Homemade All Natural Bug Spray
I love me a good home design magazine… and I wish this post were an announcement that I am being featured in one (like my friend Roeshel just announced! Way to go Roeshel!). Alas, it is just me talking about reading magazines, but still, I can retain the being featured dream.
Anyway, I was reading my May edition of Country Living magazine and they had the greatest all-natural bug spray recipe that I HAD to try my hand at making.
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So I went to the store and bought my essential oils, lemongrass, eucalyptus and citronella oil, which can be found at any health food store. I purchased the witch hazel at Walmart, cuz the specialty store’s version was $12 dollars ($1.44 at Wally world by the way! Score!).
The article also had a great link to some beautiful glass bottles… but let’s get real here – this is a kid-friendly house and metal or plastic is better. What I ended up finding were some tiny 2 oz spray bottles in the travel bins at Walmart too. They were about a buck. (and technically they hold about 4 ounces)
Important note: I’ve learned a bit since this post first published a few years back, and, as convenient and cheap as plastic bottles are, they aren’t good for long-term storage for essential oils (and metal containers can react with some oils or blends). Glass bottles are best, and you can get them pretty darn cheap here on Amazon.
Homemade Natural Bug Spray Recipe
Ingredients
3 1 ⁄2 ounces (which is basically 1/3 cup) of Witch Hazel
1 ⁄2 teaspoon Lemongrass Oil
1 ⁄ 2 teaspoon Eucalyptus Oil
1 ⁄ 2 teaspoon Citronella Oil
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a small four-ounce spray bottle. Country Living had a great source for cheap: an amber glass mister for $1.07 at Specialtybottle.com — this 6 pack is similarly priced, or this 12-pack is even cheaper per bottle!
When you use it, be sure to shake the bottle contents before spraying (You can see in the picture below how the oils separate from the witch hazel) p.s. It smells divine!
Since the weather has been nice enough to enjoy, we’ve spent a lot of time outside. I had to show these funny pictures. We got the girls new bathing suits. The tops are fine but the bottoms don’t fit at all. Oh well, they were wearing diapers anyway. But I had to get some low rider pictures before I helped Lydia cuz it was so funny!
Let me know what you think if you make it!
What have you all been up to lately?
More ideas for your summer:
A collection of The Best Outdoor Projects to DIY this summer
7 Ways to Get Your Patio Ready for Summer
Cassity Kmetzsch started Remodelaholic after graduating from Utah State University with a degree in Interior Design. Remodelaholic is the place to share her love for knocking out walls, and building everything back up again to not only add function but beauty to her home. Together with her husband Justin, they have remodeled 6 homes and are working on a seventh. She is a mother of four amazing girls. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.
when applying to pets, the solution is to only apply from the back of their neck down to base of their tail so that they cannot get their mouths to it.
I have used Ivory soap all my life and never had a red bug aka chigger or a tick until I tried another soap for a few days and got red bugs. I went and got me a bar of Ivory soap lathered up let it dry for 30 mins and the next day they were gone. Also cinnimon essental oil sprayed in the corners of your home will keep spiders away. sorry for spellings my fingers get excited lol.
Will this work on ticks as well? You usually need deet for that.
Not sure I would rely on it for ticks! You might have to do some research for ticks.
I wouldn’t use it for ticks–but Tea Tree Oil works wonders! Here is the solution that we use, not only for our dogs, but for us, too.
I will try to make up a batch of this to try it out, thanks! For simplicity, my neighbors and I have grown fond of using plain, yellow mouthwash in a spray bottle. Listerine is fine and so is the $1 store brand – bugs can’t tell the difference.
It has worked around our neighborhood as well as on the trail (we’re Scout leaders).
Another very portable bug repellent (but maybe not as green) is Bounce fabric softeners. I always have a few in a Ziploc in my backpack. Rub one (or part of one) on your arms, neck, and hat and then stick in in your front pocket, shirt collar or under your hat to keep bugs away.
Are these food grade oils? They’re not the oils sold for burning…correct?
They are essential oils. I don’t think that they are for burning.
