can you make those nice scented block things to go in cupboards??

[judydawn]

That's what I figured, thanks Marina.

[Cuilidh]

Well, I made these today and it was hilarious!  I had a bottle of Lemon Myrtle essential oil lurking around (it was only 8 years out of date), but at least it had more than 15 ml in it, so it seemed a good starting point - and I knew that DH would prefer a "woodsy" smell to a floral one, so I reckoned I was on to a winner.

I used red and yellow colour as I thought a terracotta shade would be quite nice - and I actually got the colour pretty well as I wanted it.

The mixing went well - everything was good until inspiration struck (I should never listen to my inspiration).  I decided that I didn't really want to work the dough with my hands as they would smell of Lemon Myrtle from now until next year so put on my trusty kitchen rubber gloves.  Trust me, this is not a good idea as the dough happily sticks to the gloves and nowhere else.  In my efforts to transfer the dough from gloves to baking paper I got the beautifully coloured, smelly dough EVERYWHERE!

Anyway, I eventually got some dough rolled out and cut up (the dough was just a bit sticky so I have a couple of interesting shapes, but that's OK) and now it is sitting in the kitchen drying.

My TMX is full to the brim of water, soaking the end of the dough out and it took me ages to clean up the gloves and general mess.

The house smells very strongly of Lemon Myrtle (and so do my hands) and I have every window and door open (oh why is it not as windy today as it was yesterday to help waft the smell out into the neighbourhood?).

I was listening to a Queen CD whilst all this was going on so, between jiggling my wobbly bits to We are the Champions, Fat Bottomed Girls, etc. and sloshing terracotta coloured goop around the kitchen, it was quite a sight.  Now I will wait to see how they smell when they have dried out.

[judydawn]

Sounds like you had fun Marina, we do get in a pickle sometimes don't we  Waiting now to see how they turned out for you and was it worth the effort.

[faffa_70]

Thanks for my morning giggle Marina  I do hope they work out and were worth all your troubles. Would love to see a pic of the finished ones.

[cookie1]

Would bugs eat these do you think?

[Cuilidh]

Cookie NO ONE and NOTHING is going near this batch, I can tell you that!!  My hands no longer smell so bad, but the house is very "aromatic"!  Actually, with the correct fragrance combination I don't see why you can't use it to try to control bugs - I think I read somewhere recently that a combination of peppermint, eucalyptus and Lavender works for that.

Kathryn, I'll try to get a photo, but no promises.

[Cornish Cream]

Thanks for the giggle at your antics Marina.It's good to hear that you are a Queen groupie as well

[Cuilidh]

Love Freddie Mercury's voice and Brian May is an amazing guitarist.  Queen were such a great group and I love listening to them.  There was recently a two part documentary on TV here on them and I was glued to the screen.

[nazar]

thanks for the giggle when l read your story this morning
l was trying to not laugh to loud as l did not want to wake the kids
thanks for sharing

[Cuilidh]

Kathryn, I tried to take a photo for you but I couldn't re-size it down and it was HUGE, so I'm afraid you'll have to use your imagination!  I left them to air dry for a week and they are fairly firm, verging on hard (I wouldn't try hitting them with a hammer to see just how firm they are, though, you would probably end up with a crumbly mess).  I think in winter you would have to dry them in an oven - anyone got any ideas on that?

Anyway, after a week they are still giving off a strong aroma (which you would expect!) so I have put them in wee organza gift bags and hung them around the house.  I am pretty pleased with them overall and would make more (but perhaps not use rubber kitchen gloves!).

Cookie, I don't know if bugs would eat them or not, but I think they would be fairly well protected in the organza bags - I don't think even ants could get into them.

[CarolineW]

Could you still use either though Marina?

Hi Judy, hope you're well.  You could use either if all you're looking for is a nice smell.  However, if you also want the therapeutic / germ fighting effects of Essential oils, then it's essential  to use Essential oils.

Take care.

[Cuilidh]

I had forgotten about these so enjoyed reading the description of my adventures!  I think I might just give these another go for Xmas and would definitely go for the pure essential oils this time.  Unfortunately I cannot remember how long the scent lasted for but I remember leaving them hanging about the house for many months before I threw them out. 

[judydawn]

Hi Caroline, nice to see you posting a few idea for people to try today. All good here thanks and I trust the same applies to you and yours in the UK.  Thanks for bumping this one, I had quite a laugh at Marina's antics for the second time around having forgotten all about this thread.