When you think about it, colognes are such a sham. But like with a lot of hygiene or personal care products, we don’t ever step back to think about it. Colognes, like shampoos, deoderants, lipstick, makeup and alike, have been around for decades so we never give much that to it. But yes, colognes, are a sham…unless you make your own. So let’s talk about a DIY Essential Oil Cologne recipe.
So why do we need a DIY Essential Oil Cologne recipe? A couple of reasons. One, the price. Standard cologne can range in price from $50-100 a bottle. That’s very expensive, especially if your man is the type who douses himself with this stuff. A DIY Essential Oil Cologne recipe is just so much cheaper…even if you are using high quality, organic essential oils. Which of course are the only types of oils you should be using.
The other issue with standard colognes is that they are full of chemicals. You see in the olden days of the 17th century, colognes were actually made the right way. They would extract the oils from rose, sandlewood, lavender and alike and mix it with water or an alcohol to make it all-natural. Today, most colognes are made in chemical factories in New Jersey and they use ingredients which mimic the smell they want you to smell like. These chemicals are not healthy to inhale, and may cause respiratory or endocrine distress.
(Incidentally, I recommend you use the EWG’s Skin Deep app. I has a database of thousands of brand-name cosmetics and toiletries and you are able to see how toxic a particular item is. I highly recommend you download it.)
I would say that one reason NOT to use ANY colognes at all is that these fancy colognes inhibit your natural “sex smell.” All men release pheromones from the armpit and groin area. Each man creates his own musk by the breakdown of his flora (bacteria and fungus) on his skin “eating” the sweat and oils which come from out from him.
This odor is a particular “sex scent” which females find enticing, especially when ovulating. So buy spraying yourself with extra scents you are essentially “co*k blocking” yourself. Don’t pay attention to those foolish Axe commercials.
DIY Essential Oil Cologne
So what is so great about this DIY Essential Oil Cologne recipe? There is nothing fancy in it. We are going “old school” by returning to the essence of what colognes were in the day. Nothing fake…no chemicals or anything that might be pernicious to the body.
We use alcohol in the recipe because it will preserve the cologne longer as well as serve as an antiseptic to kill some of the more pathogenic or stinky bacteria. From there it is a question of which oils you want to implement.
Which oils to put in your DIY Essential Oil Cologne recipe? I think honestly that sandlewood, fir, cypress and or cedarwood are naturally manly and virile oils. They smell masculine to make it simple. I would throw in a little bergamot which brings a nice sweetness to it.
If you want more info on these particular oils, check out our very popular Katie’s Essential Oil Apothecary. We have individual episodes for lavender, peppermint, lemon, frankincense, rosemary, eucalyptus, the “woods” and more!
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Add the alcohol and oils to the spray bottle. Mix well. You may use distilled water in lieu of alcohol, but it doesn't do as well as a job in preserving the cologne than alcohol. If you do use water, add a teaspoon of the astringent, witch hazel, to preserve it better.
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes