Pruning Lavender at Paradise Botanical Garden

Video

Hello natural beauties how are you? I’ve been a bit slack with my posts but I am caring for my elderly parents and that takes up a lot of time. I was happy to escape to Paradise Botanical Garden last week to get some fresh air and help the garden. My job was cutting the lavender and it was a joyous, and cold morning. Avoiding the bees was my biggest challenge.

 

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

_____________________________________________________________________________


The garden on the Central Coast just north of Sydney will be having an open weekend with local businesses selling their wares, from refreshments to aromatherapy. Come and visit on the first weekend of August 2020.

Remember to treat yourself first, then everyone will benefit.

A Bee and Some Lavender

Video

Hello natural beauties how are you? I’ve got a short and succinct post today. Remember to smell the lavender and give thanks to the bees.

 

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

_____________________________________________________________________________

Lavender is an ancient healing herb, with many deep and unwavering powers. In my book Revelation! Reveal Your Destiny with Essential Oils, I refer to lavender as an oil of solidarity and that’s what we need right now. It’s a herb and oil that can keep you grounded and feeling strong.

All hail lavender and the pretty little bees that love it too!

A bee in the lavender
Caught on camera somewhere in Sydney


All lavender pics by me – I just cant help myself I love it sooo much.

Thanks lavender, I love you.

Using Essential Oils in the Time of Covid 19

Hello natural beauties! Keep calm and use essential oils. If you are an essential oil enthusiast I know you’ll be making your own anti-bacterial concoctions. And the words to note here are ANTI-BACTERIAL and Corona VIRUS. Some essential oils have been shown to exhibit antiviral activity, but so far we can’t say for certain that any oil will stop you from getting the virus. In fact, we cant say that at all. But by using essential oils for cleaning surfaces and hands, we MAY help limit our exposure to the virus and reduce exposure to other bacteria too.

 

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

_____________________________________________________________________________

Dried lemon myrtle leaves – pic via http://www.abc.net.au

I’ve started making a re-usable hand wipe with essential oils and carrying it with me in my bag. I make a new one every couple of days, using different essential oils, and put the old one in the wash. This doesn’t have alcohol in it so I can’t say it has complete anti-bacterial capabilities, however, it’s the first line of defense and soft on your hands. And why not use essential oils if you have them? It’s definitely better than nothing.

Check out my little video:

A quick, easy, reusable and portable first line of defense for your hands on the go

What essential oils will be best to use? I love lemon myrtle best of all for an antiviral oil along with lemon-scented tea tree. I’d also go with thyme and oregano as antibacterial and include lavender and eucalyptus and tea tree – just for starters. Myrrh as well.


Which oils do some high profile aromatherapy experts recommend as having anti-viral activity?

Salvatore Battaglia recommends these oils:

clove, hyssop, manuka, patchouli, thyme, marjoram, peppermint, oregano, eucalyptus, tea tree, myrtle, sandalwood, rose and a few more too!

Patchouli leaf – pic via toptropicals.com

Dr E. Joy Bowles: gives some advice from March 12, 2020:

“So people are clamoring for a natural preventative for the new virus… Best of all is to do all the health-building activities you know about already: EAT HEALTHY, SLEEP ENOUGH, EXERCISE EVERY DAY, DE-STRESS… And really DO…

We don’t know which essential oils kill this new virus… It’s too new. By all means be a test subject for your own experiments, but please, keep a record of what you do and the results… Could be helpful later…”

Thyme is not vulgar! Hehe

Farida Irani notes these oils: lime, clove,


Dr Penoel refers to monoterpenols as having antiviral effects: lavender, melissa, peppermint, basil, oregano, marjoram, sage, clary sage, and thyme among others.


Patricia Davis says: bergamot, eucalyptus and tea tree.


Sylla Sheppard-Hanger lists quite a few and here’s some for you: rosewood, cinnamon, myrrh, palmarosa, eucalyptus, melissa, helichrysum, eucalyptus, lemon, thyme, hyssop, ravensara, niaouli…

I used patchouli, lemon scented eucalyptus, myrtle and oregano in my surface and hand sanitiser

I also made my own surface and hand sanitiser with perfume grade alcohol and oregano, lemon eucalyptus, patchouli and myrtle (I ran out of lemon myrtle). I used 26 drops in 50mls, but 20 drops would be enough. Be careful when using alcohol on your hands for extended periods of time because it will really dry them out. A great base to use is aloe vera gel – but it can be a bit sticky and does not contain alcohol, therefore much less effective and is not great for surfaces! It’s more like a hand softener and conditioner if you’ve been using drying and harsh hand sanitisers. See pic above.

