Aromatherapy oils Recipes that soothe the mind, body, and soul

by Mother Oak

Relaxation

This blend is for relaxation and stress relief. It will induce a deep relaxation of the tissues, muscles and joints, and re-establish a good energy balance. Blend the following essential oils into one ounce of carrier oil of your choice; Massage as desired. May also be used as a bath oil.

# 3 drops Lavender
# 3 drops Tangerine
# 3 drops Marjoram
# 1 drop Chamomile

Control Pet Odor

Try this natural and aromatic spray. Pour the essential oils into a 1-oz spray bottle filled with water. Shake very vigorously several times before each use. Spray directly onto your dog, holding the bottle about 10 inches from him. Avoid spraying on the head and eyes.

# 10 drops Lavender
# 10 drops Geranium
# 6 drops Lemon

Bath Mush

# 1/4 cup aloe gel (the pure kind from the health food store)
# 1/4 cup honey
# 1/4 cup sea or rock salt
# 1/4 cup heavy cream or powdered milk
# 2 t. jojoba oil (optional)
# 5 drops essential oil

Sounds like a gooey mess, doesn't it? But it works wonders on your skin. It leaves the skin feeling soft and smooth. This is a blend made right before the bath. I guess it could be stored in the refrigerator for abut a week, but that sounds a little yucky to me. All measurements are approximate since I usually just "eyeball" it. You have to stir it well when you pour it into the bath water to make it disperse, but it's worth it.

Rosemary Mist

Brace yourself This sense-stimulating mist is a superb post-shower, after you've toweled off but skin is still a bit damp. In spray bottle place:

# 5 ounces distilled water
# 1 tsp olive oil
# 6 drops rosemary essential oil
# 1 sprig fresh rosemary

Shake well to mix -- spritz on as desired.

Eucalyptus oil

An effective analgesic and often used to relieve muscle, nerve and joint pain. Apply a massage oil to the affected area before a warm bath, then massage the area again after your bath. I like a blend of Lavender and Eucalyptus for even better results. When massaging small areas like a shoulder you can double the amount of essential oils used. ex. 20-30 drops per 1 oz. carrier oil

Holiday Bookmarks

If you're giving a book as a holiday gift why not add a bookmark to which you've added a few drops of essential oils. Try to choose something that will appeal to most folks like Orange or maybe a blend of Lavender and Tangerine. The Orange is great for kids. Create a bookmark for students adding oils to help them study, Peppermint, Rosemary and Basil will help keep them alert. Add a bottle of the essential oil so they can refresh their bookmark. Maybe spice oils for a cookbook. The possibilities are endless.

Fall & Holiday Blends

Frankincense is a great essential oil to use this time of year however it is best used in a blend with other oils as it's scent will remind you of being in church! Use 1 drop of Frankincense with perhaps Orange (Clementine would be great!) and Spruce ( Pine or Fir). Add some spice oils, Cinnamon, Nutmeg or Clove. Experiment with other oils. Use in a diffuser or aroma lamp.

Homemade Skin Toner

# 2 oz. Green Tea
# 5 drops Lavender essential oil
# 5 drops Geranium essential oil

Mix up this bottle of tea and essential oils to balance the pH of your skin after cleansing. It's easy... it's cooling... and it leaves your skin feeling refreshed! Place the ingredients in a glass bottle. Essential oils do not dissolve in water or tea so be sure to shake this mixture well before each use to make sure the essential oils are dispersed. Use a cotton pad to apply to face and neck area after cleansing. Yum!!

Bath Melts

# 2 parts cocoa butter
# 2 parts baking soda
# 1 part citric acid
# powdered herbs color (optional)
# EO(s) or FO(s) (your preference)

Melt the cocoa butter add EO(s) and color if you wish. then add powdered ingredients, stir then pour into molds. Let sit in fridge or freezer until set then pop out of molds and let sit for a day or two.

