How to Blend Essential Oils (Aromatic and Therapeutic Methods)
It’s been said that you don’t really know someone until you’ve seen how they act in a group. The same is true with essential oils! As we combine essential oils and observe how they interact with each other, we learn more about the individual nature of the oils. We also learn which oils get along, and which don’t. Because we learn so much about essential oils through blending, we encourage everyone to practice the art of blending. If you’ve never tried and don’t know where to start, we’ve come up with some helpful tips on two of the most popular ways to blend. So break out your oils and let’s get started!
Aromatic Blending
Typically, we blend according to aroma when we’re making a natural perfume, or scent, but if you don’t have a degree in perfumery, how do you make something that smells good? Let's start with balancing the aroma. All oils have a top, middle or a base note, and sometimes they have a note somewhere in between.
Top Notes: An oil that has a top note generally evaporates quickly, and has a light, crisp, and airy aroma.
Middle Notes: Oils with a middle note are classified as having soft, rounded aromas. Middle notes are also called “heart notes” and usually make up a majority of the blend.
Base Notes: These oils tend to linger, and are generally heavy, rich and grounding. Base notes anchor the blend.
If you haven’t checked the Details section on our single oil’s product pages, now’s the time to! You’ll find what note an oil has here, next to “Note.” You’ll also find which oils blends well together in the Details section. If you’re working with a group of oils, classify and separate those oils by note. This will make the process a lot easier.
The key to making a great smelling blend is by balancing these notes. Generally, middle notes make up about 75% of the blend, top notes make up about 20% of the blend, and base notes make up about 5%. This isn’t a precise formulation, so don’t worry about being exact. Here’s an example of a balanced blend:
4 drops Sweet Orange (Top Note)
15 drops Lavender (Middle Note)
1 drops Patchouli (Base Note)
We recommend starting off with a small amount of oil as you experiment, and if at first your blend doesn’t succeed, just try, try again! Again, as you practice, you will come to learn which oils work well together, and which oils don’t. Happy blending!
Therapeutic Blending
At Edens Garden, we offer 39 Synergy blends and counting, for different needs and therapeutic uses. But what if we don’t have the blend you need? That’s when we break out the oils, and get blending!
When it comes to creating a therapeutic blend, there are two principles to always keep in mind:
Safety:
Our first concern when creating a therapeutic blend should be safety. There are many different factors that play into the way people are affected by essential oils, such as age, medications, allergies, etc. Keep these factors in mind as you research the oils you will be using to create a blend.
A book we often recommend as a good research resource for safety, is Essential Oil Safety Second Edition by Robert Tisserand and Rodney Young.
Purpose:
What are you addressing by creating this blend? This will be your primary focus in blending, and will help to guide your research.
A book we recommend for researching the therapeutic properties and common uses of essential oils is Aromatherapy A Complete Guide to the Healing Art by Mindy Green and Kathi Keville.
Sometimes it helps to write an intake of the person you are creating a blend for, such as their age, medications, allergies, drug & alcohol use, etc. Once you have these two principles written out, comes the fun part. Researching essential oils! This is also a good time to take your knowledge of essential oils, and put it into practice. In your research, you will want to find oils whose therapeutic properties will aid the need you are addressing, as well as oils that are safe for the user.
Don’t be too discouraged if the blend you’ve made doesn’t smell wonderful, as this doesn’t mean it won’t be effective in aiding the need you are addressing. Also, if the blend you’ve made doesn’t seem to have an effect on the need, try, try again. You can only get better at blending as you practice, so enjoy the process as you go and have fun!
About the Author, Jenna Jones
Jenna Jones is the Chief Marketing Officer of Edens Garden. Jenna’s background in journalism led her to investigate the world of essential oils, and what she discovered inspired her. She joined the team in 2016, spurring Edens Garden into a leading source for aromatherapy education.
This article was reviewed by our Lead Aromatherapist,
Bella Martinez is a Certified Aromatherapist, Natural Skincare Formulator and Edens Garden’s lead aromatherapist. An industry expert, Bella has spent years training and learning in the aromatherapy field, which she continues annually. Her passion is taking evidence-based aromatherapy and making it approachable for all.
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4 comments
Kathy
I am new to using any oils. A pamphlet or brochure would be helpful with the Aches and Pains set I ordered.
Edens Garden
Hi Debby! Thank you for your feedback. We do offer a 30 day return policy if you’re ever unsatisfied with a product. Please contact our customer care team to initiate a return: https://www.edensgarden.com/pages/contact-us
Debby Brown
First time I’ve ordered from you. I love essential oils. I’ve only tried the Vanilla and I can’t even smell it at all. I’m disappointed, hoping the others I bought smell good. I put it in my diffuser and went back in the room thinking it would smell like vanilla but couldn’t smell anything. For the price I won’t order again.
Edens Garden
July 9, 2021 at 3:58 pm
Hi Kathy! You can discover a variety of uses for your essential oils and how to use them, here: https://indd.adobe.com/view/54ed1388-f54c-410f-8d3a-68d2abfa1a63