Essential Oils ~ Gifts of Nature

DEFINITION OF

essential oils – aromatic liquid substances extracted from certain species of flowers, grasses, fruits, leaves, roots, and trees. 
 
Grand Tree via Marie Claire Maison Magazine as shared on www.linenlavenderlife.com

We use essential oils to enhance our meditation and yoga practices and for everything from housekeeping to skincare to first aid.  It is amazing to me how versatile and adaptable a single oil can be.   LAVENDER, for example, is physically healing as an antiseptic, analgesic, cytophilactic (protects, regenerates cells), antispasmodic, tonic, cicatrisive (promotes wound healing) and works as an anti-inflammatory agent. It is restorative, calmative, a sedative and anti-infectious.

lavender blossom detail, photograph by L for www.linenlavenderlife.com


Emotionally

healing—

 

Lavender is said to encourage security, gentleness, compassion, reconciliation, vitality, clarity, comfort, acceptance, awareness & emotional balance. 

 
In her book, Aromatherapy for the Soul, —Valerie Ann Worwood calls lavender the “mother of essential oils” and describes its spiritual attributes this way:
 
 “Lavender embodies the warm, protective love of Mother Earth.
It is caring, cherishing, and nurturing…
When deep sadness covers the spirit like a suffocating blanket, lavender gently lifts the weight.
When the inner tears fall, lavender wipes them away.
When depression clouds the psyche, lavender blows it asunder.
And for those with worries that trouble the spirit, lavender lifts the veil of despair.
 …with compassion [lavender] seeks to bring out the best in every one of us,
letting us know that we are all her precious children,
and we all have our destiny of goodness to fulfill.”  —Valerie Ann Worwood
 
l&l at home - candle with essential oils on carved wood tabletop, afternoon sun by L, linenlavenderlife.com

THERE ARE MANY METHODS for enjoying the aromatic benefits of essential oils from a few drops in the bath or shower to a diffuser or room spray.  A method I use often is by candle.  I love the ambiance of a burning candle in a room anyway, plus it couldn’t be easier to do:   

  • Simply light the candle and allow it to burn until the wax melts in a large pool around the wick. 
  • Blow out the flame and drop 1-4 drops essential oil in the pool of wax.  (Essential oils are flammable, so use care not to get any on the wick.)   
  • Once the wax begins to cool and solidify, you can relight the candle.   
  • Important Note:  For the health of your family and the environment, always burn soy or beeswax candles (avoid petroleum based/paraffin candles and ensure the wick of any candle you use contains no metal/lead!) detailed report  

. . .

Tailor the aroma to whatever mood you would like to create:
Send a refreshing, uplifting aroma about in summer—
{try Grapefruit, Lemon, LimeLavender}  

l&l at home-garden - "Summer Splash" water detail, fountain - image by L  - linenlavenderlife.com

or create a warm, soothing atmosphere in winter—
 {try Cinnamon, FrankincenseOrange, Clove, and Cypress

l&l at home-garden - cypress tree detail - image by L  - linenlavenderlife.com

You can generate a motivating atmosphere for exercise—
{try Lemon, Basil, and Peppermint}

l&l at home - Basil & Sunlight by L - www.linenlavenderlife.com

 or an atmosphere for settling into meditation— 
such as Frankincense, Neroli or Palo Santo

Intimate Rose by L at home garden for linenlavenderlife.com

Once you have experimented with a few recipes, you will learn what works best for you and it seems to me that a sort of intuition develops, guiding you to what you need most in any given situation.

Three of my personal favorites I return to time and again:

 

  No. 01
Bergamot .  [citrus aurantium bergamia] .  Aroma: sweet, fruity, citrus with spicy-floral undertones.  Encourages concentration, confidence, balance, strength, joy, motivation, good cheer, harmony and completeness.

l&l at home - Dancing Light and Vines by L - www.linenlavenderlife.com

“[Begamot] is an amplifier of light energy, energizing and magnifying, opening the heart to cosmic joy.” —V. Worwood

 

No. 02
Neroli .  [citrus aurantium, c.brigaradia, c. vulgaris] .  Aroma: highly radiant, sweet, floral. Encourages lightness, the lifting of sorrows, completeness, joy, understanding, calm, regeneration, peace, and to feel guided. 

l&l at home - Water Over Stone by L - www.linenlavenderlife.com

“Neroli is one of the most precious essential oils, its vibration being one of the highest among them…it is itself pure spirit, representing the purity in all things. It is always loving and peaceful. Neroli brings light into any day…”—V. Worwood

 
No. 03  
Amber  .  [Pinus Succinifera]  .  Aroma : resinous, warm, smoky with a faint citrus-floral undertone. Encourages harmony, balance, inspiration, visions and inner-knowing.  

l&l at home - Resin in Fading Sun by L - www.linenlavenderlife.com

“Such a fragrance has the ability to take us to the beginning of time, to the beginning of forever.”    —V. Worwood

 

Ready to try essential oils, but aren’t sure where to start?  

