Reed Diffusers

How a reed diffuser scents a room

A reed diffuser is a bottle of fragrance oil with reeds standing in it. The reeds soak up the oil and release scent from their tips, so fragrance spreads through the room with no heat, flame or power. There is nothing to light or switch off, which makes a diffuser easy to leave on a hallway table or a bathroom shelf while you get on with the day. The scent stays gentle and steady, so it suits rooms you pass through as well as rooms you settle in.

Woody, citrus and other diffuser scents

We stock woody scents and citrus blends. Woody notes feel warm and settled, a natural fit for a living room or a bedroom in the evening. Citrus feels brighter and suits a hallway where guests arrive or a bathroom in the morning. A few of our diffusers lean fruity or floral instead. If a scent is unfamiliar, an 88.7ml bottle is an easy way to try it, and several of these smaller diffusers have a 180ml refill in the same scent for when you know you like it.

Diffuser bottle sizes and the space they need

Our 88.7ml diffusers fall within 6–8cm across and 7–23cm in height, so they fit a narrow shelf, a desk or a bedside table. For a larger living room or an open hallway, our 500ml glass diffusers hold more than five times the oil of an 88.7ml bottle. One or two of our diffusers come as sets of three, a simple way to carry a single scent through several rooms. In a small room, take a few reeds out if the scent feels strong; in a large one, a second diffuser spreads it further.

Refills in the same scent as your diffuser

Several of our scents come as a diffuser and as a refill, so you can keep a favourite going without buying the bottle again. Where an 88.7ml diffuser has a 180ml refill in the same scent, the refill holds roughly twice the oil, enough to fill the bottle about twice over. A few 500ml refill oils share their scents with 500ml glass diffusers. If you change scent, wash and dry the bottle first and use fresh reeds, because used reeds hold on to the old fragrance.

Glass bottles, colour and where to place them

Glass is the main material across our diffusers, with plastic in some and wood in a few. Brown is among the colours we stock, with a few in green and one or two apiece in grey, blue, black and clear. You will find diffusers for the living room, bedroom, bathroom and hallway. Wherever yours goes, choose a spot people pass, such as a hall table or a shelf beside the sofa, and keep it away from radiators, direct sun and open windows, which speed up evaporation and use the oil faster.

Turning the reeds and caring for surfaces

Turn the reeds once a week or so: the ends that sat in the oil come up into the air and refresh the scent. Do it over a sink or a sheet of kitchen roll, as the reeds drip. Stand the bottle on a coaster or tray and wipe any spill straight away, because fragrance oil can mark polished wood and painted surfaces. Keep diffusers upright, away from the edge of a shelf and out of reach of children and pets. When the reeds darken or the scent fades after turning, fresh reeds draw the oil more freely.

Pairing a reed diffuser with candlelight

A diffuser gives a room its background scent through the day, and a scented candle adds light and warmth in the evening. Keeping the two in the same family, woody with woody in the living room for instance, stops them competing. A citrus diffuser in the hallway can then greet you at the door before the warmer scent of the room beyond.