Fragrant Bath Fizzies

# 1 cup baking soda
# 1 /2 cup cornstarch
# 1 /2 cup citric acid
# 15 drops essential oil
# food color, 10 drops (optional)

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Add food coloring to a small amount of the mix in a separate bowl. Add colored mix to remaining mix and blend. Mist the salts with a mister enough so that they hold together but not enough to start fizzing. Pack these salts into a soap mold. Flip over onto a piece of waxed paper and allow molded fizzie to dry overnight.

Fizzy Bath Kisses

# Cocoa Butter
# 2 oz Baking Soda--2 oz
# Citric Acid--2 oz
# Oatmeal, powdered--3 Tbsp
# Food Color--10 drops (optional)
# Bergamot--10 drops
# Rose--5 drops
# Ylang-Ylang--10 drops

Melt cocoa butter (microwave is fine). Add food color and essential oils. Mix well. Add baking soda, citric acid and powdered oatmeal. Stir thoroughly. Pour into molds. Put into freezer to set. (This takes about 10-20 mins.) Remove from molds when set.

Note: Use 1-2 per bath or 3-4 for extra moisturizing.

Aromatherapy Body Powder especially for the feet

# 1 Cup Cornstarch
# 1 Tablespoon Baking Soda
# Essential oils of your choice

In a jar with a tight fitting lid. Add 15-20 drops of your favorite essential oils. Shake well

Buttermilk Bath Salts

# 1 cup Buttermilk Powder
# 1 cup Sea Salt
# Up to 24 drops of essential oils

Blend well, keep in a sealed jar. Use 1/2 cup per bath. This makes enough for 4 baths.

Ginger Body Scrub

Use this one in the morning as the essential oils are invigorating.

# Sea Salt 1/4
# Cup Cornmeal 1/4
# Cup Olive Oil 1/3
# Cup or another base oil
# Ginger 2 drops
# Peppermint 4 drops
# Rosemary 3 drops

Mix salt and cornmeal. Combine warmed oil and essential oils then mix with dry ingredients. Use in the shower or standing in the tub. Apply in circular motions, working from the extremities inward, working towards the center of the body and the heart. Rinse with warm water. Gently pat dry. Your skin will feel smoother and have a nice glow.

Spritzers

Use 4 oz. of distilled water To make a facial mist use 8-10 drops of essential oils per 4 oz. of distilled water. 30-40 drops per 4 oz. for a body spray 80-100 drops per 4 oz. for a room spray

Hot Rock Massage

This is a spa treatment from the Arizona desert. Select a large, flat smooth stone, the size of your palm Heat stone in a low temperature oven until warm but not hot. Rub some scented massage oil into the stone and use this heated rock to give your partner a soothing massage. The heat from the stone relaxes and penetrates the muscles. Use up to 15 drops of essential oil per 1 oz. of unscented oil. Start with less drops, you can always add more. Try Sweet Almond, Grapeseed or Apricot Oil.

Peace and Love Massage Oil

# 3 drops Patchouli
# 3 drops Sandalwood
# 1 oz.Unscented base oil

So Easy to Make Bath Salts

# 1 cup Sea Salt
# 1 cup Epsom Salt
# 1 cup Baking Soda Your favorite essential oils

Try French Lavender, Rose Geranium and Ylang Ylang Extra You'll want about 6 drops of essential oils per 1/4 cup salt blend Use 1/4 cup per bath. This makes enough for several baths.

Germ Fighter Spray

We've all been told to wash our hands more frequently. Here is an antiseptic, germ fighting spray to use on cuts and scrapes. May also be used as a room spray.

# 12 drops Tea Tree
# 6 drops Eucalyptus Unrectified
# 6 drops Lemon
# 2 oz. distilled water

Combine ingredients and add to spray bottle. Shake gently before use.

