Bug Repellent...another thing with way too many scary chemicals in it! And I don't know about you, but I think the reason the bugs stay away isn't because of what's in the repellent, it's because of how smelly it is! Here are some essential oil buy spray recipes to try that won't leave your nose burning!
Lemon Repellent
- 2 oz. water
- 60 drops lemon essential oil
Peppermint Repellent
- 2 oz. water
- 15 drops peppermint essential oil
- 45 drops lemon essential oil
Citronella Repellent
- 2 oz. water
- 30 drops citronella oil
- 30 drops lemon essential oil
I found the little spray bottle pictured above at Target for less than $1 in the travel section. You could also re-use an empty spray bottle from something you have at home!
Do you make homemade bug spray? What's your recipe?
Linked to Tiny Tip Tuesday, Frugal Tip Tuesday, Teach Me Tuesday, Earning My Cape, and Frugal Days.
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve been waiting on you to share your homemade repellent! Where do you buy your essential oils? And also, thank you for such a wonderful, down-to-earth site!
I either get them from Azure Standard or from Amazon. I provided the Amazon links in the article above if you want to check them out:)
Just a cautionary note.. When you use essential oils, expect their active properties to be working on you as well when you spray them on you. There is a lot more to them than just their scents.
You wouldnt want to use any of these on a child especially at night.. or you either to be honest. Lemon, mints, & citronella are stimulating & energizing so keep that in mind. I would just test it out & see how it affects you & yours.
I never thought about making my own. Thanks for sharing!
Smell good AND don’t get bit up. Such a great idea. Thanks for sharing.
Great tip. I have pine and sage essential oils from soap making. Would they work just as well as bug repellent?
Great recipes. I love not using chemicals. I have a Blog Hop, and I would love it if you would link this post. You can find it at
http://www.adornedfromabove.com/2012/07/3-face-masks-from-your-kitchen-and.html
It is called Wednesdays Adorned From Above Blog Hop.
I hope to see you there. Have a great Day.
Debi Bolocofsky
Adorned From Above
http://www.adornedfromabove.com
We had a few bug repellent recipes on our site not too long ago, too:
http://southdakotamagazine.com/buzz-off
Great post just in time for summer! Thanks for linking up at Tiny Tip Tuesday!
Wow that is pretty easy!
I have peppermint oil…that won’t work without the lemon added?
I’ll have to give these a try.
thanks for re-posting the week’s summary… I guess I must have missed this one.
Pat
I don’t use bug repellent because of all of the chemicals. This looks like a great alternative!
Thanks for sharing with my Super Link Party!
~Susie~
I like simple homemade recipes for eating and ways to make homemade remedies… Thank You for your web site………
Not a homemade recipe, but nonetheless something me, my wife, and 7 kids have used for 3 years with great effectiveness against all the deer ticks, lonestar’s, mosquitos, and other bugs we have out here in Southern Indiana. It’s called BioUD. An application will last for about 4 hours. It is a synthesized version of a natural oil produced by a wild tomato plant.
http://www.homs.com/bioud%C2%AE.html
Hey! Yes, I make my own bug spray too! Here is a link to my post on bug spray and recipes to use. I took my homemade spray with me to Honduras, on a missions trip, and I never had one bug bite OR get near me! It was wonderful!
http://younglivingoillady.com/home/get-out-the-bugs-spray/
Hope you enjoy my version of home made bug spray. Blessings to you!
Awesome! I have a blog devoted to living more self-sufficiently (www.modernpioneergirl.blogspot.com) and a lot of readers have been messaging me to ask about homemade bug repellents. Would it be okay if I share this recipe with them?
Also, that seems like a lot of essential oils. Have you (or anyone) played around with the numbers to see if less works? Or does it just need to be that much to be effective?
Great recipes. I’ll have to play with them. I make my own, too, that has a lemon base, because I heard mosquitoes do not like acidic skin. But I never considered lemon essential oil. That will be an interesting twist.
Jodi