“Go Away” Bug Spray
Summer is finally arriving! The days are so much longer and the sun is shining (between the thunderstorms but hey! It’s there!).
The only thing that, drives me crazy during the summer months are bugs. Not that I dislike bugs, I just don’t like being eaten by them. Or losing my food to them – that makes me so mad!
So, I decided to have a look and see what I could make to make dealing with them easier. Take a look below for a couple of crafts to make our “Go Away Bug Spray” and herb pouch.
Naturally, the first step was to grab my books and read through to see what they recommended. I liked the list of herbs they suggested but because I didn’t want to feel like I was missing something, I carried out a Google search as well. Which came back with the same results so that was a bonus, “every little helps” as Tesco likes to say.
With my list of herbs, I narrowed them down into the list that I’m using today. It was one thing to have a list of herbs with fancy traditional names, but I wanted to stick to the herbs that was easy to find and was the most likely to be found in the average kitchen/pantry.
The herbs I chose to use and safety.
The herbs/oils that I chose for these blends are not only recommended for their fragrances. They are pretty easy to track down from health food shops and supermarkets as usually being reasonably priced.
This combination of essences are designed to be able to deter different types of pests; including:
Mice
Flies
Ants
Spiders
and Mosquitoes
Be careful when using this spray/pouch around pets and monitor for any signs of allergic reactions. Although my research showed that this blend is safe for cats, clove oil can cause allergies and skin sensitivities as well as potentially causing illnesses in dogs.
It would be better to avoid using clove oil in the blend if you have dogs or want to be a bit more cautious.
For the herb pouch
I thought I’d start with the easier one of the two crafts so here is number one.
What you will need (makes one herb pouch):
1x Organza drawstring bag
1 tsp dried Lavender
1 tsp dried Mint
1 tsp dried Basil
1tsp dried Cloves
1 tsp dried Lemongrass
up to 2 drops of the same essential oils if desired in order to make the scent stronger.
What to do:
1. Place the teaspoons of each herb into the drawstring bag and the oils if you’re using them.
2. Scrunch a gently to release the fragrance
3. Place in the wardrobe, by the window, in doorways or on the picnic table
I like to keep one above my bed, just in case.
For the room spray.
Essentially, the room spray contains the same herb extracts but in essential oil form instead of dried herbs. You could put some dried versions of the matching herbs into the room spray, but that could clog up the bottle and its would be a nightmare to clean.
What you will need:
A spray bottle.
4 drops Lavender essential oil
4 drops Mint essential oil
4 drops Basil essential oil
3 drops Clove essential oil
4 drops Lemongrass (Citronella) essential oil.
Water to fill the spray bottle. - I found that distilled water is better to use because of the water quality in my local area. We have very hard water, which goes slimy if its left in a container. I also found that mineral water naturally leaves a sediment on the bottle over time.
What to do:
1. Put all of the oils into the bottle
2. Fill the rest of the bottle with the water.
3. Gently shake the bottle to mix it together.
4. Spray in the desired area.
So there we are
I don’t know about you but I’m going to be putting these in every room.
Have you made something similar for your own home? Is this something that you would be happy to try?
Let me know in the comments below, and I’ll see you next time.
Thanks For Reading
