Frankincense is used in several cultures with different purposes, for example to increase the emphasis in religious ceremonies or for aromatherapy. The process of making incense sticks is quite simple and very satisfying for people who want to prepare a personalized aroma.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Quickly Make Incense Sticks (with Essential Oils)
Step 1. Purchase a pack of neutral unscented incense sticks
You can find them online, in health food stores and in ethnic product stores. This type of incense is sold as "neutral" or "odorless" and is particularly cheap - 3 or 4 euros for a whole pack.
The thick and rubbery layer that covers the outside of the stick is essential to absorb the aroma; so don't try to use a simple old bamboo stick
Step 2. Get your favorite essential oils, mixing and matching them according to your tastes
They are usually available on the shelves of personal care products in large supermarkets; these are highly concentrated perfumed liquids, capable of penetrating incense sticks. You can use just one with an intense aroma or buy several essential oils and mix them together. The most common scents for incense are:
- Woody scents: sandalwood, pine, cedar, juniper, Colorado pine;
- Green scents: sage, thyme, lemongrass, rosemary, star anise;
- Floral scents: lavender, iris, rose, saffron, hibiscus;
- Others: cinnamon, orange blossom, vanilla, frankincense, myrrh, aromatic calamus.
Step 3. Mix 20 drops of your favorite essential oils in a small, shallow dish
If you want to perfume one stick at a time, this dose is enough; however, you shouldn't make more than 4-5 sticks at a time. If you have decided to perfume 5 all together, you need 100 drops of oil, about 4 ml.
If you are mixing multiple flavors, start with a few drops until you find the combination you like. There are very few blends that smell "bad", but you should always experiment to find the perfume you like the most
Step 4. Place the sticks in the dish and turn them so that the oil bathes the entire surface
If the sticks are too big for the dish, transfer the oils onto a partially V-folded aluminum foil so there are no leaks. Make sure the sticks absorb the oils along their entire length.
Step 5. Rotate and gently press the sticks until all the oil is absorbed
It shouldn't take long, but you still have to move things around to ensure an even coating. When there is no more oil in the pot, you can move on to the next steps.
Step 6. Place the sticks in a cup, with the incense coated end facing up, to dry overnight
They need about 12-15 hours to dry before they are ready to burn. In this phase they release a wonderful scent, which means that they "work" for a whole day even without burning them!
Step 7. Alternatively, mix the flavors with glycol dipropylene and leave the sticks to soak overnight in test tubes; in this way you get stronger sticks
The name of the chemical may sound strange, but it is a substance that is readily available online and in the same shops where you can find odorless incense. Always using 20 drops per stick, mix the oil with the glycol dipropylene in long, thin tubes, so that each stick is immersed in the liquid. Put the sticks in the mixture and leave them to soak for 24 hours; then let them dry for another 24 hours before using them.
You can replace the glycol dipropylene with a candle or potpourri oil, both of which dilute and diffuse the fragrance
Method 2 of 3: Making the Incense Sticks by Hand
Step 1. Choose which aromas you want to mix with incense and take one or two tablespoons each
To start, try mixing just two or three different fragrances and then add more as you master the technique. Although it is not difficult to prepare incense, it is a process that evolves through trial and error of mixing, since the various perfumes require different doses of water and Makko powder (the combustible and binding ingredient). You can buy the following whole or powdered aromatic products, but be aware that those already pulverized are easier to use:
- Herbs and spices: cassia, juniper leaves, lemongrass, lavender, sage, thyme, rosemary, orange, patchouli;
- Vegetable resins and gums: acacia, amber, copal, hibiscus, myrrh, pine resin;
- Dried woods: juniper, pine, Colorado pine, cedar, sandalwood, agarwood.
Step 2. Take notes to note the doses of perfume you use if you plan to make incense often
The amount of water and binding agent you need to use depends on the doses of the powdered ingredients, so remember to keep track of them right away. Generally, one or two tablespoons of each ingredient are mixed, but you can always increase the doses if necessary.
