Sean Paradis

Incense has been used for thousands of years in religion, and in recent generations, as a method of aromatherapy in homes. Incense evokes a sense of luxury, of being in an exotic place where spices and aromas lift our spirits. “The popularity of aromatherapy has led to a growing interest in incense as a means to make our homes more welcoming, more inviting, more pleasant” (Sams & Schwartz, 1999, p. 2). Incense can be bought in hundreds of stores, including retail, metaphysical, and many other stores. The best way to make incense is to combine your chosen ingredients with a base, add potassium nitrate, and bind it with a gum tragacanth glue. The key to making incense is choosing the right ingredients.

When choosing the scent of the incense you want to make, research information on the individual scents, and their effect on the brain. The scents of the ingredients used in incense have a great effect on human emotions. For example, “lavender imparts a very fresh, clean scent and is used in aromatherapy to induce relaxation” (Sans & Schwartz, 1999, p. 12). Another example, is the scent of rosemary. “Rosemary has a fresh piney scent associated with memory-enhancing properties and youth” (Sams & Schwartz, 1999, p. 13).

Incense can be made with various herb combinations to produce different scents, affecting the brain differently;
There are two aspects to selecting a recipe. The first, and most important, factor is the materials available to you. Do a quick inventory of what herbs, resins, and wood you have in your cupboard and compare that to your recipes. Some incense blends are created simply because those were the items the incense maker had on hand The second thing to consider when picking a recipe is the desired result. (Neal, 2003, p. 55)

With so many supermarkets running today along with the internet, buying herbs and other ingredients is easy.
As you step into a grocery store, and work your way into the aisle containing herbs, you will be greeted by racks of herbs, depending on the inventory carried by the store. Having a supply of herbs available to you locally can avoid the hassle of shipping fees, and waiting for your items to ship. Another type of store to buy from is a metaphysical store, who will often carry herbs specifically for incense recipes. If stores don’t have the herbs required for a recipe, the next stop is the internet.

With web sites like Amazon.com and EBay, buying herbs and other incense ingredients becomes easier. Often times, buyers are able to find herbs in bulk, allowing ingredients to be bought for a cheaper price. Often times, with bulk items, shipping charges may be free. After buying the ingredients needed for the incense recipe, mixing begins.

When mixing ingredients the key to the best formed incense is to have the herbs as finely ground as possible. According To Wylundt, the best tool to use when grinding herbs is a mortar and pestle.
One of the best tools to use to grind down the recipe’s ingredients, is a mortar and pestle. A mortar and pestle allows you to grind ingredients to the fullest potential. By grinding ingredients into as fine of a powder as possible, the final incense, no matter what form, will burn with a higher quality aroma, and at a steady rate. (1996, p. 13)

Some recipes may call for a resin. “A resin is derived from the sap of plants. Once processed, it resembles tiny tan or dark brown pebbles” (Sans & Schwartz, 1999, p. 2). An easier way to grind resins, is to use a coffee grinder. You can use a mortar and pestle, but resins are tough to grind by hand. After all of the ingredients have been ground to a powder, they’re mixed together.

If a recipe is being followed, simply add the proportions of the ingredients together according to the recipe. A tool to use in measuring out the amounts is a kitchen scale, or a postal scale. Another tool to use is a set of measuring spoons. If the incense ingredient proportions are being free lanced, more effort is involved to create the final incense.

As the ingredients are being added, it’s best to test them. “When making your own recipes, keep a lit piece of charcoal nearby to burn bits of pieces of plants or drops of oils… Try burning pinches of items under consideration before incorporating them into a batch of incense” (Sans & Schwartz, 1999, p. 30). Sometimes, an ingredient may seem like it will smell pleasent, until it’s burned. It’s always easier to change the amount of the ingredient, rather than having to start the entire batch from scratch.

