PREPARING OILS FOR APPLICATION

Essential oils can be added to a range of carrier bases: vegetable oils, unscented lotion or cream. The choice of base depends on how the mixture is to be used, and is also a matter of personal preference.

Types Of Carrier Oil
There are many suitable vegetable oils, each with its own benefit. Unrefined, cold-pressed oils are the best for aromatherapy. The basic oils are widely available, while special and macerated oils are available from suppliers. As a guide, use 15-20drops of essential oil in 50ml (2fl oz) of base oil for mixtures to be applied to the skin. Reduce the ratio to 1:10 for preparations to be used on the face.

Basic Oils
Sunflower Helianthus Annuus
This oil is taken from the seeds of the giant yellow sunflower. It can relieve eczema and dermatitis, lower blood cholesterol, soothe rheumatism, and ease leg ulcers, sprains and bruises. It may also have diuretic properties.

Sweet Almond Prunus Amygdalis Var. Dulcis
Almond oil is takend from the kernel of the almond nut, but it is difficult to obtain cold-pressed almond oil. This oil alleviated inflammed and irritated skins, helps to relieve constipation, lowers blood cholesterol and is good for eczema, psoriasis and dry skin.

Special Oils
These can all be used alone or as 25 per cent of a basic carrier oil.

Evening Primrose Oenethera Biennis
Yellow evening primrose flowers open at dusk, one circle of flowers at a time. The flowers open so quickly that the buds can be watched as they open. The flowers' seeds are cold-pressed when the stem has finished flowering. Evening primrose oil will relieve arthritis, lower blood cholesterol, help PMS, and soothe wounds. It is excellent for eczema, psoriasis and dry skin, and is said to have a beneficial effect on wrinkles.

Hazelnut Corylus Avellana
Cold-pressed hazelnuts yield an amber coloured oil. Hazelnut oil has astringent properties and can be used to relieve acne, stimulate circulation and protect against the harmful effects of the sun.

Jojoba Simmondsia Chinensis
Jojoba is not an oil but a liquid wax, which gives it excellent keeping qualities. Jojoba is an analgesic with anti-inflammatory properties, and it will soothe arthritis and rheumatism, acne, eczema, psoriasis, dry skin and sunburn. Jojoba is good for the scalp, and is a useful addition to shampoo.

Rose Hip Rosa Canina
These small berries produce a syrup, a rich source of Vitamin C, and a golden-red oil. Rose hip oil is anti-aging and will help to regenerate tissue. It softens mature skin, and is good to use for burns, scars and eczema.

Macerated Oils
The process of macerating (soaking) plants in olive or sunflower oil enhances base oils with the plants' therapeutic properties. These macerated carrier oils can be added to a base vegetable oil, lotion or cream to enrich it. Macerated melissa and lime oils can also be used to enrich base oils.

Calendula Calendula Officinalis
Often referred to as marigold, calendula has anti-inflammatory and astringent properties, and can relieve broken and varicose veins. Apply directly in undiluted form to ease sprains and bruises.

St. John's Wort Hypericum Perforatum
With its analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties, St John's wort will help to relieve haemorrhoids, sprains, bruises and arthritis, and can heal burns, sunburn and wounds.

Carrier Lotion And Cream
Unperfumed lotion, made from emulsified oil and water, can be used instead of vegetable oil as a carrier base. Lotion is ideal for all self-application techniques as it is non-greasy. Use an unperfumed cream base if one richer than a lotion is needed.

To prepare a blend for use on the body, mix 15-20 drops of essential oil with 50ml (2fl oz) of lotion or cream. For a blend to be used on the face, mix 5 drops of essential oil per 50ml (2fl oz) lotion or cream. For a foot, reflex treatment (see Swiss Reflex Therapy) add 50 drops of oil to 50ml (2fl oz) of cream.

Safety Note
Except for a cream blend to be used in Swiss Reflex Therapy, use only half the specified quantity of essential oils in any base carrier - vegetable oil, lotion or cream - if the mixture is to be used on children and the elderly.

Preparing A Blend For The Body Using Vegetable Oil
Vegetable oils are excellent carriers for massage. The essential oils readily dissolve in them, and they allow the hands to move continuously on the skin without dragging or slipping. Mineral oil, such as baby oil, is from a mineral, not a vegetable source. It aims to protects the skin by keeping moisture out and will not allow essential oils to penetrate: it is not suitable as a base oil.

Ingredients

• essential oils
• vegetable carrier oil

Equipment

• screw-top bottle
• label and marker pen

Tips
Care should be taken not to use too much of the mixed oil as it can stain sheets and clothes. To stop too much oil coming out at a time, place your fingers over the top of the bottle, tipping it against them. Apply the fingers to the area to be treated, repeating only if you need more oil.



Pour 15-20 drops of your chosen essential oil or oils into a 50ml (2fl oz) screw-top bottle.

Fill the bottle to within 2cm (3/4in) of the top with your chosen vegetable carrier oil. Use a funnel, if preferred, to avoid any unnecessary spillage.

Screw on the top and label the bottle with the quantity of each oil used, what the mixture is to be used for, your name and the date.

















Preparing A Blend For The Body Using Lotion
A bland, non-greasy lotion is preferable to oil as it is less messy and is absorbed quickly by the skin. A lotion base is better for self-application techniques, as a vegetable oil bottle will become greasy and can easily slip through your fingers.

Ingredients

• bland white lotion
• vegetable oil (optional)
• essential oils

Equipment

• screw-top jar or bottle
• label and marker pen

Tips
Prepare a blend with a cream base in the same way. For a preparation to use on the face, mix 50ml (2fl oz) of the base lotion or cream with only 5 drops of your chosen essential oil.



For a lotion to use on the body , fill a 50ml (2fl oz) jar or bottle three-quarters full with an unperfumed white lotion, or a lotion mixed with a little vegetable oil, if preferred.

Add 15-20 drops of the chosen essential oil or oil blend. Screw on the top and shake thoroughly. Add the rest of the lotion but do not fill right to the top, to allow room for reshaking.
















Screw the top on firmly and shake again. Label with the contents, use, your name and the date. For a facial lotion, mix 50ml (2fl oz) of the base lotion with 5 drops of essential oil.