Rose Otto

The intoxicating aroma of Rose-Otto oil makes it an effective aphrodisiac. Rose-Otto oil exerts its effects on both mind and body. It acts to both relieve stress and relax the spirit. For a relaxing bath, mix three drops of Turkish Rose-Otto in three and a half Tbsp. of heavy cream and add to the bathwater. For a truly sensuous scent, add a few drops of Sandalwood or Jasmine.

Scented Beeswax Heart

Scent a room with this decorative accent. Use a cookie cutter to cut a heart shape from a sheet of natural beeswax. Wrap the heart in cheesecloth and infuse it with a few drops of Rose Otto. Place the wrapped heart in a plastic bag for a week. Remove and discard the cloth and glue a ribbon hanger to the back of the heart. You can even decorate it with dried flowers and a bow. Hang it in the kitchen or even the bath!!

Relaxing Lavender Honey Bath

Did you know that Honey has a calming effect? Combined with pure essential oil of Lavender it's a yummy bath treatment. Why not try it tonight!
# 2 oz. of Honey
# 5 drops Lavender

Combine in a jar. use 1 -2 Tablespoons per bath.

Vanilla Rose Bath Fizz

Blend one half cup baking soda and one fourth cup each cornstarch and citric acid in a glass bow. Add one teaspoon each melted cocoa butter and Vanilla essential oil and one half teaspoon Rose Otto oil. Mix well. Slowly blend in one teaspoon rose water. Pack mixture into molds, turn out on waxed paper to dry for 24 hours, then store in airtight container. Add one fizz to a warm bath and Enjoy!

Ice Candles

Melt one pound of paraffin in a double boiler. Cut a milk carton to height desired, center a taper candle inside, then fill with crushed ice. Add six drops Spearmint essential oil and a sprinkling of glitter to the cooling paraffin.....pour the paraffin into the carton. Let cool, then pour off the water and tear away the carton to reveal a candle that glistens like ice

How to Make Scented Rocks

Place rocks in a bowl or dish to scent a room. A nice alternative to potpourri!

# 1/2 cup plain flour
# 1/2 cup salt
# 1/4 teaspoon essential oil (your favorite scent)
# 2/3 cups boiling water
# Food coloring, if desired

In bowl, mix dry ingredients well. Add essential oil, and boiling water to dry ingredients. (Scent will be strong, but will fade slightly when dry.)

For colored stones, blend in food coloring, one drop at a time until desired shade is reached. Blend ingredients, and form balls into different shape and sizes to look like stones. Allow stones to dry.

Lemon Citrus Soak

Lemons have been used for hand and nail care for centuries. Lemon Juice and the essential oil of Lemon whitens nails while stimulating healthy growth. Try this Refreshing Citrus Soak

# 8 oz. spring water
# 1 Tablespoon Aloe Vera Gel
# 10 drops Lemon Juice

Mix and soak fingertips for 10 minutes.

Fireplace Oils

When making Holiday logs use 1 drop of essential oil per log and only one log per fire. After applying the essential oil to the log be sure to let it sit for enough time that the essential oil soaks through the log. Some choices are Sandalwood, Frankincense, Myrrh, Cypress, and Cedarwood.

Cornmeal Face Scrub

Essential Oils can be incorporated into many facial products. A facial scrub to try includes:

# 1/4 cup yogurt
# 1/4 cup cornmeal
# 5 drops Lavender essential oil
# 5 drops Patchouli essential oil
# 5 drops Grapefruit essential oil

Mix together and refrigerate a couple of hours before using. Store in the refrigerator.

A CHRISTMAS POTPOURRI

# 3 c Fresh juniper sprigs -with berries
# 2 c Red rosebuds
# 1 c Bay leaves
# 1/4 c Cinnamon chips
# 2 tb Cloves
# 10 Drops rose oil
# 3 Drops pine oil
# 6 Drops cinnamon oil
# 1 tb Orrisroot chips
# 5 Whole dried rose blossoms
# 3 Three-inch cinnamon sticks
# 20 Assorted pinecones, -painted gold

Combine the juniper, rosebuds, bay leaves, cinnamon chips, cloves, and cones in a big ceramic bowl. In a separate dish, mix the oils with the orrisroot. Stir this mixture into the first one and put into a closed container to mellow for a few weeks, stirring occasionally. Place the potpourri in a dish and scatter the roses blossoms and cinnamon sticks on top.

