Making Incense

FRAGRANCE OIL & CUTTING AGENTS:
The first ingredient is fragrance oil. This must be mixed with a diluting agent. Many people use an alcohol based diluents, this is NOT a good diluting agent, as these ingredients are called accelerants, and are not desirable in Incense. It makes the incense smoke, and burn too fast. Straight fragrance oil, can sometimes cause excessive smoking, and will not always give you the best product. The best diluting agent is DPG -Dipropylene Glycol. It is a clear to pale yellow odorless oil, which, in laymen's terms, simply makes the oil "Wetter", thus it is easily absorbed into the incense sticks or cones. DPG will not necessarily cut the strength of the oil unless you cut it by too much. In other words you should not cut the fragrance oil with DPG in more than 2 parts DPG to 1 part Fragrance Oil. You will want to find the ratio that is best for each particular oil. Some oils are simply stronger and can be cut with DPG up to 3 times, other oils may have a softer fragrance and can only accommodate up to 1 or 2 times cutting with DPG. You will have to decide which is best, but the general rule is 1 Part Fragrance Oil to 2 Parts DPG. I get asked if the Flash Point of a Fragrance Oil must be at a certain range to be able to use in Incense. The answer is no. The flash point does not matter in Incense. In general any fragrance oil can work for incense. Fragrance oils made for soaps or candles can be used for incense.

INCENSE STICKS & CONES:
The most important part of making a good hand dipped incense is to use quality sticks or cones. No preparation is needed for the sticks. Incense sticks come bundled in approximately 100 count tied with a wax twine. These can be submerged directly into the fragrance oil, and dried all in the bundle. Many feel that you can get better absorption by untying the bundles, this is a personal preference. Cut fragrance oil as desired Place the oil in a tall glass vase or jar, make sure that the punk - the burning part - of the incense would be completely submerged in the oil. Large tall vases can be found at Dept. stores, or any florist shop. It is best to use glass, as these can be washed and no residue will be left in the container. You can also use a shallow glass baking dish, or any container that will allow the incense sticks to be submerged in the oil. The sticks actually do not need to be completely submerged, you can pour the oil over the incense and gently 'stir' the sticks every few minutes. Either place the incense in the container with the cut fragrance oil, or if you are using a dish, pour the oil over the incense. For cones you can use any glass bowl, simply place the incense in a shallow glass dish and pour the cut fragrance oil over the cones.

SOAK THE INCENSE COMPLETELY for about 1 hour.
This is the most important thing you can do! Hand dipped does not mean to quickly dip the incense, it actually means to soak the incense in the fragrance oil. After the incense has been completely soaked, remove and dry. Save any left over oil, it can be reused. Lay the incense on a breathable surface, such as window screening, with paper towels or newspapers place under the screening. Leave until dry.