Don't Toss Those Flowers! How to Make Homemade Potpourri

When your sweet bouquet of flowers isn't as fresh as it used to be, instead of relinquishing to the trash, give those flowers new life as pretty potpourri. Making this DIY is easier than you think and can be personalized with any scents that you love. Toss in herbs or sliced citrus for filler, and the potpourri can be refreshed over and over again with a spritz of your favorite scent.

Read on for the easy directions.

What You'll Need:

  • Flowers
  • Sheet pan
  • Parchment paper
  • Scissors
  • Essential oils
  • Spray bottle
  • Citrus fruits (optional)
  • Fresh herbs (optional)
  • Whole spices (optional)

Directions:

  1. Gather your flowers to use for making the potpourri. Any kind of flower will work, especially ones that already have strong scents, such as roses. Flowers with small, individual petals work great, or whole heads can be used too. Preheat your oven to 200˚F.
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  1. Cover a sheet tray with parchment paper. Cut the flowers from the stems right below the heads and place them on the tray, or remove individual petals and place in a single layer on the parchment paper.
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  1. To add scent to your potpourri, cut and add thin slices of citrus fruits, or tuck in springs of rosemary, lavender, or thyme to the mix. You can also add whole spices, such as cinnamon sticks, cloves, or allspice, which are both pretty and wonderfully scented.
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  1. Add 10 to 15 drops of your favorite essential oil to one tablespoon of water in a small spray bottle, and spritz the potpourri ingredients. Then pop the potpourri into your oven.
  2. Dry in the oven for at least two hours, or until the flowers are brittle but not burnt. When the potpourri is ready, remove from oven and give another spritz of essential oil.
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  1. Once it's room temperature, gently mix the potpourri and place it in a bowl or small satchel. To refresh the scent, simply spritz with the oil mixture.