Monthly Archives: November 2012

Slipped, Tripped and Fell in Love

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Love

“Slipped, tripped and fell in love”, sings the beautiful Ann Peebles on her 1971 hit. You can listen to Ann’s soulful voice here.

Anne Peebles

Anne Peebles

But this isn’t really about Ann Peebles. It’s about love. Everyone wants to know about love potions, essential oils for love and how to get someone’s attention with scent.

Essential oil blending can be a fun way to experiment with natural perfumes and put you in the driver’s seat of your life. So does a love potion really work? Sure, of course it does but there’s a subtle trick.

The best way to make a love potion work is to create it for yourself. Have you heard of the exercise to write down all the qualities of what you want in a partner? When you’ve made your list, your job now, is to embody those qualities, to attract someone of the same vibration. What I’m saying is contrary to what you’d expect a spell to do. When you make a spell or practice other magic like that, you are engaging intention and alchemy to manipulate others. When making an aromatherapy love potion, even if it is your intention to attract another, the energy of the potion will be different. When you create it for yourself, you empower yourself, you don’t disempower someone else. You are supporting and nurturing your self, and sending your intention out into the ether with a positive spin.

Essential oils are carriers of the truth, they cannot lie. When you mix the essence of yourself with the essence of a flower or plant you will concoct a synergistic formula based in love and truth. Wait and see what happens.

Here are a some recipes to invite love and passion into your life:

1) “Law of Attraction”

To attract a life partner try a body oil blend using 3 teaspoons of carrier oil. Then add

Sandalwood  2 drops

Rosewood      2 drops

Orange           3 drops

Coat your body in this luscious formula before you go out to a social event.

2) “Mesmerise”

To attract a fun, intimate connection with another, try anointing your wrists, heart chakra and throat chakra in a combo of these oils:

Patchouli     1 drop

Jasmine       3 drops (this is assuming your jasmine oil is in a 3% blend with jojoba. If you have pure jasmine just use one drop).

Mandarin     1 drop

Just place each drop into a saucer or little ramekin, stir with your little finger and anoint yourself. MMMMMMMMMM. Delicious!

3) “Barry White is in the House”

If you are having a get together at your house, vapourise these oils in a classic oil burner with a candle:

Bergamot    5 drops

Palmarosa   5 drops

Ylang Ylang 5 drops

Don’t be scared to use any oil, just add your heartfelt intention when you blend, and all will be revealed to you.

Remember to treat yourself first, and everyone else will benefit.

Dont Read This

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sneakily borrowed from clkr.com

Don’t read this if you want to know how I see the world, and how we can all help ourselves and each other move to the next level.

Can you feel it? There’s a buzz in the air. Sometimes its positive and sometimes its negative, but undoubtedly, there’s a level of tangible electricity.

Everyone I talk to has a different opinion on the state of the world, but there is one common thread and that is that there is something changing. You’re right. There are a lot of things changing, and they have been for many years but now we are seeing the visible signs. The easiest accessible sign is the internet and the way it has changed our lives. We can connect with someone on the opposite side of the world without having to know them. We can do this through breakthroughs in  technology and the fact that this technology is available to more and more people on Earth. We can topple governments and create change at a grassroots level like never before. It is quite amazing. I know I’m giving away my age here but I remember talking on the phone to friends as a kid and saying how amazing it would be, to be able to see the person you were talking too on a screen. It was futuristic and very sci-fi. The future is here and if you think time is going fast now, it will only appear to be going faster as we expand in the space-time continuum.

Essential oils represent a link to our past, but a beacon for the future in the way that they are very simple healers. Healers of our collective psyche and healers of our individual worlds.

Don’t keep reading if you don’t want to know my secret to the evolution of human consciousness.

There is so much sickness, war and horror on Earth, you would think by now we could all leave that behind. It’s really archaic and very un-evolved. Financial institutions have started their rocky downfall  – it is one great sign that we are dissolving the old structures to rebuild a way of life that is inclusive, loving and positive. Exclusivity isn’t enduring. Love and inclusion are.