Christmas Spice Potpourri

# 2 cups dried pink rose petals and buds
# 1/2 cup dried bay leaves, crumbled
# 1/2 cup dried orange peel
# 1/2 cup dried pomegranate slices, chopped
# 1 Tablespoon grated nutmeg
# 1/2 cup small pine cones
# 1/2 Tablespoon orris root power
# 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
# 1/2 teaspoon mixed spices, lightly crushed: mustard seed, black, green and white peppercorns, red spindle berries, juniper berries
# 10 drops frankincense essential oil
# 5 drops clove essential oil
# 20 drops orange essential oil
# 5 drops myrrh essential oil

Frankincense Soap

Wrap unscented purchased soap with cheesecloth, then sprinkle the wrapped bar with a few drops of frankincense essential oil. Place the soap in an airtight container for a month, then discard wrapping. You can decorate the soap with silver or gold leaf applied in a random pattern. Dampen the soap before applying metallic leaf! This makes a gorgeous gift!

Scented Holiday Cards

Make your Christmas/Holiday cards extra special this year. Place 1 drop of any holiday blend on the inside corner of each card. Seal and send as usual. What a nice surprise for the recipient! Some oils to use: we like our Celebration blend with Cinnamon, Orange Clove but a Evergreen blend is also nice.

Frankincense and Myrrh Soap Balls

Making your own soap can be a complicated process. However......this is a very simple way of introducing your favorite smells to a basic, fragrance-free soap, using a combination of nourishing vegetable oil, oatmeal as a natural exfoliant and healing and nourishing honey!! The soaps are scented with the heavenly combination of frankincense and myrrh. The spicy, woody scent of frankincense is uplifting, while the balsamic, must scent of myrrh is known to be anti-fungal and healing.

# 9 ounces of pure, unscented soap
# 4 fl. ounces water
# 1 tablespoon honey
# 1 tablespoon finely ground oatmeal
# 1 teaspoon sweet almond or apricot kernel oil
# 12 drops myrrh essential oil
# 8 drops frankincense essential oil.
# Cheese grater (fine)
# Bain-Marie(double boiler with a ceramic insert to evenly disperse gentle heat)
# Wooden Spoon
# Dried herbs (optional)

Grate the soap with a fine cheese grater. Place the soap in the bain-marie with the water. Gently heat over a low least. Gradually the mixture will form a thick and fairly sticky paste. When the soap has melted, add the honey, oatmeal, oil and dried herbs(optional) and mix in well. Transfer to a clean bowl and then add in the essential oils. Mix very thoroughly! Have a bowl of water on hand to wet your hands. Then take a small handful of the mixture and mold into round balls. You will be able to make approximately 2 large balls or 5 or so of the smaller ones. Place on a sheet of grease-proof paper and leave it to harden for a week or so. Or.......you can put the mixture in a shaped mold!

Soap of the Magi

# 5 Ounces Glycerine Soap
# 1/8 teaspoon Myrrh Oil
# 1/8 teaspoon Frankincense Oil
# Bronze and Gold Mica Dust
# Ultra fine gold fabric glitter
# Oval soap mold

Melt 1/2 of the soap. Stir in the Frankincense oil and Gold mica dust. Pour into 2 molds filling only half way. Melt the other 1/2 of the soap. Stir in Myrrh oil and Bronze mica dust. Spoon over 1st layer of soap. Set, unmold. Give the bars a light dusting of the gold glitter and you have a soap of gold, frankincense and Myrrh the gifts of the Magi. If you've frozen the soap allow it to thaw and dry before adding the glitter or wrapping.

Cover-all scent

A blend of equal parts of Clove, Lemon, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary oils.

