Every week I make a point of attending a Flow into Yin yoga class. It’s my favourite class of the week; part work out, part therapy. We kick things off with a flow class, which then melts into a zenful yin class where we hold gentle poses for minutes at a time. I always leave feeling utterly divine.

The other day I was thinking about this class at the Calm Balm I made in the summer, and I got to thinking about blending the two ideas. Why not make a yoga mat spray that would bring some calming essential oils to your practice, amplifying the relaxing, soothing effects of a yin practice?

So, this spray does just that. A blend of uplifting and calming essential oils is blended with a base of disinfecting vinegar and alcohol to make a mat cleanser that will leave your mat clean and your spirit calmer.

For essential oils I chose soothing lavender, bright mandarin and bergamot, calming chamomile, cleansing black spruce, and smokey vetiver. The vetiver is definitely optional if smokey scents aren’t your bag—it’s a very strong note, even in tiny quantities.

You can pull this spray together in mere minutes before your next yoga class, so what are you waiting for?

Yin Yoga Mat Spray

10mL high proof clear grain alcohol

12 drops lavender essential oil
15 drops red mandarin essential oil (or your favourite citrus essential oil)
3 drops German chamomile essential oil
20 drops bergamot essential oil
30 drops black spruce essential oil
1 scant toothpick swirl vetiver essential oil (optional—leave it out if you don’t like smokey scents)

20mL white vinegar

Measure the alcohol (I used perfumery alcohol because I’m a scotch lady and I wasn’t using my single malt to make mat spray!) and essential oils out into a 30mL/1 fl oz spray bottle. Cap the bottle, swirl to combine, and leave the alcohol to dissolve the essential oils for at least 20 minutes.

Once the essential oils have dissolved, add the vinegar, cap, and shake to combine.

To use, mist the spray over your yoga mat and wipe it down before your practice begins.

To measure a “toothpick swirl”, simply dip the tip of a toothpick into the essential oil and then swirl it into your recipe in progress. It’s a good way to get significantly less of a drop of something for crazy-strong essential oils.