Don’t keep reading this if you don’t want to discover my simplistic (and naive) formula for our rise to the next level.

It’s time to reach out to your fellow earth dwellers, on a one-to-one basis, exchange information and love. We don’t need to be controlled by hierarchies of terror. Just love. And that’s what you are doing now if you are reading this, writing your own blog, interacting on Twitter or Facebook, or going out into your community in the flesh.

I said to a friend the other day “In a few years, maybe lifetimes, the economies of the world will be filled with individuals, exchanging information and products, on a basic level, one-to-one. The individual needs will be met by the other individuals on Earth. The world as we know it now, will cease to exist, and we will have jumped to the next level.”

If everyone just had a drop of lavender oil each day, it might come faster.

A drop of lavender goodness

One drop of lavender could save the world.

Smiley Face Essential Oils

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sneakily borrowed from cartoonlogodesigns.com

Smiley faces and emoticons have come a long way. There are lots of versions but in essence, they are simple, cute and can make you feel good.

When Deepak Chopra was in Australia last year he talked about the power of emoticons. In his inimitable style, he is collaborating with Gallup, the company that conducts market research – The Gallup Polls. They have been collecting data on the positive ramifications and ripples stemming from emoticons and the smiley face. Basically you can spread happiness, joy and positivity by simply sending someone an emoticon via text message. You don’t even need to say anything, or write anything else. They speak for themselves. It’s like sending good vibes.

Essential oils are similar in the way they can inspire happiness, joy and a feeling of simplicity in your life. Wouldn’t it be great if we could send scent through our computers and phones? It will happen one day and I’m envious in advance! Until then here’s a few recipe for smiles:

*** It’s important to hold your intention when making your blend, so your energy can align with your thoughts, and transfer to your oils. Infuse your intention in the positive form eg “it’s another day, I’m so happy to be alive” rather than “I hate that guy at work he better stay away from me today”.

MIST

In a 100ml mist bottle with water add

Geranium  10 drops

Orange      20 drops

Spearmint  15 drops

Shake and mist. Breathe and release any tension. Fantastic to mist around kids.

STEAM

For a Smiley Face shower, cover the drain and add a few drops of Mandarin to the cascading water. Inhale. Smile.

DROP

To anoint yourself with a beautiful balm of happiness, try a drop or two Melissa (the oil) on your wrists. Gently inhale during the day for a sense of calm and softness.

SNIFF

Take a huge whiff of lime oil straight from the bottle, when you need to adjust your attitude.

sneakily borrowed from clkr.com

BODY OIL
A body oil blend recipe could look something like this;

3 teaspoons of almond oil

Grapefruit    5 drops

Bergamot    1 drop

CLEANING

If you are cleaning the house, add some lemongrass to water to mop floors or clean surfaces in any room of the house. Cleaning with essential oils is another great way to have an aromatherapy treatment while you are going about your day.

Remember, treat yourself first, and everyone will benefit.

Clear Your Mind, Make Pesto

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Sneakily borrowed from addme.net

I’ve got a brilliant idea. Make dinner and have an aromatherapy treatment all at the same time. My choice for today is pesto. This classic Italian dish is made with fresh basil. Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) is the kind used for pesto and essential oil, although there are many types. It comes from the same family as thyme, lavender, oregano, marjoram, peppermint and spearmint.

Sneakily borrowed from thepoofairy.com (hehehehe)

So what can basil, and essential oil of basil do for you?

Sharp and spicy, basil helps clear the head and open avenues of expression. It is a very powerful clearing oil, particularly effective when used in a vapouriser as an inhalation, or when you are cooking!

It is used for mental and physical fatigue and its anti-spasmodic properties make it ideal for treating menstrual problems and digestive disorders.

* Sinus congestion, asthma and bronchitis are all soothed by basil.

* Fever can be treated effectively with basil.

* In the middle ages it was prescribed for melancholy and depression.

