Scenting your own beads is a quick and easy way to save money making freshies.
There is a video at the bottom if you prefer to watch the process all at once.
Materials
Scented Beads- at least 4 oz
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Glass Jar- Quart or larger
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Scale
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Fragrance Oil- at least 1 oz
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Step 1: Tare Your Scale
Turn your scale on. Place the jar on top. Click the tare button (a little different on each scale) so that the weight returns to 0.
Step 2: Weigh Your beads
This is not optional. You should not be measuring in cups, tablespoons, or anything like that. Using correct amounts will help your freshies last longer and give you Decide how many beads you want to soak. A typical freshie has about 2 oz of beads in it, give or take. Make sure you're not soaking more than you have oils for. If you have 1 oz oil bottles, I would recommend starting with 8 oz of beads in your jar. Put the correct amount of beads into the jar. *In these pictures, I am using gallon jars so I am using 3 pounds of beads.
Step 3: Add Oils
Again- You must weigh your oil. No tablespoons. You'll hear the word ratio often. This is referring to the ratio of beads to oil. There are two common ratios: 8 oz of beads to 1 oz of oil (8 to 1) and 8 oz of beads to 2 oz of oil (8 to 2). Personally, I use 8:1. I haven't seen a difference in longevity or scent strength by adding more oil.
See a more in-depth look at ratios here, along with a cheat sheet, and decide how much oil you would like to include. If you're using a quart jar, you can fit up to 12 ounces of beads in it. Do not use more than this, as you need to leave room for the beads to expand. Add in your chosen amount of oils to the jar. Pour carefully because you can't take oil out once it's added-- at least not easily. *In this image, I added 6 oz of oil to 3 pounds of beads. I accidentally added a little too much oil. It should have been 3 lb. 6 oz.
Step 4: Shake and Let Dry
Put the lid on and shake the jar so that the oil is spread throughout the beads.
Leave your jars in a warm space. The oils will absorb faster when they are warm.
Laying the jars on their side will help expose more beads to the oil.
Shake every few hours to spread the oils around.
You'll know they're dry when the beads don't stick to the sides anymore.
Tips to speed up this process:
*The beads should never be heated over 100 degrees, so be cautious.
You can place them in a slightly warmed oven
Place on a heating pad. I use this heating pad during the winter.
Set the jars outside.
You'll need to shake more if you use a warming method as the oil will absorb faster.
Step 5: Store & Cure Your Beads
Curing is a debated topic. Do your own testing and see what you think. Many say that letting the beads sit, or cure, for 5-7 days after drying can help increase the longevity of the scent. I cure my beads, but it's up to you what you decide to do. Once your beads have completely dried, you can transfer them to a plastic container or leave them in the glass jar you mixed them in. If you choose to change to a plastic container, make sure that it has a triangle with a 5 on the bottom. This means that it is made from polypropylene and won't absorb your scent. Other plastics will slowly leech the oil from your beads and cause your freshies to be weak. These came from Dollar Tree. If Dollar Tree isn't available in your area, they are sold on Amazon but cost quite a bit more. You can find them here.
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