How To Make Incense

Here are a handful of recipes to get you started on the road to natural incense making. You can also use these recipes as a basis for creating your own, using aromatics and other ingredients that you prefer. All of the listed ingredients should be powdered and sifted before measuring.

Echoes of Japan

Let’s start with a recipe that was inspired by the land that has taken appreciation of incense to the highest level. This recipe includes nothing but classic Japanese ingredients.

Sandalwood: 2 teaspoons (base)

Clove: 1 teaspoon (base)

Tabu-no-ki: 2 teaspoons (binder)

Cinnamon: 1/2 teaspoon (aromatic)

Star anise: 1/2 teaspoon (aromatic)

Water: up to 4 teaspoons

Golden Sunset

This recipe incorporates elements from several different cultures to create one harmonious blend. For a fun variation, replace the myrrh with oppoponox (“sweet myrrh”). I like to use wine in place of water for this recipe.

Sandalwood: 1 Tablespoon (base)

Clove: 1/2 teaspoon (base)

Magic Makko: 2 teaspoons (base & binder)

Lavender: 1/2 teaspoon (aromatic)

Myrrh: 1/4 teaspoon (aromatic)

Palo Santo: 1/4 teaspoon (aromatic)

Water/wine: Up to 1 1/2 Tablespoons

Eastern Star

This recipe incorporates 2 very famous resins with one of the most widely used binders in the world. This recipe uses joss powder both as a base and a binder, so no other wood powder is used.

Joss: 2 Tablespoons (base & binder)

Frankincense: 1/2 teaspoon (aromatic)

Myrrh: 1/4 teaspoon (aromatic)

Water: up to 2 teaspoons