Homemade Gel Air Freshener

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I love for my home to smell like the holidays. But sometimes I forget to start my diffuser or don’t want to light a candle. Especially in the bathrooms, I prefer something a bit more passive. I don’t want to leave the house and forget about a candle burning.

So what could I do to have holiday scents all through the house? I decided to try making homemade essential oil gel air fresheners.

homemade gel air freshener covered with tulle, tied with a bow, and surrounded by leaves

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These are easy to make and are perfect for small spaces in your home.

As I started my research to see how to make gel air fresheners, I saw a lot of recipes that used gelatin as the “gelling” agent. I was really afraid to use regular gelatin as the gelatin will mold if left out at room temperature for very long.

I wanted something that would last, not something I have to keep making every few days. Plus, I’m not a fan of something possibly spewing mold spores all throughout my house.

As I continued my research I learned about polymer absorbent crystals. If you haven’t heard of them don’t worry. I hadn’t heard of them either.

free essential oil blend box to get the list free

But you’ve likely used them before without even knowing it. Polymer absorbent crystals are used in disposable diapers to hold the fluid in between the layers and keep it from leaking.

Polymer absorbent crystals are also used in potting soil to hold water and release it back to the plants slowly over time. So it’s possible you may have used the crystals several times without even knowing it.

For further reading on polymer absorbent crystals, check out this article from How Stuff Works.

How to Make Homemade Essential Oil Gel Air Fresheners

homemade gel air freshener surrounded by leaves
A homemade gel air freshener scented with Autumn Breeze and surrounded by fall leaves.

You don’t need many supplies and tools to make gel air fresheners. The only thing you may have trouble locating is the polymer absorbent crystals.

However, many home improvement stores as well as Amazon sell the crystals. I bought these because I can use the leftovers in my potted plants.

And while it seems like such a small bag, you only need a teaspoon per air freshener.

Tools Needed for Homemade Gel Air Freshener

  • glass measuring cup
  • teaspoon
  • metal spoon for stirring

Ingredients

  1. Place 1 teaspoon polymer crystal absorbent into a glass measuring cup.
  2. Pour in 1 cup hot water. Stir for several minutes as the crystals expand.
  3. When the mixture has cooled a bit, stir in up to 20 drops of essential oils. Stir again.
  4. Spoon mixture into a Mason jar or another glass container like an old candle jar. (These would be really cute.) Your homemade essential oil gel air freshener is ready to use.

You can get a printable of this how-to at the bottom of the post.

See below for some ways to dress up your homemade air freshener, especially if you are giving them as gifts.

I’ve also got a free printable with 30 different essential oil blends if you need some new inspiration. You can grab that below.

free essential oil blend box to get the list free

How to Gift Homemade Essential Oil Gel Air Fresheners

These homemade gel air fresheners make lovely gifts. To dress them up (and keep small kids from poking the gel) cover the top of the jar with tulle. You can also tie a ribbon around the tulle and even add a few baubles or felt cutouts to dress up the jar.

a gel air freshener covered with tulle, tied with a white bow, and surrounded by crocheted snowflakes and a succulent
This gel air freshener is ready for gift giving.

Related Posts

If you need more homemade gift ideas, check out some of these other posts.

Homemade Essential Oil Gel Air Freshener
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
10 mins
 

These homemade essential oil gel air fresheners are easy to make and are perfect for gifts.

Course: DIY
Cuisine: DIY
Keyword: essential oils
Ingredients
  • 1 cup hot water
  • 1 teaspoon polymer absorbent crystals
  • 20 drops essential oils
Instructions
  1. Place 1 teaspoon polymer crystal absorbent into a glass measuring cup.

  2. Pour in 1 cup hot water. Stir for several minutes as the crystals expand.

  3. When the mixture has cooled a bit, stir in up to 20 drops of essential oils. Stir again

  4. Spoon mixture into Mason jars or other glass containers like candle jars. Your homemade essential oil gel air freshener is ready to use. See notes for other ways to dress them up.

Recipe Notes

To dress up your homemade gel air freshener (and to keep small kids from poking the gel) cover the top of the jar with tulle. You can also tie a ribbon around the tulle and even add a few baubles or felt cutouts to dress up the jar.

homemade gel air freshener covered with tulle, tied with a bow, and surrounded by leaves

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2 Comments

    1. How long the scent will last depends a lot on the essential oils you choose as some seem to linger longer than others. After a month or so you many need to add a few additional drops of the essential oil blend to revive the scent.