Basil takes its name from the latin ’Basileum’ meaning royal.  It is also considered a holy plant of India used in Ayurveda and dedicated to Vishnu and Krishna. This Indian basil is a different plant and is called tulsi. There are some great tulsi teas on the market – they don’t taste like the sweet basil, just a soft lovely herb.

I love the fact that this modest little herb with a big presence has been around for ages. Literally ages. The old herbs of healers and witches alike are still here because they work. Food is medicine, and always has been.

Fantastic. Get cooking. Click here for a really easy and authentic pesto recipe.

Remember, treat yourself first, than everyone else benefits!

Aromatherapy Body Oil – It’s as Easy as 1 2 3

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What’s as easy as 1, 2, 3?

Nourishing your body with an oil blend every day. I know it does kinda sound a little bit hard, but you can start simply and build your skills.

sneakily borrowed from briscoes.co.cz

What You Will Need To Get Started

1 or more bottles of essential oil

carrier oil (almond oil, sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, jojoba oil or anything else you can think of or that’s in your cupboard)

a teaspoon

a saucer or little ramekin

How to make a Blend for Your body

Put 7 drops of essential oil into your container

Pour in 3 teaspoons of carrier oil

That’s it. Mix it with your little finger (any finger really). Now go ahead and coat your body with your delicious formula.

your easy, beautiful body oil blend

I have used oil all over my body for many, many years and it’s kept my skin looking and feeling fantastic. Once I’ve had a shower and moisturise with an oil blend, I just put on a robe for about 10 minutes before dressing. This allows time for the oil to soak in and any excess to be absorbed into your robe. In that time I have breakfast or do whatever I’m doing to start the day.

For some people this is too time consuming. Others don’t like oil but prefer a cream. I understand every one’s preferences are different but to me there’s nothing more beautiful than starting the day with a formula you have made just for yourself that’s totally natural. No preservatives, no artificial fragrances or waxes, no cream that’s been made in massive vats full of yucky synthetics.

Just oils.

Simple.

If you are just starting out you could try buying one new oil each month or every 2 weeks. As your library grows you will increase the amount of combinations you can create and as the time passes you will feel more comfortable with mixing. As a beginner it’s easy to make mistakes but if you just mix a little at a time then the wastage is minimized.

The next step is to find lovely glass bottles from a supplier – just have a look on the Internet, there are lots available. You must know how many mls your bottle is and then you’ll know how many drops of essential oils to put in. If you are in the USA and are not metric (!) you’ll have to convert these ratios:

10 mls carrier oil add 5 drops

20 mls carrier oil add 10 drops

25 mls carrier oil add 12 drops

30 mls carrier oil add 15 drops

40 mls carrier oil add 20 drops

50 mls carrier oil add 25 drops

100mls carrier oil add 50 drops

200 mls carrier oil add 100 drops.

******Always put the essential oil drops in first so they can have a get together, gel, mélange and synchronise before you add the carrier oil.

Voila. You are creating your day with Aromatherapy. It’s easy as 1,2,3.

Josie the dog and German Chamomile

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Josie the beautiful dog

This is Josie. She is my friend’s dog and though she has visited me before she recently had her first sleep over by herself. As you can see she has very short hair and pink skin. She gets quite itchy and tends to bite and scratch a bit. Josie just couldn’t settle down when we got home and was bitey-bitey, scratchy-scratchy for quite a while. I thought it was nerves then realized she needed some help.

I had just used German Chamomile (among others) for a client and it jumped into my mind. This chamomile is blue in colour due to the ingredient called chamazulene. It’s a kind of bluey-green.

German chamomile looks a bit like this

As it is one of the more expensive oils it tends to be sold in a 3% jojoba blend like Rose, Jasmine, Roman Chamomile, Neroli. This means it is already diluted and ready to use.

I got the bottle, put 3 drops in my hand, and gently patted her skin and touched her paws. I didn’t even smooth it on – just lightly touched her – especially around her belly where her skin is exposed. She got on her mat, I completely covered her with a light blanket and IMMEDIATELY she chilled out, and didn’t move for a couple of hours.

