Essential Oils
Jun 04
Warm, herbaceous, honey-like, and slightly fruity, helichrysum essential oil is one of the more distinctive botanical aromas used in aromatherapy. Often called immortelle or everlasting, it comes from the flowering tops of Helichrysum italicum, a small aromatic shrub native to the Mediterranean region. Helichrysum has become especially popular in skin-care and massage blends, where it …
Jun 03
Rich, sweet, floral, and unmistakably sensual, jasmine essential oil is one of the most celebrated fragrances in natural perfumery and aromatherapy. Few flowers produce an aroma quite as complex: jasmine can smell creamy and honeyed one moment, then fresh, green, fruity, or slightly indolic the next. There is an important terminology issue, however. Most natural …
Jun 02
Fresh, crisp, woody, and distinctly evergreen, juniper berry essential oil brings the aroma of a cool conifer forest into aromatherapy. Its fragrance combines pine needles, dry wood, resin, herbs, and a subtle fruitiness, making it an excellent choice for fresh diffuser blends, natural perfume, massage oils, and woodland-inspired home fragrance. The oil most commonly used …
May 29
Bright, crisp, fresh, and unmistakably citrusy, lemon essential oil is one of the easiest aromatic oils to recognize—and one of the most versatile to keep on hand. Its sparkling fragrance can make a room feel fresher, brighten a diffuser blend, add a lively top note to natural perfume, and bring a clean citrus aroma to …
May 28
Bright, grassy, citrusy, and intensely fresh, lemongrass essential oil has one of the most distinctive fragrances in aromatherapy. Although its sharp lemon scent may suggest a citrus fruit, lemongrass is actually a tall tropical grass. The aromatic oil is typically steam-distilled from its leaves and contains high concentrations of citral, a fragrant mixture dominated by …
May 27
Bright, tart, sparkling, and unmistakably citrusy, lime essential oil brings the fragrance of freshly cut lime peel into aromatherapy. Its aroma is crisp and lively, with a greener, sharper character than sweet orange and a slightly more tropical quality than lemon. Lime oil is commonly produced from the peel of Citrus × aurantiifolia, the familiar …
May 26
Softly herbal, warm, woody, and slightly sweet, marjoram essential oil has a quieter personality than many of the better-known herbs in aromatherapy. It does not have peppermint’s icy intensity, rosemary’s sharpness, or oregano’s famously pungent character. Instead, sweet marjoram offers a gentle herbaceous aroma that blends especially well with lavender, bergamot, cedarwood, frankincense, geranium, and …
May 25
Deep, smoky, resinous, earthy, and slightly medicinal, myrrh essential oil has an aroma unlike almost anything else in an aromatherapy collection. Distilled from the fragrant gum-resin of Commiphora myrrha, it has been connected with incense, perfume, ritual, and traditional medicine for thousands of years. Myrrh belongs to the same botanical family as frankincense, and the …
May 24
Fresh, green, gently camphoraceous, and subtly sweet, myrtle essential oil has a clean botanical aroma that falls somewhere between eucalyptus, herbs, and a Mediterranean garden. It is not as piercing as eucalyptus or as intensely medicinal as some cineole-rich oils, which can make myrtle an appealing choice for fresh diffuser blends and natural perfume. The …
May 23
Sweet, floral, citrusy, green, and surprisingly complex, neroli essential oil is one of the most treasured fragrances produced by the citrus family. Rather than coming from orange peel, neroli is distilled from the delicate white blossoms of the bitter orange tree, Citrus × aurantium. Its fragrance combines the freshness of citrus with an elegant floral …
