How to Make Sticks of Incense

Incense sticks come in a variety of fragrances, from musky scents to spicey fragances.

Burning incense in your home allows you to add fragrance to your home without the need to burn candles or use air fresheners. Incense comes in many fragrances and forms, one of which is incense sticks. While you can purchase incense sticks at the store, they're simple to make at home. Choose your own fragrances to make incense sticks for yourself or to give as a gift.

Things You'll Need

• Fragrance oil
• 2 tall, thin glass bottles or bud vases
• Unscented incense sticks
• Paper towels
• Cooling rack
• Plastic wrap
• Dy-propylene glycol
• Trash bag

Instructions

1. Fill a glass bottle or bud vase with the fragrant oil of your choice. Choose a bottle or vase that has a wider mouth so it's easier to remove the incense sticks without them brushing against the sides of the bottle.

2. Place 10 unscented incense sticks in the bottle filled with fragrance oil. Allow the unscented incense sticks to sit in the oil for one minute, then pull them up and hold them above the opening of the bottle so the excess oil can drip back into the container.

3. Lay a couple of paper towels underneath a wire cooling rack so the paper towels can absorb any dripped oil. Place your oil-dipped incense sticks on the cooling rack in a single layer. Allow them to lay there for two to three hours so the sticks can absorb more of the fragrant oil.

4. Roll your incense sticks up in a piece of plastic wrap, ensuring they're completely wrapped, and let them sit overnight.

5. Remove the plastic wrap from your incense sticks and discard it. Place your incense sticks on a paper towel, then lay another paper towel on top and gently blot to soak up any excess oil.

6. Fill the second glass bottle with dy-propylene glycol (DPG), which can be purchased at a craft store. Dip the sticks in the dy-propylene glycol then remove them and allow the excess to drip into a plastic trash bag so the fragrant oil doesn't contaminate the rest of your DPG.

7. 

   Place your incense stick in a holder when burning.

   Allow the incense sticks to sit on the cooling rack for two to three hours. Blot them with a paper towel to remove excess DPG. Wrap your finished incense sticks in plastic wrap and let them sit overnight before you burn them.

Tips & Warnings

• For faster-burning incense sticks, do not dip the sticks in DPG. DPG makes the sticks burn more slowly.

• Supervise children around fragrant oils or burning incense sticks.

References

• Soy Wax Candles: Making Incense Sticks