If your favorite essential oil blend is out of stock and you can't wait or want to create your own essential oil blend, but you find it pretty challenging, then throw all the worries away. Because today I will share with you how to create your own essential oil blends even if you have never tried this before.
You can create new combinations by mixing different essential oils. If you are wondering why you should blend different oils, why not use them separately? Indeed, each oil has a strong aroma, but they enhance each other's properties and benefits when we mix them. For example, lavender oil has a soothing aroma, but its blend with Cedarwood improves its soothing properties. Also, blending essential oil for perfume lets you customize it according to the days of the week or your mood.
As a beginner, start to blend in small portions for practice, but once you find your favorite blend ratio, you can make them in large quantities. Essential oil blending is more like a science experiment where you have to understand the chemistry of each oil. Therefore, before this, you should know about the notes and categories. If you want to make something new, read this article carefully to get a good start.
Essential Oil Aroma Notes
Aroma notes are assigned to each oil based on their lasting fragrance. There are three notes; top, middle, and base. Also, each oil can have all three notes, which decides their quality, like luxurious, full-bodied and deep. A perfect essential oil blend is a balanced mixture of all three notes.
Top Note
When you smell a blend, the first thing that hits you is the top note of essential oil. It has lighter intensity and stays for a shorter time, it makes the scent fresh and uplifts it. Examples of top note essential oil are bay, cardamom, citrus oils, cypress, eucalyptus, etc.
Middle Note
Middle notes essential oils last longer and work as a foundation for your blend, unlike the top note. Also, assist the other two notes to bring out their qualities. Examples of middle notes essential oils are clove bud, Geranium, hot wood, Jasmine, etc.
Base Note/ Fixative
The base note appears late in your scent, but it is pretty sharp and stays longer compared to other notes. They make the blend long-lasting. Also, its blend with strong base notes maintain soap fragrance for a longer period. Examples of fixatives are sandalwood, spikenard, valerian, etc.
Each blend has a different essential oil notes ratio. Still, the most important task here is to keep them balanced and bring out the natural scent of your mix.
Classification of Scent
Scents are classified into nine categories based on their vibes. These nine categories are camphorous, citrus, floral, earthy, herbaceous, minty, oriental, spicy, and woodsy. Keep in consideration that you can't mix all categories to make a blend. For example, a mixture of minty and spicy scents is a nightmare for an expert because both are totally opposite.
Common Essential Oil Blends
There are some common combinations of different scent classifications that perfectly complement each other.
- Woodsy and floral are a heavenly blend
- Oriental oil and spicy
- Minty oil with an oil that does not overpower it like woodsy and sweet
Oils You can Blend
Here I am sharing all classifications according to their notes as a guide. Read them all to get a balance and the right combination of your favorite essential oils.
Essential Oil Blending Chart
Top Note |
Middle Note |
Base Note |
CitrusBergamot, lemon, lemongrass, lime, orange FloralPalmarosa SpicyAngelica, coriander, fenne HerbaceousBasil, citronella, galbanum, peppermint, spearmint
|
CamphorousEucalyptus, juniper, rosemary FloralGeranium, helichrysum, lavender, melissa, neroli, roman chamomile, rose, ylang Ylang HerbaceousBasil, clary sage, marjoram, oregano, thyme OrientalGinger SpicyBlack pepper, cardamom, coriander, elemi, nutmeg WoodsyCypress, idaho balsam fir, pine, spruce
|
FloralJasmine, rose, ylang ylang EarthySpikenard, vetiver OrientalGinger, patchouli SpicyFrankincense WoodsyCedarwood, sandalwood, myrrh
|
Guide: How to Make Essential Oil blends
Now you are ready to create something aromatic and pleasant. As it is recommended to start with a smaller batch, let's start it with 5 drops, and each drop is equal to 20% of the blend. Here we take everything in % to get a specific ratio of a particular blend that you can use for a larger scale. Also, make sure to write all the details on a page before you start mixing.
- Pick the top, middle, and base note on the basis of their categories and suitability from the given table
- Now, we make it 20% dilute to bring out the aroma of all oils
- Add one drop-top note, three drops of middle, and one drop of the base note
- To make it 20% dilute, add 20 drops of carrier oil to avoid overpowering scents
- If you find it good, then note down the recipe and can make it on a larger scale
Once you make these simple essential oil blends according to their proper categories and balanced notes, you can move to complex blends containing 10 - 15 essential oils in one blend.
Blending Tips
- Everyone connects with the fragrances differently. If you are confused about which category of essential oil you like without trying, read the details on the perfume you like the most. In details, you can find the essential oil category you like the most.
- Whenever you try a blend, whether you like it or not, make sure to note down its recipe so you can make it better in the future or never try it again by mistake
- Write the formula of each blend on its bottle, so when someone asks about the scent you are wearing, you can easily share your favorite blend with others.
Conclusion
It's time to try a new essential oil blend according to your mood. But keep in consideration that essential oil blends are scientific in nature and you have to be conscious about the formula of each oil you want to mix, their notes, and their category. Also, it is important to note down the formula so you can get the exact scent next time for yourself or give someone the gift of aroma.