People do use unsealed and thus porous polymer clay, lava beads and wood as a diffuser material for essential oils. Some of you may remember my little test on a simple elasticated lava and gemstone bracelet  I made. The scent lasted several days if you added more than one drop onto each lava bead. 

I wondered if there was a way of making the scent last longer on wood?




Yes, indeed there is.  Using a shadow box or inlay style of laser cut wood means the scent is trapped longer as the air flow is restricted within the cells. 

I have a number of shadow box style pendants in different shapes and styles in my shop. 


But I have added a new style - the lotus flower shadow box.  You can choose between a single hole or double holes if you wish to hang a dangle or tassel below. 



Even the plain frames can be used with a focal glued on for interest as shown in my previous tutorial for a bird pendant.  The key to making a wood diffuser out of these inlay pendants is to leave the inner area of the lower piece unfinished. This allows the diffuser oil to seep and stay in the wood. 


But you can paint or stain the rest of the wood if you want some color.  My favorite wood stain is the water based ones from Saman, a Canadian company based in Montreal. Just check your local hardware stores. 

First sand the wood and then use a sponge applicator to apply the stain. Best to wear gloves if you don't want to go around with walnut stain on your hands for the rest of the day!



Once the stain is dry, then glue the two matching pieces together. My favorite and recommended glue is Starbond Medium (see my past review on this excellent family of craft glues). 

You do not need much. Be sparing and do not overload especially with the smaller pieces like the lotus flowers. You do not want the glue to seep into the unfinished section as you want to leave it porous. 


I like Saman's natural beeswax wood polish and conditioner for final buffing. You can use whatever you have - just don't cover the unfinished inner surface. 


The last step is to add your prefered bails and necklaces. Easy gift idea!


You can also use the cells of the pieces to fill in with resin and fun materials like glitter if you don't want to make diffuser pendants.  Just go slow when filling!

The pendant on the right (below) was not as carefully glued together as the square design. You can see some of the excess glue had seeped out and is visible. 







There is not a lot of scientific evidence for essential oils as treatments for ailments. But many people do find the scent like that of lavender to be relaxing and calming.  Using a diffuser pendant is arguably one of the safest ways. It is not directly on your skin and will not affect others who may have an adverse reaction to the scent.  For more information, read  John Hopkins Medicine's  Aromatherapy: Do Essential Oils Really Work?

Before You Go :

Photography
I used  my iPhone 8+ and photo editing apps in natural light.  My online class Easy Guide to Smartphone Jewelry Photography is now available. Read more about it here.  

Disclosure 

This blog may contain affiliate links. I do receive a small fee for any products purchased through affiliate links. This goes towards the support of this blog and to provide resource information to readers. The opinions expressed are solely my own. They would be the same whether or not I receive any compensation. 
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Original Post by THE BEADING GEM