Three Gifts You Can Make from Your Lavender Plant

I love the smell of lavender. It reminds me of spring every time I smell it. It doesn't just smell nice, though, in natural form it is good for sunburns, makes your skin softer and healthier, and helps soothe headaches too. If you have grown your own plant, then there are some wonderful things you make from its leaves and flowers. Here are three of my favorites.

Lavender Bouquet

This is the most obvious and easiest of the three. When the lavender plant is in bloom, you simply cut the blooms off at the bottom and put them together. You can put them in a vase alive for a couple of days, and then tie them together and allow them to dry. Once they are dried out, put them in a pretty container and they will keep their lavender fragrance for a while, and are pretty to look at too.

Lavender Bath Oil, Perfume, Body Mist, and Air Freshener

To make these cut several branches from the plant with leaves still intact. You will have to get the oil out of the leaves in order to make any of these of gifts. To do that, you need a heat resistant glass bottle. Fill the jar half way full with leaves, then pour olive oil or rice oil into the jar, just enough to cover the leaves. Find a pot the jar will fit into (a regular sauce pan works well for a regular size mason jar). Put the jar in the middle of the pan, and fill the pan to the same level as the oil and leaves. Put this on the stove and turn the eye on high. Get the water boiling. As soon as the rich aroma of lavender fills the room, you'll know its done. Remove the pan and allow everything to cool. Once cool, remove the jar.

To make lavender bath oil, you simply pour the oil you've made into a decorative bottle. You can choose to keep the leaves in it, or if you want them out, use a coffee filter to filter the leaves out as you pour the oil into the bottle. Cap the bottle and decorate it with ribbon, and a stem of fresh lavender.

To make the perfume, body mist, or air freshener you add witch hazel to the oil. Three parts oil to one part witch hazel. Shake the mixture well. Again, if you don't want the leaves in the mixture, strain it out with a coffee filter as you pour it. The perfume, body mist, and air freshener are all, essentially the same thing. It is best to put the finished product in a spray bottle. Decorate with a bow and a sprig of fresh lavender or a couple of dried blooms and you've got the perfect gift.

Lavender Sachet

To make the sachet, you will need the oil. It is best to keep the leaves in the oil for this project. You need a cookie sheet, wax paper, an old bowl and uncooked rice. Put about two cups of rice into a bowl you don't intend to eat from any longer (though lavender is not poisonous, it will make the bowl smell of lavender). Pour about a two tablespoons of oil in with the rice. Mix it up with your hands very well, trying to make sure that every piece of rice is coated with lavender. Line the cookie sheet with wax paper and spread the rice evenly over the paper. Allow to dry. If you don't allow the rice to dry it could mold. Drying time is dependent on how much oil was soaked in by the rice, the humidity, and the amount of rice you have. I usually let mine sit for about a week. Once the rice is dry, take a piece of thin tight weave fabric like broadcloth and cut into a circle. Spoon a portion of the rice into the center of the fabric wrap a rubber band around the top to seal the opening. Add a bow. The sachets retain their fragrance for a long time.