Orange

How to make a Lip Balm with Essential Oils

~ Laura Hoy ~ Leave a comment

Lip Balm Recipe for 50g of product:

  • beeswax, 8g
  • shea butter, 8g
  • olive oil, 34g
  • essential oil, 3 – 5 drops
  • my favourites are:
    • peppermint (3 drops) – fresh & tingly,
    • orange (2 drops) & benzoin (2 drops) – delicious & protecting.
    • myrrh (2 drops) & mandarin (2 drops), healing,
    • spearmint (3 drops) & benzoin (1 drop) – protecting, fresh & yummy.

Equipment:

  • bain-marie or double boiler (this means a separate pan to put the butters in, on top of a pan of water, so that the oils are heated very gently by the steam from the water, rather than directly on the heat).
  • scales,
  • stirring spoon or chopstick,
  • lip balm pot or pots.

Instructions:

  • measure out the ingredients first,
  • melt the beeswax and oils in a bain-marie, add the shea butter once everything else is melted together so it doesn’t heat more than necessary.
  • add the essential oils & stir,
  • pour into a pot/pots and allow to set.
  • Secure the lid immediately to capture the volatile essential oils, and check after a while if any moisture collects in the lid, and wipe away with a tissue.

Use:

Tip: Dip your finger into the melting pot to test the consistency of the balm, it will cool and solidify very quickly so you can tell what the final product will be like. Add a little more beeswax to make a harder lip balm, and a little more liquid oil for a softer version.

Click here to order a Custom Designed Lip Balm.

Nut Ball Recipe

~ Laura Hoy ~ Leave a comment

During refreshment breaks at my aromatherapy events, I like to serve fresh mint tea and fragrant snacks made with scented botanical ingredients. Here’s a simple ‘nut ball’ recipe flavoured with my orange essential oil, but check out the tips below for bringing different flavours to them:

Nut Ball Recipe:

Ingredients:

Instructions:

  • Roast almonds in oven for 15/20 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Allow to cool.
  • Blend roasted almonds.
  • Remove them from blender and blend the sliced dates with any pits removed.
  • Add nuts to dates and blend until mixture starts to form.
  • Mix the drops of orange essential oil with the olive oil and add to the blender, blend a little more. Note you could try flavouring with other essential oils such as mandarin, peppermint or even geranium!
  • Place in bowl and knead with hands forming into a ball.
  • Roll into small balls and then roll in the chopped hazelnuts.

Variations & Tips:

  • Instead of using orange essential oil, you can use the zest of an unwaxed orange – it’s actually the same thing, as the essential oil from an orange is held in the peel,
  • try the zest of other citrus fruits such as grapefruit & lime.
  • Use a mix of different nuts instead of just of almonds, such as hazel, brasil & pecans.
  • I like using 200g almonds & 200g hazelnuts, but try to shake off as much of the skin on the hazels after roasting.
  • Add a spoon full of tahini, this is helpful if the mixture is a bit dry and the tahini works well if using rose or geranium to give a Persian flavour to the balls.
  • Try using soft dried apricots instead of, or as well as dates, just keep the ratio of nuts to dried fruit similar to get the correct consistency.
  • decorate the nut balls with chopped nuts, zest of citrus, dried fruit powders… bring your own style!
  • other ingredients you could experiment with are seeds as well as nuts or instead of, vanilla powder if you can afford it!

Click here to check out the Fruity Nut Ball Recipe.

 

How to get through December and still smell Divine… with the most Delicious Essential Oils!

~ Laura Hoy ~ Leave a comment

The lead up to the end of the year can often feel a little fretful rather than festive, so here are some recommendations for essential oils to support you as the ‘silly season‘ takes over:

Image by Jane Torvaney

Orange & Clove for a warming, comforting scent that has a powerful cleansing & anti-microbial action, a perfect combination for using in a burner or diffuser* to scent your home and ward off winter bugs. You can get a similar effect by piercing cloves into the peel of an orange which releases their essential oils – as well as smelling delicious it will sanitise the atmosphere. Place them around your home, especially close to the fire as the heat will encourage more essential oils to be released.

Fir & Pine for supporting the immune system & respiratory conditions during vulnerable times. Use these Christmas tree oils on a tissue and inhale throughout the day, or blend them into a balm* to massage across your chest – you can use them in this way if you have come down with a cold, flu or virus and also if you want to avoid them.

Cardamom & Grapefruit to help soothe, digest & detox – these would be lovely made into a blend* if you happen to have over indulged over the Christmas period. Find a comfortable place to lay down, massage the ‘digestive blend’ around your tummy in gentle anti-clockwise circles, begin just under your ribcage and massage around the centre of your tummy covering the small intestine, gradually moving down towards the start of the ascending colon, follow this up the right side of your body, as it becomes the transverse colon across the body under the ribs and then onto the descending colon down the left side of your body. Finish with a few large anti-clockwise circles and take a moment to rest.

Frankincense & Myrrh – these two oils come with extremely precious qualities, they support moments to stop, breathe gently and come back to yourself – especially useful during times of stress and overwhelm. I like to use them in a roll-on perfume blend* to keep in my pocket and apply when ever I feel to.

You can use all of the recommended blends in a burner or diffuser* to scent your home, or dilute in a carrier oil to massage into your skin and add to a bath*.

Any oil you choose to use with the intention to truly nurture and take care of yourself will support on some level, so enjoy experimenting and feel free to get in touch if you would like assistance.

*Useful Links: How to make a balm.
How to make a body and bath oil blend.
How to make a roll on perfume blend.