Spa Girl Beauty Tips

Creating At-Home Spa Products with Essential Oil Recipes

I’ve been getting quite a few requests for tips and ideas on how to use essential oils in the home.

There are literally thousands of recipes  what with the staggering number of oils available and how they  can be combined. Here are some basic tips and guidelines that will hopefully help inspire you to be creative with the use of essential oils:

1)High quality oils will have the therapeutic effects.  Fragrance oils will do just that, provide fragrance only. Decide what is important to you and purchase oils accordingly.

2)It is possible to create your own scrubs and bath oils/salts. First make sure you are aware of any contraindications for the oils you want to use. Some may smell great but can be skin irritants if they aren’t used in a carrier oil.

3)When using oils for cleaning, be aware that some surfaces can become discolored. If they’re being used as a fragrance spray make sure the mist doesn’t fall on any food or open drinks. It will alter them!

4)Storing the oil products is very important to their integrity. Keep them in dark, cool places and tightly sealed. Open containers will let them evaporate and sunlight will break them down quicker.

5)Never use any equipment with copper, aluminum, cast-iron or Teflon finishes, they react with the oils. Glass or steal is best.

Now that we’ve gotten the responsible stuff out of the way, let’s have some fun shall we?

Bath Oil Recipe:

• This is extraordinarily simple. Take 2 oz of a carrier oil (lighter ones will distribute more evenly throught eh water, almond, jojoba or sunflower) and add 20 drops of your chosen blend. You can focus on invigorating with a citrus blend or relaxing with lavender and chamomile. The possibilities are endless! Just pour the mixture under the running water. Add the oils to the tub right before you get in to get the most from the aroma. Store in an airtight glass jar or bottle.

Bath Salts:

• The amounts fluctuate on how much you’d like to make. You can use any type of coarse salt, the most common being Epsom salts or dead sea salt. For every cup you use, add 10 drops of the essential oil(s). Mix everything together in bowl and store in an airtight container. Add a generous handful under running water just before you get into the tub. The larger the crystals, the longer they will take to dissolve. Store in an airtight glass container.

Body Scrubs

• Probably the most fun. You can really experiment with this. It’s important to use gentle granules, so fine ground salts and sugars are best. Stay away from crushed pits or nuts as they actually scrape and cut the skin. It’s best to make this in medium sized batches, and play around with the amounts, deciding what works best for you. A good amount would be 2 cups of salt/sugar to 1 cup of oil (olive oil, sweet almond oil, anything cold pressed) 10-15 drops of essential oils per cup.
• Don’t forget you can use brown sugar too! In smaller batches add a small amount of honey for more moisture and spices like cinnamon, nutmeg or cocoa to get delicious scents.
• Never use scrubs like this on your face, they are not gentle enough. It’s also best to use scrubs before you shave to avoid irritation.
• Massage the mixture into the skin and rinse off. Pat the skin dry.
• Because there are no preservatives you will want to make manageable batches that will be used within a month. This will avoid bacterial growth. Store the mixture in airtight glass containers to preserve the scent.

Relaxing experiences aren’t the only way to use essential oils. They can also be a great alternative to common, toxic household products. (Recipes were found in the Essential Oils Desk Reference)

Laundry: Add 10 drops of any essential oil to a washcloth and put it in the dryer with your clothes. The oil will lightly fragrance the clothing without the irritation of dryer sheets. This won’t help with static cling though!

Surface Cleansers: Using a clean plastic spray bottle, fill with water and add 10 drops each of pine, lavender and lemon along with a squirt of dish-washing soap.  The antibacterial and antiviral effect of the oils will help to disinfect. Do try and keep the solution off of linoleum floors as it can stain them. Other oils with strong disinfecting properties are cinnamon, clove, Eucalyptus globulus, thyme and juniper as well as grapefruit.

Floor cleaners:

• Non-Carpet floors: Add 1/4 cup of white vinegar to a bucket of water. Add 5-10 drops of lemon, pine or spruce. If the floor is very dirty add several drops of dishwashing fluid.
• Carpets:  To create a freshener add 16-20 drops of essentail oils to a cup of baking soda. Mix and store overnight in an airtight container. This will ensure the the oils distribute through all of the powder. Sprinkle lightly onto the carpet, and vacuum up a few minutes later.
• Vacuuming: saturate a disposable cloth with several drops of essential oil and put it in the collecting bag of your vacuum. This refreshes the carpet and the room.

Insect Repellants: Single oils like lavender, lemon, peppermint, lemongrass, cypress, cinnamon, basil and citronella placed on entryways repels many types of insects. Peppermint placed on entryways will keep ants out! Nothing for spiders though. *shudder*

Air Freshener: using a 4oz spray bottle add half  water and half high proof vodka. Add 30-40 drops of essential oils and let it sit for a day for the oils to mingle. Shake before every use and beware of spraying over fabrics. The alcohol will help the scent linger. So pretty!

There are several websites for complete lists of essential oils and different blends, the best way is to search “aromatherapy blends” and add in the type your looking for. Whether it be relaxing, energizing, getting rid of anxiety/depression. There are blends for everything!

Using essential oils gives you a wonderful feeling of control over products. You know exactly what has gone into them and you control the quality.

Spa Boutique carries several essential oils from Canadian company Golden Moor.

Tags: Aromatherapy, bath oil, bath salts, beauty recipes, body scrubs, Essential Oils, Golden Moor, home spa tips, natural beauty, natural skin care, professional products

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