Two things happened here with the oil. The presence of the oil on her skin helped cool and calm the irritation, and the scent went to work on her emotions, via her brain. We all know dogs and most animals have a very keen sense of smell, because they use it for information about their environment. It’s the action of the oil through her nose that was the most powerful. A few diluted drops was all she needed to give her a calming therapeutic treatment. It is really important not to use essential oils on pets if you are unsure, or if you don’t have the proper understanding of how they work and how sensitive animals are to odours.

Take note:

  • Be careful not to use pure oils on the skin of animals – a drop or two diluted might be fine, but always act with caution and intuition. Just because lavender works well on your skin doesn’t mean it will work for your cat, dog or guinea pig.
  • Animals will respond well to the scent of an oil, so the best way to treat will be to vapourise oils in the room they are in. You can also make a mist and mist around them, and on their beds. If you treat yourself, your pet will benefit too.
  • The smaller the animal the more sensitive they will be to any oil or chemical. One drop rubbed well into your own hands may be enough to soothe an animal when you pick them up.

Always check with a VET first if you are unsure, or don’t use any essential oils directly on them at all.

Treat yourself first and everyone will benefit – your partner, your kids and your pets.

It’s Easy to Make Your Own Body Scrub

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Sneakily borrowed from iodizedsalt.india.com

It IS easy. I recommend using sea salt as a base and adding ingredients to that. Use fine grade as the coarse grade will scratch your skin.

If you are a lover of essential oils then try adding about 5 drops (or a few more) of the oils you choose, into 2 cups of salt and slosh in some oil to make a gooey, grainy paste. It can be olive oil, almond oil, coconut oil, sesame oil or anything you have in the cupboard. You could even try coconut milk or coconut cream to take you away on an island holiday in your mind.

Essential Oil Suggestions

Lemon – fresh wonderful scent, alpha hydroxyl acids to help get rid of dead skin

Orange – sweet and gorgeous and also has alpha hydroxyl acids to help get rid of dead skin

Lemongrass – invigorating

Lavender – an all purpose oil which helps skin regeneration and is fortify to the spirit

Peru balsam – great for the skin and has an amazing soft honey-like scent, similar benzoin in it’s healing ability

You can use any oil really so go with your intuition and your vibe. You will be giving yourself a skin scrub and an aromatherapy treatment to nurture your emotions and ease toxic thoughts.

The best way to do your body scrub is in a bath. After a 5 minute soak, stand up in the bath and scrub each part of your body with care. You are not trying to scrub oil off a baking pan so take it easy. The salt is the medium that will ease off old skin so don’t press too hard. After you have completed your ritual you can then soak in the treatment until your heart’s content – or until you get all pruney. If you only have a shower like me, wet yourself first, do the scrub, then shower off.

Get Creative

Cinnamon

This is the fun part. There are so many things you probably have in the house that could turn your salt scrub into a tropical delight. Try:

A teaspoon of vanilla extract

A few tablespoons of almond meal will make the scrub a little milky and leave your skin feeling soft

Grated lemon rind – or the rind of any citrus fruit will really make your scrub zesty, natural and alive with energy.

A tablespoon of coffee – some claim it helps get rid of cellulite and while I’m not sure about that, it will stimulate your skin and your senses

Herbal tea – either grind up a loose leaf tea or rip open a teabag and use the contents

Go on give it a whirl at Spa You. You don’t have to travel very far and it wont cost a fortune. Good luck my friends, scrub on.

The Loveliness of Lemons

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Hello natural beauties!

I love lemons because they are an adaptable fruit. Seemingly originating from Asia around the start of the common era, they were probably used in some form or another before then. Anyway they’ve been around for ages (literally) and my friend connects them to his medieval past life. Once he came to my house with a gift of oranges and I returned his gift with some organic lemons off Mum’s lemon tree (see pic). He said “oooooo that’s so medieval”.