I hope you take this all on board and use these beautiful gifts from nature, to help your immunity and help everyone at the same time. May The Force be with you and wash your hands.

10 Fabulously Positive Christmas Recipes for the End of the Decade!

Hello natural beauties living in this crazy world! Are you having a cold Christmas or a super hot one like me?  I love summer in Australia and I always feel so much better with the warmth and sun on my skin, but due to climate change our country is on fire! Lets hope we can move towards a new society where we put our earth first.

Wherever you are, here are 10 essential oil recipes for your diffuser, for a hot, or a cold Chrissy.

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

are you having a cold Christmas/end of year?

In a traditional oil burner with a candle or a diffuser add about 15 drops of oil(depending on what type of diffuser you have and how it operates)

“Baby It’s Cold Outside”

orange                            8 drops

Virginian cedarwood     4 drops

clove                                3 drops


“Light My Fire”

mandarin                       8 drops

cinnamon                       3 drops

rosemary                        2 drops

fennel                            2 drops


“Snowed Inn”

lavender                            6 drops

rose geranium                  4 drops

lemon                                4 drops

marjoram                           1 drops

Hyams Beach south of Sydney still holds the Guinness Book of Records whitest sand in the world! Warm Christmas recipes coming up …

“Aussie Bush Christmas”

lemon eucalyptus              4 drops

bergamot                           4 drops

nutmeg                               3 drops

patchouli                            4 drops


“Cocktails!”

blood orange          6 drops

peru balsam              4 drops

palmarosa                3 drops

thyme                          2 drops


“Sultry Nights”

lime                              7 drops

Australian Sandalwood       3 drops

Ylang ylang 3 drops

Fragonia 2 drops


cinnamon – my own pic

“Peace on Earth For Infinity”

mandarin                           10 drops

black spruce                      8 drops

myrrh                                   3 drops

pine                                     3 drops


“Thanks”

spearmint                             4 drops

may chang                           4 drops

grapefruit                              4 drops

frankincense                         3 drops


“Spiced Love”

geranium                           3 drops

orange                                5 drops

coriander seed                  4 drops

black pepper                     4 drops


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

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I wish you a great end to this year, a fabulous start to the new year, and new decade too. 

Recipes for Making Essential Oil Inhalers

Hello natural beauties I hope you’re all well and happy. I’ve only just recently made a few essential oil inhalers and I quite like them. I’ve given some away and have others stashed in various bags. They are great for a quick burst of essential oil healing magic.

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

The components of the inhaler

When you get your inhalers, which you can buy from many sources including ebay, it will usually come in a few parts: the outer cover, the inhaler (which sits inside the cover), a cotton wad on which you drop your essential oils and the screw lid to keep the cotton inside your inhaler.

I tried using 20 drops of oil but found that it was too strong, so dropped it to 15. You can re-use the cotton wad if you are topping up with the same essential oils. I think you could probably make your own inserts when you run out too.

The cotton insert

Ensure you have a clean workspace, and then just drop the essential oils onto the cotton insert. I usually place a towel down when I’m working.

MMM delicious look at the beautiful green bergamot!

Study Burst

8 drops lemon . 4 drops rosemary . 3 drops basil


Conjuring Creativity

4 drops petitgrain . 4 drops black spruce . 4 drops cedarwood Atlas . 3 drops nutmeg


“Meditation” .

7 drops frankincense . 4 drops lavender . 4 drops Australian Sandalwood




“SLEEP NOW!”

5 drops lavender . 5 drops orange . 4 drops marjoram . 1 drop vetiver


“Sexy Delicious”

5 drops ylang ylang . 4 drops mandarin . 3 drops patchouli . 3 drops cardamom


“End of Year Cheer”

5 drops lime . 4 drops coriander seed . 4 drops geranium . 2 drops spearmint



Make a simple label and you’re ready to go

It really is quite simple and you are only limited by your creativity. It’s a wonderful and inexpensive Christmas/ end of year present.

Let me know how you go in the comments.

Thank you and remember, treat yourself first then everyone benefits.

The Aromatica Australia 2019 Conference on the Gold Coast

Hello natural beauties I hope you’re all well and happy. I had a fabulous weekend on the Gold Coast in Australia at the Aromatica Australia 2019 conference. Here’s my little movie so you get an idea of how energetic it was.

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

I barely had time to do any filming as I needed to shop (of course), chat and eat. The day’s agendas were jam packed, so stay tuned next time I’ll tell you about each presenter and their talk.

