Essential oils are a wonderful thing. They serve as remedies for all different ailments, can help enhance your mood (and even your laundry) but learning about them can be daunting. With literally hundreds of oils, blends and ways to use them out there, it’s easy to get lost. To alleviate the overwhelm, I’m sharing the few essential oil blends I use constantly.
PS – If you’re planning on diving deep into the world of oils, I highly recommend grabbing a modestly priced method of organization. Mine is no longer available, but this one is almost identical to the essential oil holder rack I have.
Essential Oils 101
Before we dive into blends, there’s a few things all beginner essential oil users should know. For starters, not all essential oils are edible or even meant for use topically. Always check the packaging and/or product webpage to ensure you’re using each one appropriately.
Also, did you know that most oils are not applied to the skin directly, but rather through a mixture of the essential oil blends with a carrier oil? Mixing your essential oils in an (approximate) 99% carrier oil, 1% pure essential oil mixture is the best way to apply topically. I do so through these Amazon amber rollers, as pictured above in my essential oil storage rack. Super cost effective, super easy to refill and use.
What’s a carrier oil?
Carrier oils are typically plant based oils (mine is fractionated coconut oil, pictured far right in the above photo) that you mix small amounts of essential oils with to apply directly to your skin. You can apply essential oils directly, however, essential oils are potent and can cause irritation on some if simply applied directly.
Also, applying essential oils directly can be wasteful. They’re very concentrated and often times you don’t need very much of them. Carrier oils ensure you’re using just enough pure essential oil and it carries it evenly over the topical area in which you’ve applied it. Most carrier oils are unscented or lightly scented and don’t interfere with an essential oil’s therapeutic properties.
My Recommended Starter Essential Oils
The most reasonable store I’ve found for essential oils has been Rocky Mountain Oils. They’re 100% pure essential oils without the MLM prices or structure. I won’t name names, but the MLM I used to order through charged shipping on every order, even when I was spending tons on big restocks. I hated it! These are on Prime or have free shipping at low thresholds on their main website.
I’m calling these four essential oils my recommended starter bundle. They’re incredibly versatile and are my most reached-for oils on a regular basis. Two out of the three are in my critically important sinus blend (more on that later) and the other two help me with sleep and skincare.
Here’s a little more on what each of these essential oils brings to the table.
Lavender Oil Benefits
I call lavender essential oil the Swiss army knife of oils because it has SO many uses. Seriously, you’ll want to search for yourself because there’s too much for me to list here. Most notably, lavender is highly relaxing and is known to sooth aches and pains in muscles and joints.
Lavender is also cited as safe for use on pets. Always check with your vet before use, but it’s said to be great to diffuse around or apply topically to anxious pets.
Tea Tree Oil Benefits
Tea Tree oil is notoriously fantastic for your skin. I have a roller of five parts tea tree oil to one part frankincense oil, both in a carrier oil, that I use on acne spots. It’s also been cited as a natural antiseptic for minor cuts and scrapes, and hand sanitizer in a pinch.
Peppermint Oil Benefits
My favorite uses for peppermint essential oil include soothing achy muscles and sinus headaches (more like face aches, for me). It’s also a known insect and pest deterrent; many use it on their outdoor pumpkins in the fall.
My favorite foot cream from Lush also has peppermint in it. Add a few drops to your own favorite foot cream to give it an icy-hot effect that soothes muscles from overexertion or overuse.
Frankincence Oil Benefits
There’s a good reason one of the kings brought frankincense as his gift, it’s amazing. Similar to Tea Tree oil, Frankincense provides great benefits for your skin. It may help smooth the appearance of healthy skin when applied topically with a carrier oil, and is also an ingredient in many popular wrinkle creams.
I also diffuse frankincense and lavender every night before bed due to this duo’s relaxing properties. Frankincense is known for “curing winter blues” so anytime you’re feeling down, roll on a bit to your wrist or diffuse some nearby for a pick-me-up.
My Sinus Pressure Essential Oil Blend
This is far and away my most used blend. I suffer from terrible sinus headaches (more like face aches in my nose and temples) and sitting in a diffuser cloud of this blend really helps. Two of these oils are essentials I mentioned above, plus this eucalyptus essential oil.
I also have a roller of my sinus pressure blend that I apply topically. Some days it even keeps me from having to take any aspirin, which I love.
Rejuvenating & Better Spirits Essential Oil Blend
This blend just made it into my rotation during my pregnancy with baby girl. Pregnancy after loss can have you worrying daily about all the ‘what ifs’ in the world, so a relaxing, rejuvenating blend is a nice way to keep your spirits up.
The blend I use consists of three essential oils, including the ever popular lavender essential oil.
Bergamot is one of Kevin’s favorites. It’s a citrus scent with a more masculine tilt (my own personal description/opinion), so I highly recommend if you’re looking for an oil the mister in your life will love!
What are your go to essential oil blends and how do they help you? Do you have any general questions on essential oils? Leave them in the comments and I will share as much as I know or direct you to an article that can articulate the information you seek better. I’m very passionate about essential oils as a natural supplement in everyday life and would love to help.
