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How to make a simple, refreshing homemade air deodorizer or simmer pot with lemon and herbs. It’s low-budget, all-natural, and customizable!
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Why You’ll Love This DIY Air Freshener
If you, like me, love a beautifully scented space (but not the chemicals found in many commercial air fresheners and candles), it’s time to make your own. With just a few simple ingredients, you can make a simple simmer pot (aka stovetop potpourri) or homemade spray air freshener that’s eco-friendly, budget-friendly, and non-toxic!
Best of all, this homemade natural air freshener lets you utilize kitchen scraps, like lemon peels, soft herbs, and expired spices. Simmer it for continuous fragrance, or infuse, cool, and transfer it to a spray bottle as a chemical-free, natural spray air freshener. It’s effective, energizing, and smells wonderful!
Looking for more ways to use rosemary? Try my rosemary tea, vegan rosemary crackers, rosemary roasted potatoes, and candied rosemary walnuts.
What You’ll Need
Though the ingredients are customizable, this version combines lemon and rosemary for a refreshing homemade deodorizer.
- Lemon: Use lemon slices or peels/scraps. Oranges, limes, or a citrus blend also work. Add a few drops of lemon essential oil for a stronger scent.
- Rosemary: I prefer using fresh rosemary sprigs straight from my garden, though you could use rosemary essential oil (added to the cooled mixture).
What Could I Add To Homemade Air Freshener
- Baking soda: Just 1 tbsp per one cup of water helps neutralize and absorb odors, rather than simply masking them. Add to the cooled mixture.
- Other spices: Cinnamon sticks, cloves, cardamom, peppercorns, fresh ginger, etc.
- Herbs/Florals: Eucalyptus, thyme, jasmine, lavender, rose petals, peppermint, etc.
- Fruits: Other citrus fruits, apple, pineapple, strawberries, and peaches. I usually use the peels, cores, and other scraps to utilize waste.
- Coconut: Either shredded coconut or coconut essential oil.
Refer to the FAQs for making a deodorizer with essential oils PLUS scent combination ideas.
How to Make Homemade Air Freshener
Step 1: First, slice the lemons or collect the lemon peels/scraps, then add them to a medium saucepan with the water, rosemary, and vanilla extract (if using). Bring to a boil, then reduce to low and gently simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until the kitchen smells fresh and fragrant.
For a simmer pot: Check on the pot every 30-40 minutes, adding more water as needed to prevent it from drying out. A slow cooker works too.
For a homemade deodorizer spray: Cool completely, then transfer the lemon rosemary air freshener to a bottle (a funnel may help).
FAQs
Also called stovetop potpourri, it combines water with fragrant herbs, spices, and fruit, gently simmered to release steam and neutralize bad/stale odors. Ingredients are often tailored to spring, summer, or Christmas simmer pots.
Store in a cool, dark place away from sunlight and use within 2–3 weeks.
Leftover simmer pot ingredients can be refrigerated overnight and reheated once before discarding (compost the solids).
Yes. Use 10-16 drops of essential oil (like lavender, chamomile, rosemary, lemon, orange, or grapefruit oil, tea tree oil, etc.) per one cup of water, with no need to heat the mixture.
A few blends you might enjoy include:
Orange & Cinnamon
Lemon & Thyme
Grapefruit & Basil
Peppermint & Rosemary
Lavender & Vanilla
Peppermint & Vanilla
Rose & Sandalwood
Note: Do not use essential oil sprays on furnishings or around cats.
Generally, this homemade air deodorizer is considered pet-safe (for dogs and cats). However, avoid using lemon essential oil if you own cats. They lack a specific liver enzyme to break down the d-limonene in lemon essential oil.
Pro Tips
- Use non-reactive cookware: Like stainless steel or enamel (avoid aluminum) when using acidic ingredients, like lemon.
- Monitor while simmering: Don’t let the water dry out to avoid burning the lemons and rosemary. For a simmer pot, check every 30-40 minutes.
- Use scraps: Using peels, wilted herbs, and other scraps (from recipes like this lemon dressing, easy lemon popsicles, lemon poppyseed cake, and vegan lemon blueberry loaf) is perfect for reducing waste. Compost leftovers.
Usage Ideas
A simple, refreshing homemade air freshener spray is a wonderful way to freshen up any space, including:
- Throughout your house
- Lightly spray pillows, curtains, cushions, and blankets
- Left in the bathroom
- To refresh your car
- Take on vacation to combat hotel room smells
You can also dilute with equal parts vinegar to create an all-purpose cleaner/surface cleaner.
More Ways To Use Lemon
Vegan Dinners
Buttery Lemon Tofu and Asparagus
Vegan Desserts
Vegan Lemon Loaf Cake
Vegan Desserts
Lemon Blueberry Cookies
Vegan Desserts
3-Ingredient Lemon Glaze
If you tried this homemade air deodorizer recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks!
Homemade Air Deodorizer (+ Simmer Pot)
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Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 2 lemons sliced (or peelings of 4 lemons)
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
Instructions
- Add the water, lemon slices, rosemary, and vanilla extract (if using) to a medium pot.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
- Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer gently.
- Allow it to simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the kitchen smells fresh and fragrant.
- Keep an eye on the pot and add more water as needed to prevent it from drying out.
Notes
- Use non-reactive cookware: Like stainless steel or enamel (avoid aluminum) when using acidic ingredients, like lemon.
- Monitor while simmering: Don’t let the water dry out to avoid burning the lemons and rosemary. For a simmer pot, check every 30-40 minutes.
- Use scraps: Using peels, wilted herbs, and other scraps is perfect to reduce waste. Compost leftovers.
Love this all natural and I’m sure smells amazing! Definitely will try!
It’s incredibly fresh and clean!
Perfect idea! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
It’s a great one for that clean feeling!
I love, love home recipes like this! I just recently planted rosemary in my garden, so I can’t wait to try this. Thank you! Yay, fresh house!
Awesome!! Let us know how it goes for you 🙂
i made a couple bottles today and my home smells so wonderful now
Awesome! It’s a winner!
With 2 cats and a compost bin that fills up instantly, this was the perfect way to freshen our house. My mother in law even commented that the house smelled to fresh and clean LOL.
Love to hear that! It’s definitely a big help in our house too!
This works so well! I am a bit obsessed with having a nice smelling house, and I only use natural sprays. They’re so expensive at the store I wanted to find a DIY version – this spray is perfect. It works better than the store bought stuff and is super easy to make!
It’s definitely a winner!
Wonderful combination of lemons and rosemary. I am always looking for ways to freshen my home.
This is the one!
now I know what to do with my lemon peels, thanks for this! I use vanilla too.
I bet the vanilla smells amazing too!
I love the smell of rosemary so much but never thought to use it as a deodorizer. Thanks so much!
It’s quite refreshing!
Love this! Thanks for sharing!
It smells so lovely!
What a great way to repurpose your leftover lemon peels!!
Yesss! Smells so refreshing and clean!
So refreshing!