Developed according to the legend about the four thieves in 15th century England who used these and other aromatics to protect themselves while robbing plague victims.

Bath Cookies

Do not eat these!
# 2 Cups Rock Salt
# ½ Cup Baking Soda
# ½ Cup Cornstarch
# 2 Tablespoons Almond Oil
# 1 Teaspoon Vitamin E Oil
# 1-2 Eggs
# 6 Drops Essential Oil

Mix together and then cut out with cookie cutters in the shape you want. Bake at 350 degree 10 - 12 minutes Allow to cool. Use 1-2 per bath keep in an air tight container. These are perishable because of the eggs so use them up or give as gifts.

Samhain Recipes

Pumpkin Muffins
1 c Unbleached Flour, Sifted
2 t Baking Powder
1/4 t Salt
1/4 t Ground Cinnamon
1/4 c Vegetable Shortening
2/3 c Sugar
1 ea Large Egg
1/2 c Canned, Mashed Pumpkin
2 T Milk
Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; set aside. Cream together shortening and sugar in mixing bowl until light and fluffy, using electric mixer at medium speed. Beat in egg. Combine pumpkin and milk in small bowl. Add dry ingredients alternately with pumpkin mixture to creamed mixture, stirring well after each addition. Spoon batter into paper-lined 2 1/2-inch muffin-pan cups, filling 2/3rds full.

Bake in 350 degree F. oven 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot with butter and homemade jam.


Samhain Oil
From Myrriah’s Home Page

1/2 dram Pine Oil
1/4 dram Frankincense oil
1/4 dram Patchouli oil
a/4 dram Lavendar oil
Mix well and bottle.


Uncle Ray’s Orange-Carrot Jello Mold
l pkg. (small size) orange jello
2 or 3 medium carrots----finely grated
1/4 tsp. white horseradish
In 1 and 1/4 cups *Hot* water (Boiled)...add horseradish, then mix in the orange jello...stir and add the finely grated carrots...pour into mold and refrigerate til set...serve with creamy dressing...following:

DRESSING:

Mix equal parts of Mayonnaise and heavy cream together and chill. Serve with jello mold.


Pumpkin Marble Cheesecake
Servings: 10

1 1/2 c Gingersnap Crumbs
1/2 c Finely Chopped Pecans
1/3 c Margarine, Melted
16 oz Cream Cheese, Softened
3/4 c Sugar
1 t Vanilla
3 ea Eggs
1 c Canned Pumpkin
3/4 t Cinnamon
1/4 t Ground Nutmeg
Combine crumbs, pecans and margarine; press onto bottom and 1 1/2-inches up sides of 9-inch springform pan. Bake at 350 degrees F., 10 minutes. Combine cream cheese, 1/2 c sugar and vanilla, mixing at medium speed on electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Reserve 1 c batter, chill. Add remaining sugar, pumpkin and spices to remaining batter; mix well. Alternately layer pumpkin and cream cheese batters over crust. Cut through batters with knife several times for marble effect. Bake at 350 degrees F., 55 minutes. Loosen cake from rim of pan; cool before removing rim of pan. Chill.


Remembrance Cookies
These cookies can be made on Hallow’s Eve. They can be shaped like people and the herb rosemary is added to the dough as a symbol of remembrance. Some of the cookies are eaten while telling stories or attributes of special ancestors, reminding us that we still have access to their strengths--or perhaps a predisposition to their weaknesses. The rest of the cookies are left outside by a bonfire as an offering. This can be a solemn ritul, but it need not be.

Ingredients for the cookies:

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 c. butter or margarine (softened)
1 egg
2 t. vanilla
1 t. almond extract
2 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cream of tartar
1 1/2 T. chopped rosemary
Heat oven 375 degrees. In a large bowl, beat sugar, butter, egg, vanilla, almond extract, and rosemary until creamy. In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Fold flour mixture into sugar mixture. Beat until dough forms and refrigerate for three hours. Divide dough into halves. Roll out one portion to 3/16 of an inch on a floured surface. Cut out with gingerbread women or men cutters and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat rolling and cutting with second portion. Bake for 5-7 minutes.


