I finish off getting ready for the day with a spritz of my favourite perfume. I couldn’t give up this pleasure, so it was time to find a natural, zero waste alternative. This one is so god damn simple it should be criminal.
Getting rid of what you’ve got
The perfume I currently have was given to me by a patient I cared for, in the last few weeks of her life before she lost her battle with cancer. We had bonded over our mutual love for the smell, and she would spray me each morning with her perfume so that we matched. In memory of her, I will be keeping the bottle for significance. I can’t seem to bring myself to re-purpose the bottle just yet.
For other empty perfume bottles, keep them! Perhaps put your handmade perfume in them. Otherwise, there are conflicting opinion on the internet about what to do with your old perfume bottles. Some say that due to a type of glass in most perfume bottles, that they cannot be recycled. Think Recycle don’t have a category for perfume bottles, but they say glass is okay to be recycled. In this instance, check with your local guidelines, or just keep the bottles for re-purposing. The less in the recycling the better!
DIY perfume
This recipe is a great way to avoid chemicals but still keep that perfume smell. I’ve taken this from a blog called Paris To Go (a blog I trust very much for zero waste ideas) which was the simplest recipe I could find without buying lots of ingredients. It’s also one of the only recipes I can find that doesn’t need to use a shit tonne of essential oils (which are my precious babies and don’t want to use them all up). Just a note, the recipe calls for flower petals. I went to my parents place and (with permission) picked some roses that were close to their end. So find a friend or family with a garden who are happy for you to go picking in!
Vodka or Water
Flower petals (any flower with a scent you like)
Jar or container
Gently wash the flower petals. Soak petals in one-two inches of vodka or water. I just used shit smirnoff vodka that came in a glass bottle, I’m re-using the bottle as a vase. The vodka acts as a preservative and will give you a stronger, long-lasting smell. Leave to brew for 2-6 until your desired smell is achieved. Mine has been brewing for a few days and the water has turned the most beautiful pink colour and the smell is so natural and rosey. Remove petals, and store in a jar or spritzer and she’s ready to go! I’ve made enough perfume to last for months.
You don’t need essential oils
Plenty of perfume recipes call for the use of essential oils. This is a perfectly acceptable thing to do but to be honest, essential oils are expensive as hell and if I can find an alternative then I will. Despite what many recipes will tell you, vodka and essential oils DO NOT mix, they will temporarily but they won’t last. So avoid the despair of wasting your oils and just use this recipe, it actually works.
For more information on recycling, head to https://thinkrecycle.com.au/a-to-z-guide/
For the original vodka perfume recipe, head to http://www.paris-to-go.com/2015/04/zero-waste-perfume.html
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