I use about the same recipe as you have posted here but add a little vinegar. I think it helps to mix the oils with the witch hazel. About a scant tablespoon to your recipe.
That is really interesting and a good tip. I will have to try it myself. Thank you for your comment.
Sounds great, I will have to give the recipe to my daughter. Unfortunately, I am allergic to Eucalyptus so I can not use it.
Where in Wal-Mart did you find the witch hazel?
By the band-aids and like rubbing alcohol…
I made this. It smelled great! I bought the little plastic walmart travel size squrit bottles and 4 weeks in my bottles started to melt! I stored them in my panty in a cool dry place. I guess I could buy glass, but my boys are two and four and I was trying to be safer with plastic. Anyone else experience this?
Amy, I haven’t had any problems with the plastic, although I believe another commenter said it wasn’t good to use the plastic, but I haven’t had a chance to research it. I too have a 2 and 4 year old and the glass is sure to be dropped… Anywho, sorry i can’t help you out more!
These Essential Oils *will* “eat through” many plastics. I agree that glass isn’t the way to go… perhaps a small cute aluminum bottle would work?
I heard when I bought the essential oils that metal is a bad choice too? So maybe glass IS the only way to go?
Soooooo cute!!!
Love the swim suit photos. So miss those days. My girls are soon to be 21 and 19 🙁
Time flies so quick. Cherish every minute u have because u blink and they are graduating or going to college or whatever their path brings. It happens so fast.
You have a beautiful family.
God bless
Thanks for the comment Beth.
So it must. Be bed time. I was thinking bug spray like raid. Not like off! Anyway I never use the stuff with the deet in it. It creeps me out and I just don’t think it works well. My mom in law sells Avon and I have always bought skin so soft. Mostly spray or sunscreen. It really works for me and my family and believe me Mosquitos love me and my son. One bite usually swells to about 4 inch diameter circle. Whenever I have the Avon products on I’m all good.
If I did not have the Avon stuff available I would def try this. Thx for recipe.
You are welcome Beth.
thanks for the recipe. We were out this evening with our dogs and we could only stand being out for a couple minutes the bugs were eating us alive. I hate using chemical bug spray but didn’t know that there were other options (kinda new to the essential oil idea). found you on pinterest. i wonder if i could use it on the dogs?
I cannot say, maybe ask you vet!!
This is a great and it works. My only concern when you are using plastic bottles, which trust me I would do the same because I have children too–eucalyptus oil and lemongrass are very very powerful strong oil. They NEED to be in glass bottles because they are corrosive. If left for too long your kids might be getting a little more then you bargained for. You’re call of course. I use essential oils every day and work with them so I know about they properties and stuff. Just be careful. The oils will corrode thru the plastic very easily.
Thanks Anj! So I suspect metal would be the same too? Right?
I love your site, thank you so much for your ideas. They have been very helpful.
God Bless you.
Thanks Kathie! What a sweet compliment!
I made this and it did eat through the plastic. It also did not work at all for me or my husband. We sprayed it all over us and still had Mosquitos swarming. I was a little disappointed since it took me a while to find the citronella oil.
Achely, sorry to hear about the man-eating mosquitoes. Thanks for the feedback on the plastic.
Thanks for sharing this! We made some at the beginning of the summer and it’s working for us! I’m posting about it, and linking to your post here:
https://everneveragain.blogspot.com/2013/07/homemade-bug-spray.html
Thanks Haley!
I use a product called Sweetly Citron I found on Amazon. It is all natural and smells good. Works great.
Thanks for the top Chris!
Bookmarked! Probably smells way better than the commercial stuff too.
Just a mention on the plastic bottles – glass is recommended for use with essential oils as the oil “breaks down” the plastic…then you have the chemicals/compounds that the plastic is made up of as part of your spray, and that too is being applied wherever you are applying the essential oils…if the contents of the bottle are going to be used very quickly, this issue may be something that you wouldn’t be concerned about…nice tutorial by the way!
That is good to know Cindy! Thanks!
If you use the glass bottles maybe take a can cooler and tape around the glass bottle? Just an idea. My aunt and her friend both sell doterra I Oils and said not to put it in plastic so this is just a thought.