How to Make a Coloured Reed Diffuser (This is so simple!)
Coloured reed diffusers can not only add additional beautiful fragrance to your home but with the addition of colour, create a fabulous eye-catching look as well. As the reeds soak up the fragrance mixture, you’ll notice your reeds slowly turn colour too. Our tutorial will show you just how simple these are to make.
We are using Dowanol DPM base which allows for the dye to mix perfectly and won’t settle on the bottom, clog the reeds, or impede the scent as it’s carried through the white fibre reeds. Our tutorial is customisable, too so if you want to try a different colour, be sure to check out our full range of liquid dyes.
With Autumn now in full swing and the days are shorter due to reduced sunlight, there definitely chill hanging in the air. Adding warmth with the colours of the season alongside a perfect cosy scent is a wonderful way of welcoming the new season into your home.
Reed diffusers are very simple to use and extremely low maintenance, turning of the reeds once a week is all that’s required. We’re combining the diffuser base with our bestselling Pumpkin Spice fragrance oil and just a drop of orange liquid dye to create this truly spectacular smelling, Autumnal accessory for your home.
If you’re new to making reed diffusers, then our beginner’s tutorial, How to Make a Reed Diffuser, should be your first port of call to learn all the basics about creating your own diffusers. If you’re ready to jump right in, check out our video tutorial above or read on to see our more detailed step by step tutorial with images along with additional information to ensure you get the most from your diffuser.
Ingredients
Note: You may use millilitres or grams when making reed diffusers. Just make sure that you stick to the same measurement for both your base and fragrance oil to ensure accuracy.
Materials Needed
- 1 x Cube 100ml Clear Diffuser Bottle
- 1 x Gold Mushroom Reed Diffuser Cap (and travel plug)
- 8 x White Fibre Diffuser Reeds
- Digital weighing scales
- 2x 100ml plastic or glass spouted measuring cups
- Small funnel (optional)
- Kitchen roll to protect your work surface
- Nitrile gloves (or similar protective gloves) and an apron. We’d also highly recommend the use of a chemical mask
Pro tip: Before starting, make sure your work surface is covered and you’re wearing the correct PPE as stated in the materials needed above. This is to avoid skin/respiratory irritation from the fragrance oil and to protect your clothes from any splashes.
Step 1 Weigh out the diffuser base
Place one of the measuring cups on your scales and turn on. Weigh out 80g of Dowanol DPM base.
Pour the weighed out base straight into the diffuser bottle or use the funnel if you opted to use one.
Step 2 – Weigh out the fragrance oil
Place the second measuring cup on your scales and tare to 0. Weigh out 20g of Pumpkin Spice fragrance oil.
Pour the fragrance oil directly into the diffuser bottle.
Step 3 – Add the colouring
Shake the liquid dye bottle for around 30 seconds to allow the pigment to loosen and allow the true colour to come through. Then, add one drop of orange liquid dye to the oil and base in the diffuser bottle.
Step 4 – Combine the base, fragrance oil and dye
Take the plastic travel stopper and push it into the neck of the diffuser bottle, securely sealing the liquid in the bottle. Holding the neck and base of the bottle, shake well for around 30 seconds to fully combine the ingredients.
Step 5 – Add the reeds
Once fully mixed, carefully remove the plastic travel stopper.
Screw the gold cap back on the bottle and insert 8 white fibre diffuser reeds.
Step 6 – Using your reed diffuser
Your reed diffuser is now ready and can be placed in a room of your choosing. Remember to flip the reeds after 48 hours to make sure they’re fully soaked.
You’ll notice as the reeds soak up the liquid, they’ll slowly start to turn orange. Over the first few hours the effect will be a gorgeous orange/white ombre.
How to Get the Best from Your Diffuser
Upon making your reed diffuser we would recommend leaving it sealed for 48-72 to allow the mixture to fully bind together and settle. This will ensure that the reed diffuser performs at its best once in use.
We’d also recommend flipping the reeds once weekly/fortnightly (or when the scent is no longer projecting as it has previously been). This will revive the reeds and prolong the longevity of the fragrance.
Did you also know that the temperature of a room and placement of the reed diffuser can impact on how well the fragrance is released? Warmer areas such as near windows (when the suns shining), near radiators (not directly on) or in kitchens can help the fragrance throw to project further and stronger.
The warmer area helps the diffuser to work more effectively however, one thing to note with this is that the diffuser may not last as long, as the warmth causes the liquid to evaporate quicker.
Place the reed diffuser in a cooler area and you may not notice the scent much from a short distance away, perfect for when you don’t need a strong, overpowering scent release.
Which base should I use for my coloured reed diffusers?
The most widely used base for reed diffusers is Augeo as the CLP information is readily available for you to add to your creations. However, Dowanol DPM is more suited for making coloured reed diffusers as it holds solvent dyes very well.
This base is non-hazardous and allergen-free meaning its safer to use than Augeo bases. The only downside with using this superior base is you’ll need to have a CLP professionally created by a 3rd party specialist company for the fragrance oil percentage you’ll be using as we do not currently supply the CLP information for higher percentages of fragrance oil.
For further guidance on creating reed diffusers, please see our post How to Make a Reed Diffuser with Augeo Base.