After picking the herbs needed and powdering and mixing them, the dough needs to be bound:
The use of a base is necessary because most herbs burn poorly without one. The base also helps take the bitterness out of an herb, or makes its fragrance milder. Many herbs are too strong, pungent, bitter, or overpowering when burned by themselves. A good base will usually correct these faults, while still retaining the basic scent of the herb. (Wylundt, 1996, p. 5)
The following is a sample base recipe. “6 parts powdered sandalwood, 2 parts powdered Benzoin, 1 part ground orris root, 6 drops essential oil (use the oil form of one of the incense ingredients), 3 to 5 parts of the incense mixture” (Cunningham, 1989, p. 52).

After the base has been added, potassium nitrate must be added. Potassium nitrate is a powder that allows the incense to burn when lighted. Caution is needed when adding the nitrate to the incense. Potassium nitrate is a highly flammable powder. If too much is added, it can be highly combustible when lit. However, too little, and the incense won’t burn evenly. A simple formula to use is to take ten percent of the total incense recipes weight, and at that much potassium nitrate (Cunningham, 1989).

The final step is to bind the incense. The most common method is to add a mixture of gum tragacanth and water to the incense mixture. “A teaspoon of the powder in a cup of very warm water quickly thickens it into a glue” (Sans & Schwartz, 1999, p.10). Once the glue is formed, add it to the incense mixture, and mix it thoroughly. An alternative powder to use is gum acacia, also known as gum Arabic. “Gum Arabic absorbs less water but is treated the same way” (Fettner, 1977, p.107). After this has been done, the incense can be formed. The most common forms are sticks and cones.

To make stick incense, take a piece of the dough-like incense mixture, and place it on a flat surface. Using the palm of your hands, roll the mixture out, until it resembles a thin rod. To make a cone incense, take a piece of dough, place it between your thumb, index, and middle finger, and shape into a small cone. After all of the dough has been formed, the incense needs to be dried.

Wood is one of the best surfaces to use to dry incense. Not only can it be used to dry all forms of incense, it is also economical to use. To dry cones, simply place them on the board vertically, and after an hour, lay them flat. If you leave them standing vertically, the cone will not dry evenly. Another side effect of this is that the saltpeter will settle to the bottom. When this happens, the top of the cone doesn’t burn well, and the bottom burns too quickly. To dry stick incense, drill holes about one inch apart in the wood board, and place the sticks vertically. (Wylundt, 1996)

The best way to store dried incense is in a sealable container. This way the scent of the incense will be preserved longer. It’s best not to mix different scented incense. When this happens, the scents contaminate each other, creating a universal scent for each incense (Wylundt, 1996). Incense can be stored for months at a time, and still have a fresh scent. One of the benefits to making your own incense is that you know you will have the freshest incense as possible.

Now that your incense has dried, you can burn and enjoy the scent of the burning product. Apart from having fresh, clean smelling incense, there are other benefits to hand- making incense, especially if you have allergies. “When you make your own incense, you can (and should) avoid ingredients that you dislike or that cause an allergic reaction” (Neal, 2003, p. xxi). If you are eco-friendly, you can also benefit from hand making incense:

Incense making also gives you far greater control over the ethical concerns of your incense. Most incense makers (myself included) never add animal products to their incense. Some incense makers prefer to avoid use of rare ingredients out of respect for the Earth, while others feel it is the greatest way to honor Her. (Neal, 2003, p. xxi)

Always remember, the best way to make incense is to combine your chosen ingredients with a base, add potassium nitrate, and bind it with a gum tragacanth glue. By making your own incense, you have the control over what ingredients are added, and the proportions of each ingredient.

References

 

Cunningham, S. (1989). The complete book of incense, oils, & brews. Woodbury: Llewellyn Publications.

 Fettner, A. T. (1977). Potpourri, incense, and other fragrant concoctions. New York: Workman Publishing.

 Neal, C. (2003). Incense crafting & use of magickal scents. St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications.

 Sams, T., & Schwartz, M. (1999). Making your own incense. North Adams: Storey Publishing.

 Wylundt,. (1996). Wylundt’s book of incense. York Beach: Samuel Weiser