Please forgive all my “fantastics” and “amazings”. I was feeling inspired and excited and tired and busy.

There is a bright future for aromatherapy and essential oils but we must look at sustainability and absolutely be more aware of where our money goes. Plant medicine and nutrition will always connect us to the earth. We must look after our planet.

Enliven Your Mind, Make Pesto

I’ve got a brilliant idea. Make dinner and have an aromatherapy treatment all at the same time. My choice for today is pesto, vegan of course. This classic Italian dish with a vegan twist is made with fresh sweet basil. Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) is the kind most used for pesto and other European dishes,  and the most common basil essential oil.

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

_____________________________________________________________________________

beautiful pungent sweet basil

Basil takes its name from the latin ’Basileum’ meaning royal. There are many types of basil, which belong to the herb family that includes lavender, mint, thyme, patchouli, marjoram and many others.

Holy Basil, also known as tulsi is from India (Ocimum tenuiflorum), and also makes a great essential oil and is used in Ayurvedic medicine. This holy plant and is dedicated to Vishnu and Krishna.

Thai basil used across South East Asian has the botanical name (Ocimum basilicum var. thyrsiflora) but I’ve never used it as an essential oil. It’s used in Vietnamese cooking too and tops a lovely pho.

Thai Basil from bonappetit.com

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. It is also used for

* 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.

Vegan pesto from taste.com.au

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!

Beyond The Essential Oil Recipe Aromatherapy Summit

Hello dear natural beauties! I hope you’re well and happy and enjoying life. I’m very excited to tell you about a lecture series all about essential oils and aromatherapy. It’s called “Beyond the Essential Oil Recipe” Summit. Read on to find out how you can listen to over 50 specialists in the industry talk about everything to do with essential oils from chemistry to soap making and so much more.

Buy my 100% natural and organic botanical perfumes, and paperback book here:

suzannerbanks.com.au

                     Digital downloads and paper backs of my book                              Revelation! Reveal your Destiny with Essentials Oils here:

Barnes & Noble      Booktopia AU      Amazon UK

______________________________________________________________________________

One week free entry!


This exciting summit on essential oils brings experts together from all over the world to talk about their field of expertise in aromatherapy. There will be some very technical lectures right through to very relaxed chats. I guarantee you will get so much out of this series. I’d love to do a little piece on everyone but there are over 50 speakers!

The summit is free for one week but if you get in now for the early bird discount you will save 300 USD. Right now it’s 197 USD and it will increase to 497 USD when the summit starts. This gives you access to the talks for one year plus lots of free things too! Click this link to register.

I talk about perfume and aromatherapy while in Bali


What you can expect to hear during the summit:

  • Clear concise advice from industry leaders about how they treat people (and animals!) using essential oils.
  • Ways to take your healing deeper and make it more dynamic 
  • Methods of integrating other philosophies and healing modalities to super charge essential oil practice 
  • How to avoid costly mistakes when purchasing essential oils and formulating products 
  • How the experts integrate essential oils into their every day lives 
  • How body-mind medicine treats physical dis-ease and how we can tap into that learning to speed healing and make it more efficient

Me in Bali preparing for my talk with Elizabeth


When the summit starts you will get an email each night giving you access to 4 or 5 talks. You have access for one week only, so I really encourage you to get in now and take advantage of the early bird offer. I’ve registered and paid because I know how long it will take me to get through all the talks! Each talk also comes with a PDF to download which will give you extra info and contact info for each person too.

Here is the link to register: click here

This is the PDF you’ll get from me

What you’ll also receive as a gift when you register for the early bird discount:

  • Jade Shute’s “Body Butters” Course  
  • Elizabeth Ashley’s “How To Run A Successful Aromatherapy Business” series.
  • many discount vouchers to membership groups, training and online stores. Every day the bundle grows ever bigger and more exciting…

Here is the link to register: click here

Stay tuned and next week I’ll write about the Australian contingent in this series.

More Gorgeous Free Botanical Illustrations

Hello natural beauties and scent lovers from far and wide. I hope you’re all well and happy. The past couple of weeks I’ve written about beautiful free botanical illustrations from the 19th Century book by Kolher, and my free resource about essential oils and tarot. Continuing on from that theme I’d like to share another beautiful online resource for flora and fauna illustrations from the past. Alerted by a Facebook post, an article by mymodernmet.com, showed me to the flickr stream of the Biodiversity Heritage Library showing so many absolutely gorgeous illustrations. Check some out below. 

