Lavender Aromatherapy Oil

When starting out in aromatherapy, many people begin their journey with lavender essential oil. Lavender is an aromatherapy staple. A versatile oil that you will use time and time again, for a wide variety of reasons. A must-have oil for any aspiring aromatherapist.

So what is it that makes lavender aromatherapy oil such a powerful and popular oil?

Well, for one, lavender is the oil that is credited with the birth of aromatherapy as we know it today. French cosmetic chemist, René-Maurice Gattefossé, discovered the healing power of pure lavender oil by accident when he plunged the hand he had just burnt into a vat of lavender oil, mistaking it for water. Gattefossé found that his burn healed faster and left less scarring as a result of it coming into contact with lavender oil.

The benefits of lavender oil are many, and that is probably why it is so universally popular.

Therapeutically lavender aromatherapy oil can be:

• Antiseptic

• Sedative

• Analgesic (offering pain relief)

• Diuretic

• Anti-depressant

It can be used to treat:

• Insomnia

• Stress and nervous tension

• Headaches

• Mild depression

• Wounds and sores

• Spots, pimples and acne

• Muscle aches and pains

• Backache

And much, much more…

Using lavender oil

To treat insomnia

Take a warm but not hot bath in the evening to help prepare your body for sleep. Add 10 – 20 drops of pure lavender oil to the bathtub once you have filled it. Swish the water around after adding the oil to disperse it thoroughly.

If you prefer you can dilute 10 drops of lavender oil in 10 -20ml of a base oil, such as sweet almond oil, to make a bath oil that is moisturizing as well as relaxing.

Lie down in the bath, relax and inhale lavender’s deeply soothing aroma, you can light candles or listen to music as you soak to enhance the experience.

Lavender hair and scalp treatment

For a healthy scalp and to give you scalp and hair a deep condition mix together:

10 drops lavender oil

5 drops rosemary oil

With:

30ml of jojoba base oil

Apply to the scalp by gently massaging the oil all over your head with your fingertips, being careful not to pull at your hair. Leave to soak in for 25 – 30 minutes. Rinse away thoroughly with tepid water and shampoo your hair as normal.

If you find that the jojoba oil is to too heavy for your hair type, you can make this scalp treatment using the Venus in Ferns base conditioner.

Soothing lavender after-sun oil

Mix together:

8 drops of lavender essential oil

2 drops of chamomile roman oil

With:

100ml of any base oil that can be used 100%, such as sweet almond or grapeseed oil

Apply to areas of the body that have been exposed to the sun, for a soothing after-sun body care treatment