Here are my recommendations: 

I always have a bottle or two of Lavender on-hand because it has so many uses. It can be used on its own in a number of ways–such as my favorite, lavender-scented sheets–and is used in practically every other recipe you come across: from an insect repellent to a burn ointment to beauty treatments to home cleaning…lavender is truly an essential, essential oil.  
lavender  - via RM Oils - recommended by l&l life - www.linenlavenderlife.com
 
 
 
Other go-to oils are:  Lemon, Eucalyptus, Meleleuca, Peppermint, Chamomile, Geranium, Clove, Rosemary and Thyme. With these ten oils, you can make recipes to treat everything from chapped lips to an upset stomach. Adding Lime, Orange, Citronella, Clary Sage and Rosewood in various combinations, you can create natural yet very effective cleaners, disinfectants and deodorizers for every room of your home with the added benefit of their uplifting aromas. 
 
Sénanque Abbey, a Cistercian abbey near the village of Gordes, Vaucluse in Provence, France. lavender fields - as seen on linenlavenderlife.com

 

l&l at home "Uplifting" by L for www.linenlavenderlife.com

Many of the essential oils I listed above can be used to create your own custom massage oils added to your choice of base oil (also referred to as a “carrier” oil.)
{oils such as jojoba, grapeseed, hazelnut, almond, argan, sesame seed}

You can also create luxurious skin care treatments using a base oil or other natural ingredients such as almond flour, coconut flour or creamy coconut oil

 

For soaking tired feet, try my favorite combination:  Dead Sea Salts and a synergistic blend such as–

Tranquilty
(Orange, Tangerine, Patchouli, Lime, Chamomile, Ylang Ylang, Lavender, Citronella)

Aligning
(Rosewood, Spruce, Frankincense, and German/Roman Chamomile mix)

RECOMMENDED READING:

The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy - recommended by L of l&l life  www.linenlavenderlife.comThe Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood.  Over 800 natural, nontoxic recipes for health, beauty and home; my copy has notations and bookmarks throughout.  It is an invaluable guide and a good starting place for practical applications of essential oils from health remedies to beauty treatments.

 

Aromatherapy for the Soul by Valerie Woodward - recommended by L of l&l life - www.linenlavenderlife.comAromatherapy for the Soul by Valerie Ann Worwood.   For delving further into the spiritual uses and attributes of essential oils, this book includes fascinating imagery showing the energy fields of essential oils and discusses their use in relationship to the chakras (our body’s energy centers) and reviews the “aromatic traditions” of many cultures throughout history to the present day.  
“Healing takes place on all levels – spiritual, mental, and physical, and what’s so remarkable about essential oils is that they influence the whole being. Just as they are the catalyst that can make a wound heal, or a mind relax, so can they transport a soul. I know of no other substances that can do that. They are flexible, adaptable, multifaceted, deep, complex, light, subtle, etheric, and all in a positive way. If molecules could be angels, they would surely be essential oils.”—Valerie Ann Worwood, Aromatherapy for the Soul, page xx, Introduction. 
 
Canyon Path by L for linenlavenderlife.com

“There is something at once familiar and mysterious about essential oils. 

Like a dear old friend you’ve known forever,  

—who just happens to hold the keys to the Universe. ” 

LeAnn Signature 01

 

 

Fallen by L for linenlavenderlife.com

 
 
All photographs by L with the exception of:
Tree (Image 1) Marie Claire Maison
Lavender Fields/Sénanque Abbey,France. (Image 11)  Côté Ouest
Bathing Room/Clawfoot Tub (Image 14) igigi general store
 
Fresh Aromas Nebulizing Aromatherapy Glass Diffuser, Round Tall Stem, Beech Wood as seen on linenlavenderlife com

Aromatherapy Handblown Glass & Wood Diffuser — (click image for details/to order)

SHOP more l&l picks:  Aromatics & Oils

l&l life on pinterest - gifts of nature

Gifts of Nature, l&l on pinterest

 

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