making your own oils...

[*ULA*]

I just found a how-to website for making your own oils.. and am wondering which herbs work best for this.
It's just adding herbs to mineral oil and letting it sit (silly me i've been buying my oil all this time!)-

any input?

thanks and BB - *ULA*

[Lavender]

Are you talking about making your own massage oils or cooking oils? Instead of using a mineral oil, try olive oil or any vegetable oil. Most mineral oils are petroleum by-product based. Lots of people are surprised that veggie oils, such as sweet almond, grapeseed oil, olive, & such are great massage oils.

Your choice of herbs would depend on what you want the oil to do. I've infused basil, oregano, & tarragon in grapeseed & olive oil for a great salad oil. Comfrey roots & arnica are great for sore muscles & such. Peppermint would be good for headaches & nausea. Calendula & rose petals would be nice in a facial oil.

- Wildchild

[*ULA*]

I was thinking of massage oils/ smelly oils..
would vegetable oils still work for that or do they only work for cooking oils?

I've already set up a peppermint and rose oil... fingers crossed...

i was looking for a real aromatic herb to make a nice scented oil with.. any ideas?

do you just add the herbs to the oil and jar it and let it sit? should i be doing anything else?

ps- do you know where i can find little glass jars to put them in?

[Lavender]

Veggie oils are great for massages.

Avocado oil - great for dry skin, high in vit A, D, & E, contains protiens carbohydrates, & etc. This oil penetrates deeper than most carrier oil. I usually mix this ~ 10% in another oil.

Apricot Kernel oil - great for a facial oil.

Grapeseed oil - rich in protiens & vits & minerals, good for all skin types, hypoallergenic & absorbs nicely into your skin therefore ideal as a massage oil. It will carry the goodness of your infused herbs into your skin.

Olive Oil - excellent for dry skin & all skin types but some people find the olive odor a bit strong. I like it, though.

Sweet almond oil - contains vit A, B1, B2, B6, & E, minerals, etc. good for dry, itchy skin types.

Sesame Seed Oil - very rejunvenating & contains a natural preservative. I don't use this often 'cause the smell makes me hungry. ;)

As well as infusing herbs in your oils, you can add essential oils to them as well. That will enhance your final products.

Yup, all you do is combine your oil & herbs in a jar & let sit for 2 weeks in a warm spot. In the summer, I usually let my mixture sit in a sunny window for 2 weeks. If I'm in a hurry or it's too cold (like this winter), I use a hot water bath.

Place your herbs in a glass jar (something heat proof - jam jars are great & can be used to store your oils too). Fill with oil ~ 1" past the herbs. Screw on lid but not tight. Simmer in a hot water bath (don't submerge jar) for 4 hours. Strain & store oil in a cool, dark place. You can use this oil to make salves, lotions, soaps, or straight as oil. (Paper coffee filters are great for straining herbs.)

As to what aromatic herbs to use would really depend on what effects you want to achieve. What about Lavender? It's really nice & calming & would be good for a massage. I just made some face cream with an oil that I infused with jasmine & orange peel. Yummy!

There's quite a few places on the 'net that sells jars & bottles for massage oils & such. You might try searching under toiletries or soap making supplies.

- Wildchild

[*ULA*]

Originally posted by Wildchild
Avocado oil -
Apricot Kernel oil -
Grapeseed oil -
Olive Oil - .
Sweet almond oil -
Sesame Seed Oil -



Where would one find all these nifty oils? and when you mix them 10% in another oil which oil are you using? sorry for all the questions! :)

thank you thank you thank you!
*ULA*

[Lavender]

You can find sweet almond, olive, grapeseed, & sesame oil in most supermarkets. Try the larger chains. Or a local ethnic food store may carry them. You can also try health food stores or aromatherapy stores. There are places on the 'net that sells by mail order but I lost my links when we switched to this computer. I'm slowing finding my way back to my favs.

There's a great web site for herbs & such at Holistic.com (I think that's what it is). They have a pretty extensive list of herbs & their properties. They also have a section on aromatherapy as well.

Avocado oil I usually mix 10% with Grapeseed or olive oil. I like to do things in small batches. I would use 10 mls of avocado to 90 mls of grapeseed or olive oil & add 10 drops of vit E to that mixture.

I like using a bit of vit E not just 'cause it's good for your skin but it an antioxidant & extends the shelf life of your other oils. If you're using vit E, make sure you're getting the real stuff (100% alpha-tocopherol) & not the synthetic stuff (d-alpha-...).

You've hit me on my fav subjects...herbs & oils. Didn't mean to ramble on here...

