Funny enough this is something I’ve been making at home far before I knew how to cook or blog. I’ve always hated the idea of spraying straight up poison onto my skin. And now of course that I am a mom, that hasn’t changed – in fact I’ve become even more obsessed about it, especially for the offspring.

So why am I now finally posting this handy dandy lil DIY? Because skeeter + tick seasons are here and with all the worries about Zika and Lyme of course, I figured now is the time as any to finally get this up. I love this spray because it smells fresh, feels invigorating in the heat, and is completely non-toxic. In fact, you may reap other benefits of this handy concoction that you never saw coming!

You’ll want to be sure you have a few things to get started:

-A glass spray bottle like THESE or smaller ones for tossing in your purse or backpack like THESE

The glass bottles are best when working with essential oils as some oils can compromise the plastic and corrode it.

You’ll also need to gather your essential oils. As I’ve mentioned before, I do not promote particular brands. I believe there are a lot of good products out there so you’ll want to use the ones you feel most comfortable using. I have used THESE and trust the name (as well as others) if you don’t know where to start. If you want to buy locally THIS brand can be found in many stores including Whole Foods and Vitamin Shoppe. I have used it too (I have oils from many brands) and they work just fine. I DO NOT INGEST ANY OILS as a general personal rule so I’ve had great success with multiple brands.

Okay, now that THAT’S out of the way – here are the oils I used for this recipe:

• Lavender
• Tea Tree Oil
• Geranium
• Lemon
• Citronella

This combination smells amazing and I love the geranium oil because it repels ticks too! And of course with my history of Lyme disease, I try to be extra careful especially in warmer months. Want to know more about that? You can read more of my story HERE!

So how much do you need of each oil? Well that depends on how much you are making. I like making it very concentrated so that it is more potent. I want bugs to be officially offended and disgusted by my smell so they stay the heck away. Seriously.

You’ll also need water and rubbing alcohol. I use about 1/2 and 1/2 alcohol and water ratio. The alcohol is very diluted and evaporates quickly. If you feel like you might lose your marbles over it, you can sub witch hazel.

So a 4 ounce small bottle would look something like this:

• 2 ounces water
• 2 ounces alcohol or witch hazel if you prefer
• 20 drops each of the essential oils (you can make this less or more strong)

If you make an 8 ounce bottle, you can double all of the above ingredients, or adjust them to your personal liking.

Tips for Using This BUG REPELLENT in other applications:

• Spray outside linens for a cookout to repel bugs from areas you are eating and socializing (including umbrellas, etc)
• Use on pets (away from eyes of course) and confirm specific oils are not dangerous for your animal (ex. wintergreen, thyme, clove, cassia, camphor, and oregano are not safe for dogs) – avoid high-phenol oils on dogs
• Spray in hair for extra coverage
• Add a bit of olive or avocado oil to the mixture to help it last longer and moisturize skin
• Make a reed diffuser with the above oils to place on outdoor dining tables (exclude water and alcohol, add olive or avocado oil)