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Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here: suzannerbanks.com.au

Digital downloads of my book Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

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Mum’s lemon tree with the washing hanging on it

 

Lemon juice can be used in all types of cooking; on salads, in baking, jams and marmalades, as a drink and whenever you can think of lemon flavour.

You can use the juice as a bleach to remove stains from clothing, as a cleaner mixed with bi-carb soda, as a disinfectant on kitchen benches and the list goes on.

When Martha Stewart was on Oprah she lamented the one thing she missed in the big house, was lemons, as she drinks black tea with lemon everyday. I’ll never forget that, it stuck in my mind. She would be ingesting some of the juice which is alkalising, and some of the essential oil which can act as a digestive aid as well as adding flavour. Just like Bergamot is used as a flavour agent Earl Grey tea.

Sunny lemons

Obviously lemon essential oil comes from the rind, and is a sparkly, light fantastically scented oil. I call it a happiness oil. How can you not smile when you take a huge whiff of the oil. It can make your mouth water too.

Lemon essential oil can be used for muscle fatigue among many things. I remember when studying, a massage therapist told me she used lemon juice in olive oil for sore muscles. You’d smell like a salad dressing but I love the simplicity of it. Thousands of years ago basic remedies like this were the only things available for sickness.

Lemon essential oil is an uplifting oil with a sweet innocence about it, but don’t be fooled – it has a solid place in modern aromatherapy.

lemon

Some aromatherapists and scientific data claim lemon oil is good for:

  • stimulating the action of white blood cells
  • killing bacteria in the gut
  • soothing and lessening varicose veins
  • tonifying the circulatory system and aiding high blood pressure
  • helping the body shed excess fluids
  • decreasing cellulite
  • improving concentration
  • easing rheumatic pain & gout pain
  • stopping the flow of blood with cuts and abrasions

…… and the list continues.

All hail the lemon as a stalwart of modern living!

Lemon essential oil is like a treat for our crazy world. Enjoy the simple things in life with this gift from nature.

“Aunty, Something is Biting My Legs” – 10 Things NOT To Do When Using Essential Oils

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Yes essential oils are natural so that’s a good thing, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use caution when using them. If you haven’t had much practice follow these guidelines to help you gain a better understanding of what NOT to do.

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Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here: suzannerbanks.com.au

Digital downloads of my book Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

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peppermint candy canes use real peppermint oil - which is mixed into a food safe flavouring

peppermint candy canes use real peppermint oil – which is mixed into a food safe flavouring

 

1. Don’t drink them

Many essential oils smell so beautiful and can sometimes taste great too, like peppermint oil & lemon oil, but please don’t drink them because you could suffer hideous consequences. If you do find a food recipe that uses essential oils – just use your intuition and add a little caution. Some companies like DO Terra advise putting a couple of drops into water and drinking it – but please don’t! Oil and water don’t mix and it could burn your oesophagus on the way down.

 

 

2. Don’t over expose yourself

Too much sniffing or smelling a particular  oil could cause a headache. I have suffered from a few bad headaches because I’ve overdosed when making aromatherapy products. Take it easy and use your intuition about what is the best for you. It is however, an easy way to get a change of focus, open the bottle of oil and take a whiff.

 

 

3. Don’t put neat essential oils all over your body

A few drops of oil as a perfume, or energetic anointing of the chakras and meridians is fine for some people but not for others – depending on how sensitive you are. However don’t cover your body in the pure stuff as your skin will burn. The oils need to be diluted in a carrier oil first.

 

 

It's all in the eyes!

It’s all in the eyes!

 

4. Don’t get them in your eyes

Sounds dumb but it’s easy to do. You mix a blend, get some on your fingers, then touch your eye……. I’ve seen people recommending that you put a few drops of lavender into your mascara! DON”T.

 

 

5. Don’t get them in your nether regions

I don’t think I need to explain this one.