Colcannon
(Potatoes, harvested from August to October, were a part of the feast in Ireland where they were made into a Samhain dish known as colcannon. Colcannon is a mashed potato, cabbage, and onion dish still served in Ireland on All Saint’s Day. It was an old Irish tradition to hide in it a ring for a bride, a button for a bachelor, an thimble for a spinster, and a coin for wealth, or any other item which local custom decreed in keeping with idea of the New Year as a time for divination.)

4 cups mashed potatoes
2 1/2 cups cabbage, cooked and chopped fine
1/2 cup butter (avoid corn oil margarines as they will not add the needed body and flavor)
1/2 cup evaporated milk or cream
3/4 cup onion, chopped very find and sautéd
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
Sauté onions (traditionalists sauté in lard or grease, but butter is acceptable.). Boil the potatoes and mash them (do not use artificial potato flakes). In a large pan place all of the ingredients except the cabbage and cook over low heat while blending them together. Turn the heat to medium and add the chopped cabbage. The mixture will take on a pale green cast. Keep stirring occasionally until the mixture is warm enough to eat. Lastly drop in a thimble, button, ring, and coin. Stir well and serve.


Howling Jack: Honey Pumpkin Mead
by Aurora

This mead is the color of a ripe peach and smells like autumn leaves - perfect for a Harvest party or Sabbat.

1 sound, hard-rind pumpkin (approx. 2 quart capacity)
Paraffin wax
1 1/2 quarts of water
4 lbs. honey
2 each oranges and lemons
1 pkt. wine yeast
1 tea bag (black tea)

Prepare yeast starter.
Sterilize honey and water by boiling for 10 minutes, skimming the froth as it rises.
Remove from heat; stir in sliced citrus fruits, including skins.
Cool to room temperature; pitch yeast.
Allow to sit over night.
Prepare pumpkin by cutting off the top with a sharp knife. The top must "mate" with the bottom so cut carefully. Clean out the seeds, strings, and membranes of the pumpkin. Rinse out with water.
Pour the must into the pumpking, leaving an inch of air space between the liquid and the rim of the opening. Replace the top.
Prepare the paraffin/water bath: Fill a plastic bucket with hot water, melt the paraffin wax and float it on the water.
Dip the pumpkin, bottom first, into the warm paraffin until it is coated up to its lid. Once the paraffin begins to harden on the pumpkin skin, seal the lid by carefully pouring paraffin over the top, making sure to coat the seam.
Set the pumpkin in the middle of a shallow dishpaaan full of water to keep and thirsty pickle worms at bay and place it in a dark, quiet spot.
Allow to sit for two months, then siphon off and bottle.
Note: It is probably a good idea to rack the mead into a glass fermenter, fitted with an air lock, for evaluation prior to bottling. If the fermentation is not complete and you bottle prematurely, the corks and glass may blow.


Bird’s Nest Pudding
by Siannan

The name of this pudding (really more like a pie) comes from the serving appearance--the apples are nestled in a bowl created by the crust.

5 Granny Smith apples, cored and peeled and sliced thinly
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 egg
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup milk
2 cups flour (I use a half and half mixture of wheat and white flours--all wheat yields a tough crust)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp butter
1/2 cup sugar (for topping)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a deep pie dish (lightly grease the rim of the dish as well). Toss apple slices with cinnamon and nutmeg and arrange in the dish. Blend together the egg, sugar, salt, milk, flour, cream, and baking powder until it begins to form a dough. Do not over mix! Shape the dough into a crust and mold it over the top of the pie dish to cover. Bake at for 25 minutes. To serve, invert the dish over a platter. Dot the apples with butter and sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Serve with heavy cream sprinkled with nutmeg. Just the thing for contemplating a warm fire or a cozy night of music!

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