me a comment below and let’s keep in touch. Travel will begin again and it is sure to be more celebratory and meaningful than ever.

Ciao!!

Heather