Incense "recipes" typically provide dosages in "parts" or proportions, just like cocktails. So, if the directions say "2 parts sandalwood and 1 part rosemary", you can use two tablespoons of sandalwood and one of rosemary or 400 g of sandalwood and 200 of rosemary and so on
Step 3. Mix and grind all the ingredients you have chosen with the help of the pestle and mortar
If you are using fresh ingredients instead of poor ones, you will need to pulverize them as finely as possible. A spice grinder can be useful, but avoid electric coffee grinders, as the heat they emit can disperse some of the aromatic compounds. When proceeding to this stage of preparation remember:
- Grind the wood first, as it is the hardest and most difficult to pulverize. If you have major difficulties with this ingredient, ignore the ban on using the electric grinder, as this material is quite robust and should not lose large amounts of perfume.
- Freeze the gums or resins for 30 minutes before grinding them. When frozen they are harder and therefore easier to pulverize.
Step 4. Let the powder sit for a few hours for the aromas to combine
When all the ingredients have been ground, mix them together one last time and let the mixture rest again. Although it is not a mandatory step, it allows you to obtain a more compact and fragrant incense.
Step 5. Determine the required amount of Makko powder to add by calculating a percentage of the dry ingredients
Makko is a rubbery and flammable substance, which must be mixed respecting certain proportions in order for it to burn properly. Unfortunately, there is no universally valid rule and you will have to proceed by trial and error, as each aromatic product requires different doses of Makko:
- If you are using only herbs and spices, you will need to add 10-25% Makko;
- If you have opted for resins, you will have to use larger quantities of Makko, a variable percentage between 40% and 80%, depending on the dose of resins. All mixtures composed only of resins need 80% Makko.
Step 6. Multiply the weight of the spices by the percentage of Makko to find the exact dose of this ingredient
If you have 100 g of powders with little resin in them, you should add 40 g of Makko (100 ∗ 40% = 40g { displaystyle 100 * 40 \% = 40g}
). Puoi eseguire questo semplice calcolo con qualunque dose di polvere e percentuale di combustibile.
Puoi sempre incrementare il dosaggio del Makko, ma ridurlo è un problema. Se hai dei dubbi, inizia quindi con la quantità minima stimata
Step 7. Set aside a small portion of the mixture
Take about 10% and save, as it allows you to thicken the mixture in case you add too much water in the next step, thus "saving" the entire batch of incense.
Step 8. Using a pipette or dropper, slowly add warm distilled water to the incense mixture to create a paste
You have to get a consistency similar to plasticine, as the Makko absorbs the water and becomes a kind of clay. When finished, you need to have something that holds its shape but is still malleable. Add 3-5 drops of water, mix the ingredients and pour more until you have a firm, moist, but not slimy ball. When it reaches the correct consistency, the dough can be crushed while maintaining the new shape without showing dehydration cracks.
If you add too much water, try to pour the excess water out of the bowl and add the powder you set aside to dry the mixture
Step 9. Knead the dough with your hands for several minutes
At this stage you need to apply constant pressure. Use the base of your palm to squeeze the ball onto the countertop, flattening it slightly like a puck. Next, fold the disc back on itself by shaping it back into a thick ball to be squeezed once more. Repeat this process several times for several minutes, turning the dough from time to time to change the area you are treating.
If you want to make professional incense, let the dough rest under a damp cloth overnight after processing. The next morning sprinkle it with more water, knead it and then continue the procedure
Step 10. Peel off a 3-5 cm piece of dough and shape it into a long, thin rectangle
Using the palm of your hand, roll the incense fragment, as if you were modeling a clay snake, to create a string the length of ¾ of the stick. Flatten the small rope with your fingers. When finished, you should get a strip that is only a few millimeters thick.
