Scented candles aren’t just for winter folks! We love them all year round and believe that filling your home with wonderful natural fragrance is incredibly important to your wellbeing, and there are many more ways than just candles to do just that. Founder of independent home fragrance brand Essence and Alchemy, Lesley Bramwell, has just publishes her first book – Fragrance your Home – and in it shares her knowledge on how to enhance your living space with natural scent – including 22 natural fragrance projects….
Lesley studied Environmental Science at university, and it was during her time there that she became intrigued by aromatherapy and the power of plants for healing and wellbeing. Throughout her early career as an environmental consultant, essential oils were always to hand, ready to help in times of stress or pain, or to simply fragrance her home.
Her love for aromatherapy combined with her scientific background has since led her to change career path and Lesley now runs her own brand Essence + Alchemy, producing the most wonderful candles, incense, room mists and more from her home ‘lab’.
In her book, Lesley shares her knowledge and passion for creating natural scent, and gives you the tools to get started on creating your own fragrances at home. She explains why natural is best, the benefits of essential oils and even describes how to put together a starter kit of some of the most versatile oils. She doesn’t stop at only using oils though, she also highlights the various botanicals we can either grow, forage or buy to incorporate into our home scent projects.
As you progress through the book, Lesley then provides a list of equipment worth getting hold of to help you in creating your own candles and other fragrance projects, followed by the individual tutorials for making everything from pot pourri and smudge sticks to herbal wreaths and wooden scented balls.
The project section of the book is separated into rooms, so aligns the ideas with the needs of that particular space in your home. Your workspace, for example, will require a different approach to the kitchen or the bathroom, there are even some lovely ideas for scenting children’s rooms, such as a cute clay diffuser in playful shapes that would be a fun project to get the kids involved in.
There is no denying that smell has a profound effect on us humans and can really alter our mood. It is also so important for our health that we are not breathing in anything synthetic or toxic, especially within our own homes. So ditch those plug-ins and synthetically-scented candles and start creating your very own custom-made home fragrances! I, for one, can’t wait to get started!
Now available to buy directly from Lesley’s website, Essence and Alchemy
Fragrance Your Home by Lesley Bramwell (Quadrille, £15) Photography ©Philippa Langley
