Lavender’s Corner

Essential Oils and Their Uses

Aromatherapy is a great abundance from the Earth. Most of us may not realize how versatile the oils can be. The term “Aromatherapy” comes from a French chemist who worked in his families perfumery business in 1928.

The oils themselves are extracted [taken from the desired plant material] in different ways. You have to be careful with what you decide to use…for example~ If you have hay fever, you might want to steer clear of flowery scents or If allergic to nuts, you will want to do the same with nut oils. As with many other things, the ancient peoples of the world once used essential oils. How great is it that we still use them today?!

Enough of the boring stuff though!

What can you do with essential oils? These days, there aren’t much things that do not contain essential oils. Don’t believe me? Check your products~ soaps, lip balms, liquid hand wash, dish soaps, foot sprays, gels, lotion, make up remover, bath bombs the list goes on!

You can come across the Latin terms of the oils, as that is what the product license gives to the product/company. So say you have a solid perfume for example and some of the ingredients are “ Benzyl Benzoate”= this occurs naturally in essential oils when the product is made; mainly found in Benzoin, Ylang Ylang, Rosewood and Cinnamon. Candellia wax, also know in Latin as Euphorbia cerifera is also found in some solid perfumes; which acts as a thickener instead of other thickener’s like Beeswax [which is usually used for lip balms].

Anyway, I digress.

Essential oils are great. If you have never used any before, it’s best to stick to the easy ones. These would be either Lavender or Tea Tree. Stick to one of them as a learning tool.

Lavender [Lavender Angustifolia] and Tea Tree [Melaleuca Alternifolia] are the only oils you can use safely without a carrier oil. Carrier oils are needed with essential oils, so they are safer to use and so you don’t burn your skin and to prevent a serious reaction.

I remember [when learning Aromatherapy] to test this theory we were made to place 1 drop of Peppermint oil onto some cotton wool and applied it to the back of the neck…within moments we could all feel it stinging, and then washed it off.

Many people use essential oils in;

The car

Hair care

Cosmetics and other products

Oil burners

Massages

Other ways to use them;

Furniture products

Laundry and ironing

Spells and rituals

Different blends for certain occasions

Perfumes

Cuticle oils, manicures and pedicures

Healing therapy

Self made products

Essential oils also have magical properties too. For example Lavender’s properties, magically are~ health, love, peace, celibacy and the conscious mind. It’s other correspondences are~ Mercury [planet] and Air [element]. This can come in very handy if your doing a communication spell and you may need Mercury’s influence or a peace spell and you may need Air’s influence.

Learning these gifts of the herbs and flowers is amazing and will expand your mind!

This month’s suggestion blend

This month it may be a personal opinion to create something naturally or you may not be able to afford some products. This month, I’ve decided to make a shaving oil and share it with you all. The whole point of using one in the first place is to heal the skin, softness of the skin, less redness and pain. DON’T USE AN ELECTRICAL SHAVER!

Shaving oils have been used in the past for men’s facial shaving. However, I used one on myself recently and have decided to write both a male and a female blend. Remember if you are unsure of use [because of allergies or anxiety] check the properties of the oils; in books or online. For these; mix them in a small bowl, dish, or small measuring tin then apply to the area and shave as usual.

Male shaving blend

Calendula or Jojoba Carrier oil x20ml

Lavender essential oil x7 drops

Sandalwood essential oil x5 drops

Vertiver essential oil x3 drops

Female shaving blend

Calendula Carrier oil x20ml

Lavender essential oil x6 drops

Rose essential oil x2 drops

Ylang Ylang essential oil x4 drops

The one I used left me feeling great. Usually I don’t use anything on my legs before I shave, but now I will incorporate it into a nice routine. I like the scent and Calendula as well as Jojoba acts as a moisturizer giving skin back what it usually lacks from shaving alone. You have a nourishing blend that anyone can try. If worried at first, as the concept may be a little weird by Western standards, try a small area first. If you have any kind of bad reaction; wash it off straight away. Your not likely to; but just in case ~ it is something you do need to know.

Thanks for reading,

Blesse’d be