-Wildchild

[*ULA*]

You're being so helpful!!

thanks so much!!

Do you have any fav. easy recipes for making oil that i could try? any kind!

i'm just so excited now i have to try something! :)

oh yeah - do you have to use dried herbs? and where can you find essential oils?

[Lavender]

This is a really nice rich, rich blend. Great for those really dry patches...

40% Jojoba - similiar chemical composition to skin's sebum, good for dry skin & hair.
40% Castor oil - soothing to the skin
20 % Shea Butter - has natural spf 4, lots of vits.

*Infuse this blend with dried calendula & rose petals. Add 10 drops of Vit E, 6 drops palmarosa EO, 4 drops frankincense EO, 4 drops myrrh EO, & 2 drops patchouli EO. Swirl it around your bottle & use a few drops after washing your face.

*Infuse blend with Rosemary & nettles. Add 10 drops Vit E, 8 drops Clary sage EO, 8 drops Rosemary EO, 4 Drops Cedarwood EO, & 4 drops ylang ylang EO. Swirl bottle to mix. Massage a few drops to your scalp ~ 1/2 hour before shampooing. For a deep treatment, wrap a warm towel around your hair. This makes my hair really shiny. If you have blond hair, try chamomile instead of rosemary.

Lip Balm recipe...
25 mls of the oil blend
1 tbsp grated unbleached beeswax
1/2 tsp Carnuba wax
10 drops of Vit E
*1/4 tsp titanium Dioxide for sunprotection - optional*
If you can't find Carnuba wax, just use beeswax. Carnuba wax is gives the lip balm a nice hardness to it but it takes a little longer to melt than beeswax.
Combine waxes & oil & heat gently over hot water bath. Add vit E & mix. Pour into lip balm containers & enjoy!

Salve Recipe...
Use a ratio of 1:5 for 1 tbsp grated beeswax to 5 tbsp oil. Heat over hot water bath. Good basic recipe for making any kind of salve.

- Wildchild

[Lavender]

My personal preference would be dried herbs when doing an oil infusion. Fresh herbs would work too but I prefer the dried mainly there's little or no water content in my oil for little greeblies to grow. I have made oil infusions with fresh herbs - you have to heat the oil gently so the water from your fresh herbs evaporate but not enough to fry the herbs.

With roots & barks, dried is better. Some herbs, such as lemon balm, fresh is better because the oils will evaporate very, very quickly.

I grow as much as I can & dry as much as I can for the winter use. In the summer, I try to use fresh herbs when I'm doing a tea infusion. Some properties of the herbs are soluble in water & some in oil. So if I'm making a lotion, I would infuse the herbs in the oils I want to use & do the same with a water infusion with the same herbs. Then I would use both to make my lotions. Although, this would depend on how lazy I'm feeling. :)

-Wildchild

[Lavender]

Hope this helps...

[Silver Venus]

Great info Wildchild!! :sunny: I loved your lip balm recipe and will try it out one day soon!

On the dried plants theme ~ Mint leaves and Rose Petals are my two favourites and great to add into your blends for decoration and give extra buzz ~ Mint for energy and Rose for love!

Im a great fan of Aromatherapy Oils and make blends myself for massage, oil burning and in the bath. I think they are super and love there healing, mood altering, natural medicinal properties! Could never go without them! I use at least one every day.

Anyone just getting starting ~ Your in for a fun exciting ride!! :D

[Lavender]

Yeah, I know what you mean...it seems the more I do, the more I want to do. *sigh* So much to learn & so little time... :D

[Yvonne Belisle]

bump

[Sunday's Child]

I like the sound of the jasmine and orange... I agree... yummy! I wanna make some... I wanna make some.

[Green_Wytch]

If you want a good massage oil for tired and sore muscles what I do is get the extra vigin olive oil and put some dried yarrow in it. Yarrow grows wild almost anywhere. I let it sit for 6 weeks and then strain the yarrow out of it.. Let it sit in a dark place. Let me tell you that oil is the best thing. I suffer from severe arthritis and it helps a lot. The oil is good for a year. I just harvested some Yarrow and I will be making more of it this year.

Green_Wytch

Oh yeah a tip when you go to harvest any herb make sure it hasn't rained for at least two days.. The herb is more likely to mold in the oil if it has been wet....

[Sighing_Softly]

If neone wants, theres a list of the oils and what they do, how to use them, oil>symptom sympton>oil, carrier oils etc...
http://communities.msn.com/TeenageHealers&naventryid=105

[Yvonne Belisle]

Thank-you that's a wonderfull resourse to have.

[Lavender]

In light of the interest in making your own oil...*bump*