One of the incredibly cool things about playing with essential oils is you can go on Google or Pinterest and find a recipe to blend for just about anything!
It is also one of the most frustrating things about essential oils. Where do you begin? Which do you pick? How do you know they know what they are doing? Sometimes I imagine a chemist, a puff of smoke and no more eye brows!
For me the most frustrating part of it is the recipes that are obviously well intended but potential disasters. Some recipes have ten different oils in them and some of them are blends. In fact one of the most popular blends that is passed around is two blends combined. Every time I see it I shudder. Why? You might ask. It is after all only two oils.
First let me explain that oil blends are created to be synergistic. What does that mean? The definition of synergy in this context is: the increased effectiveness that results when two or more components work together. Click To Tweet What that means is when you are combining oils you get something better when you put them together. It is actually quite a lively dance to try and find oils that bring out the best in each other and create something amazing. There is a lot that goes into it. Carefully choosing the oils, experimenting with the quantities and working at it until you get it just right. People are often surprised to discover that there are oils that don’t play nicely with one another. Just like you may have met someone and it just doesn’t quite click and you can’t put your figure on it. They are nice, have similar interests, aren’t annoying… yet it just doesn’t work. Oils are the same. In fact, just like people sometimes an oil will take an instant dislike to another one, but that is a story for a different day.
Second, blends usually have from two to a dozen oils in them. That is a lot of different oils. Remember they’ve been blended and just because the work together synergistically, it doesn’t mean that they don’t still have their original integrity too. So, if we take a blend that has a dozen oils in it and mix it with another blend that has a dozen oils in it you have just applied twenty-four oils in one application. Yikes! That is a lot of oils, especially if you are thinking about putting that combo on a child. Would you put twenty-four oils on a child? I sure wouldn’t. Then add in that oils don’t always play nicely with other oils.
So my suggestion is to avoid those concoctions that suggest mixing blends with blends or blends with a lot of other oils. A better solution is to just add one oil to a blend if you are trying to enhance a blend.
Some examples:
A really popular recipe is to blend a frankincense based Grounding Blend with a Lavender based Calming Blend which depending on the brand could give you about a dozen oils. Instead look at the base of the blend and try a safer combo like adding Lavender to the Frankincense based Grounding Blend or adding Frankincense to the Lavender based Calming Blend. Those are both lovely combinations that work well together.
Four of my favorite oils to add blends are:
- Frankincense is just a really nice all around oil that blends beautifully with many things and enhances almost everything. Some of us call it a ‘pusher’ oil because it gives other oils a push. Like yesterday when I decided I was ready to hike that mountain trail to the lake and I overestimated my abilities. I came home to sore achy muscles and I added a drop of Frankincense to the Soothing Blend I used.
- Bergamot has this lovely fresh scent with a hint of citrus. Lighter than lime but so nice. Bergamot is the ‘feel good in your own skin’ oil. Who doesn’t like that? So I reach for it often.
- Lavender is calming and relaxing. Just what we all need and the fragrance is so soft and soothing, it makes a wonderful addition.
- Lime is a strong scent that can cut through many other scents that are often pungent and too strong. It takes enough of the edge off to make it easier to use those oils. Just remember that it is a photosensitive oil so don’t wear it on your skin where sunlight could interact with it.
Have fun playing… and share what is your favorite oil to blend?
Hi Ginny,
For years and years I bought a fragrance by the name of “Roots” from a company called “Oshadhi ” on line company. The last time I ordered it…..It was so bad that I couldn’t wear anymore. So I just kept the bottles and tried making my own with the oils that I have purchased from doTerra and even some they didn’t carry from other essential oil companies. People would actually stop me on the street or when I was making a purchase to ask me what scent I was wearing. So here is what I came up with so far, and even thought it is not perfect yet, I would appreciate any comments that you can make from what you have leaned from your experience and on line.
Here are the oils that I have put together: Remember this scent is called “Roots”.
Atlas Cedar, Vetiver, Cabreuva, Sandalwood, Junier Berry(C02), Cinnamon bark, Spruce, Arborvitae, Buddha Wood, Fir Needle Silver.
My favorite scent of all these is “Junier Berry” That is the scent they use in Tanqueray Gin so
I put some in with the filler mix along with distilled water and fractionated coconut oil
I really would appreciate any comments that you might have. When I am checking out at a store, the check out clerk usually says something like, I smell cinnamon, do you? and I say, it’s my fragrance. Thanks Ginny for all your help, You are amazing!! sincerely, Lu Bellamak