 

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

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

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

 

Myristica moschata – nutmeg and mace

Papaver rhoeas – poppy

Coffea arabica – coffee

Citrus limonum – lemon 

Citrus aurantium – bitter orange

Pinus laricio – Corsican pine

 

Phoenix dactylifera – dates

 

Viola tricolor – viola

Cucumis melo – musk melons like cantaloupe

Nymphaea nelumbo – lotus

 

Agericus campestrus – gilled mushrooms

 

I think I love the lotus the most. How about you?

 

Oils to Stimulate Your Mind and Inspire Remembering

Hello natural beauties I hope you’re all well and happy. I completely forgot to write an article last week as I’ve been doing lots of different things and have been staying at a friend’s place looking after her cat. It dawned on me one day “hmmm, I forgot to blog”. So I think my mind needs stimulation and I definitely need to remember a bit better. So here are some oils to stimulate your brain, get you thinking and clarify your thoughts. 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

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

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

remember with rosemary

 

Rosemary

Sharp and strong, the scent of rosemary essential oil will awaken and stimulate your brain. Rosemary is the classic oil for remembering. Remember that! I’ve made my mum “smelling salts” and the main ingredient is rosemary. Just open a bottle and have a whiff!

If you can’t wake up in the morning, put a few drops in the bottom of the shower and have a whole body steam.

If you need to concentrate, study, focus and remember things, diffuse rosemary throughout your house or office – or just put a few drops on a hanky or make-up remover pad and sniff when you need as boost.

This ancient herb oil has been with us for centuries which proves it’s hardiness and usefulness, even in today’s modern society. It’s inexpensive too, easy to find, and easy to grow if you have a bit of sun. For some recipes check out

10 Recipes with Rosemary Essential Oil – Rosmarinus officianalis

 


 

 

Eucalyptus

Awaken, clean out your mind and get going with eucalyptus oil. This very distinctive scent will give you an instant brain-lift and help you put ideas into action. It is the oil of clearing and cleansing, so clean out the cupboards of your mind and make space for the thoughts that really count. Once again this oil is inexpensive and easy to find, and works well when cleaning the actual cupboards in your house. Have an aromatherapy treatment while you clean by adding a few drops to soapy water. Simple and easy. Check out these recipes:

10 Essential Oil Recipes to Inspire Creativity

and also a recent article from Australian perfumers about their thoughts on eucalyptus oil:

Eucalyptus – A Three Word Buzz

 


Black pepper

 

Black Pepper

From a story I wrote about black pepper for Australian Perfume Junkies:

“The essential oil of black pepper is a lot softer and sweeter than the taste, and is used in Aromatherapy for symptoms such as poor circulation, muscle and joint aches and pains, as treatment for bad digestion and as a general warming tonic. It has been used as an aphrodisiac, and an anti-dote to depression. Taking in all these properties, what can the divine scent tell us? Like many spice oils, it carries the energetic resonance of the evolution of humanity – really. Each drop, each whiff can link us to the past.

 

It’s an oil of warmth, expansion and action. It’s a stimulating scent to the brain and can certainly be employed to open your mind. When I smell black pepper straight from the bottle (the best way to experience an essential oil is to take off the lid and take a huge sniff) I am inspired to carry on. To me it’s an oil of searching for your purpose in life, and giving inspiration to go forward and seize the day.”

 

 


 

The stunning basil leaf makes a wonderful essential oil – pic by me

 

Basil

Refreshing and uplifting, the scent of basil can be quite soft as well as pungent. Often described in aromatherapy terms as “cephalic” (pertaining to the head), it is an expansive oil as it works on your mind and your brain.

What’s the diff between your mind and your brain? The brain is the organ which helps run the body performing amazing functions at a very small level. “The mind is the brain in action” says Dr Joe Dispenza the wonderful neuroscientist. The mind is multi-dimensional and allows us to understand, comprehend and evolve.

Have a whiff of basil to open yourself to the intelligence of the universe, and help you wake up to do your everyday work and chores. Check out these recipes:

(and BTW I wrote these two articles close together a while back, because I’d written one and forgotten about it ….. I think I see a pattern emerging …..)

10 Recipes with Basil Essential Oil – Ocimum basilicum

10 Recipes with Basil Essential Oil – Ocimum basilicum (part 2)

 


lovely lemongrass

Maybe its just being tired that adds to vagueness?

Try these recipes for fatigue, with oils including

Lemongrass, Black pepper, 

Rosemary, Cypress, Lemon, Basil, Pine, Cinnamon, Ginger, 

Wintergreen, Eucalyptus

10 Vapouriser Essential Oil Recipes for Exhaustion

 


 

Liven up with these stimulating essential oils and train your brain to remember!

Which oils do you like to waken up with?