Essence of Air is a very rare drop though... for the 10 or so arrows you can make with that recipe in the whole game it doesn't seem like a good idea

How about making it craft with a arrow head + skill-book ice shard in a 1:5 ratio?
If we talk about cloth-scraps, there needs to be a way to reduce robes (of any kind) to cloth scraps (Guess in a 1:3 or 1:5 ratio), because cloth scraps are otherwise probably even rarer than air essences ;p They are, after all, rarely if ever sold in stores.
Ps.: Empty potion bottles should imo not be craftable

There are a LOT of them around in certain places, and to players who care these places are a big reward factor.