Essential Oils What Do I Do With Them?

So you've heard all the buzz about lavender for your skin and oils for your moods and your pain and your, (insert whatever here,) but now what do you do?! Do you dilute them or not dilute them? How do you know which one to choose? THIS SOUNDS LIKE TOO MUCH WORK! 

Ok if that's your brain right now you are not alone! Essential oils and aromatherapy are a hot topic right now. Even though it's a very old form of medicine, it's been brought back into the spotlight in a big way in the last several years. You can't walk through bath and body works without seeing them, heck you can't walk through a walmart without seeing them.

Here's the deal you don't have to use poor quality oils, essential oils aren't dirt cheap and if they are RUN! You don't need a PhD in chemistry to use them either. Work within some basic principles and the average user can use them and enjoy their many benefits without so much as a hiccup. ;)

First, dilution of your essential oils matters. Essential oils are VERY concentrated so there are few reasons that are just common sense reasons to dilute these powerful little beauties. 

• cost effective, repeat essential oils are not dirt cheap!
• better for the planet. Oils take a massive amount of their respective plant material to produce so using only what you need for your desired effect is good for the world. You can always add more to a blend if you need to.
• cost, did I say cost?! Some of these oils can cost literally $60-90 a bottle so why dump it all over you 24/7 when you don't need to.
• Safety... yep the "s" word. Your body is a beautiful machine that has to break down every little thing you put on it and inside it. When you slather on potions and such all over your body your liver has to break it down, your skin after a time can become very sensitive and even get a rash or develop a reaction to the compounds in your oils. These are supposed to help your body not make it work even harder or hurt it. Learn more about safety and dilution 

Second, don't buy your essential oils that you are going to inhale and apply to your beautiful skin from just anywhere. There are several really good, ethical companies out there to buy from. They buy organic or wild crafted oils, they test them to be sure they haven't been adulterated and they pay the farmers for their products an ethical price.

Third, a few drops to your diffuser or steam pot is usually enough, some oils are really strong aromatically, Patchouli anyone, so please be kind to others and do not bathe in them and complicated or fancy recipes aren't always better. Often times using some of the most available oils like Lavender, Peppermint, Tea Tree, Cedarwood or Sweet Orange will do the trick.

I know that is a lot to throw down in a quick little post but using your essential oils doesn't have to be tricky. You can go as far down the rabbit hole as you want :) Maybe you just want a diffuser to scent your home and help perk you up, or maybe you want to make a little pain soothing rub to reduce your muscle tension from working on your computer all day. Really the options are limitless with the addition of aromatherapy in your world.

You can work one on one with an aromatherapist, you can purchase essential oils blended and diluted for you so it takes the guess work out. You can invest in some standard essential oils, carrier oils, bottles and make up your very own goodies. When I said limitless I meant it. Have questions ask? We are here to help you. What kind of oiler are you? DIY, LOVE THEM BUT MAKE THEM FOR ME or COMBO?