If you don't want to use the sticks, you can leave the incense in the shape of a "snake". Cut the edges with a knife and let it dry as it is, with no stick inside
Step 11. Place a clean stick on the strip of dough and roll it all up to cover ¾ of the length of the stick
You need perfectly clean bamboo sticks that you can buy online for a few euros. Afterwards, you just have to roll the incense around the stick using your fingers.
The stick should be slightly less thick than a regular pencil
Step 12. Arrange the sticks on a small wax paper-lined board to dry, rotating them once or twice a day
To speed up the process, put the plank in a paper bag and seal it. Remember to rotate the sticks so that the incense dries evenly.
Step 13. After four or five days, when the dough retains its shape and is dry to the touch, you can burn the sticks
If the dough does not come off the sticks and is no longer moldable, it is ready to use! If you live in a humid region, it will take five days to wait. However, in drier climates, frankincense dries up in a day or two.
The more water and Makko you used, the longer it will take to dry
Method 3 of 3: Tested Incense Recipes
Step 1. Keep track of your experiments by noting how the compound burns
When making homemade incense, you need to make a few attempts to find the correct proportions of water, Makko and aromatic ingredients. To make sure you learn from mistakes, write down the doses and proportions you use as you try the following recipes or ones you invent yourself:
- If you can't set the incense on fire, try adding more Makko to the next preparation;
- If the predominant scent is Makko or the stick burns very quickly, reduce the amount of this powder.
Step 2. Try a few recipes with a high percentage of sandalwood to get the "classic" scent of incense
It is one of the most common and appreciated aromas. The proportions described below should help you prepare this fast-burning perfume:
- Two parts of sandalwood, one of frankincense, one of mastic and one of lemongrass;
- Two parts of sandalwood, one part of cassia and one part of cloves;
- Two parts of sandalwood, one of galangal, one of myrrh, half of cinnamon and half of borneol.
Step 3. Try vanilla based incense
The recipe described below can be modified and adapted to personal tastes. Add a few cloves and cinnamon, to give the mixture spicy notes or integrate woody scents, such as cedar, to obtain a "rustic" incense:
One part of palosanto, one part of tolu balsam, one part of benzoin resin, 1/4 of a part of powdered vanilla pod
Step 4. Experiment with woody scents
You can substitute cedar for pine and add a little myrrh to give the mixture the traditional fragrance of incense:
Two parts of cedar, one of vetiver, one of lavender flowers, half of benzoin and a handful of dried rose petals
Step 5. Make a "Christmas incense"
This recipe can be adapted with exceptional results by using cinnamon bits or cloves or by adding vanilla. Although the ingredients include fresh pine needles, you can use dried and pulverized ones, even if they don't release a very intense aroma:
One part of pine needles, half part of fir needles, half part of sassafras powder, 1/2 part of white cedar leaves (western thuja) and 1/4 of a part of cloves
Step 6. Make an incense whose scent creates a romantic and passionate atmosphere
The intense, floral and grassy notes of lavender combine in an exciting scent that few can resist. It is infallible in 60% of cases:
One part of ground lavender flowers, one part of ground rosemary leaves, 1/2 part of crushed rose petals, 4 parts of powdered red sandalwood
Advice
- Experiment with different combinations of resins, woods and herbs until you get the mixture you like best. You can also try new techniques for making incense and learn how to use the ingredients.
- It may be necessary to add only 10% Makko powder to the mixture, depending on the flavor chosen, for example if you are using sandalwood instead of frankincense.
- Wear rubber gloves to protect your hands when mixing ingredients and sticking them to the sticks.
- Break the sticks that don't produce the expected result and repeat the process all over again.
- Protect the incense sticks from direct sunlight and heat as they dry.
Warnings
- Do not leave incense unattended when it burns. Always light the sticks in a well-ventilated room, out of the reach of children and pets.
- Never try to dry the incense by putting it in the oven or microwave, as it could cause a fire.
