Since Brooklyn Perfume Company is now offering hand sanitizer, I thought it would be fun to use a small amount of a precious substance to scent it.
I tried different essential oils—neroli, yuzu, verbena to name a few—but decided against them because too much was needed to scent the spray–I didn’t want to charge $100 for a bottle of hand sanitizer. Then I remembered geranium which, while not cheap (especially the African geranium essential oil I use), is much more projecting. The plant has a distinct aroma, as much in the leaves as in the flowers. Geranium is an important component of rose, but doesn’t smell like roses. In fact, it doesn’t really smell like geranium, but is rather more opulent.
I searched around the internet and found a stunning and complex example from Madagascar.
I put two drops of the essential oil into a beaker with a shot of ethanol. I didn’t smell it at first, so I added two more drops. After about an hour, the whole room smelled. I tested it on myself only to have it cling far longer than I wanted. I didn’t want to make it too strong because, after all, it’s not a perfume, but something evanescent that won’t cling and leave you smelling like a bright red flower.
I went back to my bench and added a drop of essential oil per ounce of a mixture of ethyl alcohol and glycerin. The glycerin prevents the alcohol from drying out hands. One must be careful, though, as too much leaves a sticky film and causes the scent to cling. I use about 15% which is lower than most. The rest is alcohol so the stuff is plenty strong while being delightfully delicious.