 

 

 

Be careful when adding essential oils to your bath

Be careful when adding essential oils to your bath

 

6. Don’t put too much in a bath – especially for kids

Essential oils need to be mixed into an emulsifying agent to be able to mixed with water. Everyday things like milk, salt and vodka work to a certain extent but aren’t great. You can buy an emulsifier from the chemist if you like but why not use coconut cream? When oils are added to hot water they can really affect the skin, and kids will often say something is hurting them. My nephew once said “Aunty, something is biting my legs”. The only way to soothe the sting is to get them out of the bath, smooth a carrier oil (almond, olive, sunflower or anything in the cupboard) all over them to dilute the essential oils on the skin, and the burn will subside.

So when it comes to kids and babies DON”T add oils to the bath.

 

 

Morris the King 1994 - 2011

Morris the King 1994 – 2011

7. Don’t use oils directly on a pet’s skin

Essential oils are fantastic to use with pets but not directly on their skin. You could vapourise oils in the room to calm them down, make a mist with water and gently mist around your pet, or around their space, or on their bed. A little goes a long way.

 

 

8. Don’t try and cure anything

The best way to use oils is to support you in everyday life. While essential oils can do wonderful things like ease sore muscles, help with headaches, increase wound healing and nourish your skin, try to avoid assuming they will cure a disease or disorder. For example, many oils are wonderful for relieving stress and tension and helping with depression, but they wont “cure” a diagnosed condition. Do you get the difference?

 

 

Keep out of reach from children

Keep out of reach from children

9. Don’t let little kids get a hold of them

See #1 – Don’t drink them!

See#4 – Don’t get them in your eyes

 

sweet love

sweet love

 

10. Don’t use essential oils with condoms

Making a sexy gorgeous blend for a romantic evening is fabulous. Using them all over the body is divine. But don’t use essential oils in a blend as lube for condoms, as they’re too strong and can easily destroy the material – latex, polyurethane, and others. And you could both end up with an irritation – see #5.

 

Be cautious and use your intuition and intention. See my article about intention.

copryright SR Banks

 

 

Scent. Intention. Consciousness. Essential oils

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Scent – Intention – Consciousness – Essential oils

I hope this is the start of something wonderful. I’ll be musing on expanding our consciousness through scent and essential oils, and the evolution of humanity. I’ll also be giving you some easy recipes and hints on how you can make your world a beautiful place.

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Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here: suzannerbanks.com.au

Digital downloads of my book Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

***********************************************************************************************

I love essential oils, their subtle energetic power, amazing scents, and their connection to times in our history. I am an Aromatherapist and treat people through massage, energetic balancing and essential oils. Part of the magic of Aromatherapy is combining your attention, then intention, to create a beautiful blend of oils and to magnify their healing powers and invite beauty into your life.

lemon

Essential oils are like carriers of the truth and they are fractal in nature, which means they have the same fundamental building blocks as everything else in the natural universe. They can connect us to our own emotions, our bodies and our souls. They are peaceful, scented drops of love.

The easiest way to use an essential oil is open the bottle and take a huge SNIFF! The molecules will be carried straight to the brain and will effect the way you feel emotionally, influence hormones which will in turn lead to changes in the body, and connect us to the oneness of all living things. If you don’t believe me then just try it for a few days – whenever you need a boost just take a SNIFF of anything really. Lavender is always a great place to start as it brings a sense of solidarity, calm and evenness.

Caught on camera somewhere in Sydney

Of course using essential oils all over your body is a great way to nourish your skin, soften tired aching muscles and generally make you feel and smell wonderful. For the novice it’s a bit more fiddly, but all it takes is a few drops of essential oil in a teaspoon of almond oil to produce a natural emollient and therapeutic treatment.

bliss with roses

My advice to you is not to get hung up on specifics when using essential oils – just start experimenting and enjoying them for what they are. Allow your intuition to play a part in your own aromatic journey, and in fact improve and flex your intuition as you go, with the amazing world of Aromatherapy. Why not start using essential oils as a natural perfume? Synthetic perfumes can contain toxic ingredients and are thin and weak in comparison to the substantial nature of essential oils.

Dive in and be transformed by the enticing scents of nature.