Essential Oil Blending Basics

Essential Oil Blending Basics

Essential oils are a great way to scent your home and yourself. They can also be used for cleaning or beauty products. The best part about essential oils is that they’re so easy to use and the scents are long-lasting. You can even make your own blends by combining different scents together! Let’s learn how to do this together and start making our own custom fragrances.

In aromatherapy blending, only essential oils; absolutes; CO2’s; whole grain alcohol; carrier oils; herbs; and pure water are used. Keep it natural to retain all the benefits that essential oils provide.*

The biggest questions asked when blending essential oils are:  How do I know how much of each oil should I use? Which oils go together? What effect will I get when combining oils? Will they clash or complement each other?

Blending Essential Oils to Create New & Wonderful Scents

Blending essential oils is a great way to create new and interesting scents. You can blend by notes, effect, scent and even by season.

Blending by Notes

You probably noticed that when you put on perfume or essential oils, after a period of time the scent changes. That’s because certain oils evaporate or are soaked into the skin more quickly than others. The ones that evaporate quickly are called top notes. Then there are middle notes and, finally, base notes.  This concept plays a significant role in essential oil blending basics.

Here’s a list to help you get started with top, middle, and base notes:

• Top notes – Anise, Basil, Bergamot, Citronella, Eucalyptus, Grapefruit, Lavender, Lemon, Lemongrass, Lime,  Sweet Orange, Peppermint, Petitgrain, Spearmint, Tangerine
• Middle notes – Black Pepper, Carrot Seed, Chamomile (Roman), Cinnamon, Clary Sage, Clove Bud, Cypress, Dill, Fennel, Geranium, Jasmine, Sweet Marjoram, Nutmeg, Palmarosa, Rose, Rosemary, Rosewood, Tea Tree, Thyme, Ylang Ylang
• Base notes – Benzoin, Cassia, Cedarwood, Clove Bud, Fir Needle, Frankincense, Ginger, Helichrysum, Jasmine, Myrrh, Oakmoss, Patchouli, Rosewood, Sandalwood, Valerian, Vanilla, Vetiver

Blending Essential Oils by Scent

Categorizing essential oils by scent is the most basic way to blend essential oils and it’s also the easiest. You simply choose two or more oils that smell good together and use them in your blends. For example try using lavender (floral) and lemon (citrus) together because they both smell so fresh and clean!

• Floral – Geranium, Jasmine, Lavender, Palmarosa, Rose, Vanilla, Ylang Ylang
• Citrus –  Bergamot, Citronella, Grapefruit, Lemon, Lemongrass, Lime, Melissa, Sweet Orange, Petitgrain, Tangerine
• Spicy – Black Pepper, Cinnamon, Clove Bud, Ginger, Nutmeg,
• Woodsy – Cedarwood, Coriander, Cypress, Fir Needle, Frankincense, Helichrysum, Juniper, Myrrh, Patchouli, Sandalwood, Vetiver

Oils within the same category are easy to blend and mix nicely together because they complement each other. Additionally, some categories blend particularly well with other categories. However, don’t be afraid to get creative with your blending because rules are meant to be broken — if you personally like your own creation, then go for it! Additional essential oil scent categorizes can be found here.

Essential Oil Categories That Blend Well Together

• Floral blends well with spicy, oriental, woodsy, and citrus
• Spicy blends well with florals and oriental
• Minty blends well with citrus, woodsy, herbaceous, and earthy
• Woodsy, herbaceous, and earthy all blend nicely together
• Woodsy usually plays well with all other categories

Blending Essential Oils by Effect

Another technique for blending essential oils is to seek out complementary effects when creating your blends. This can be used as a guide for what kinds of scents will work well together based on their properties (for example making an oil that helps with sleep would require something calming like lavender). This approach works really well when you’re looking to create custom blends just for yourself since you know exactly what you want out of each one but if someone else might be using this blend then consider whether or not they would benefit from its effects before buying any oils (or maybe mix up some samples!).

• Energizing – Rosemary, Clary Sage, Bergamot, Lemongrass, Eucalyptus, Peppermint, Spearmint, Tea Tree, Cypress, Pine (Scots), Lemon, Basil, Grapefruit, Ginger.
• Calming – Lavender, Geranium, Tangerine, Bergamot, Ylang Ylang,  Jasmine, Melissa, Palmarosa, Patchouli, Petitgrain, Sandalwood.
• Detoxifying –  Peppermint, Juniper, Grapefruit, Rosemary, Bay Leaf, Tangerine, Lemon, Patchouli, Hyssop, Helichrysum.
• Anti-Anxiety –  Lavender, Geranium, Roman Chamomile, Sweet Marjoram, Sandalwood, Valerian, Bergamot, Jasmine, Black Pepper, Tangerine, Sweet Orange, Melissa.

Blending Essential Oils by Season

Another fun way to group your essential oils is by season:

• Fall – Sweet Orange, Cassia, Cinnamon, Fir Needle, Cedarwood, Bergamot.
• Winter –  Lavender, Fir Needle, Scots Pine, Peppermint, Eucalyptus, Sandalwood.
• Spring –  Geranium, Palmarosa, Juniper Berry.

Essential Oil Blending Basics

Once you get the hang of it, blending essential oils can be easier than it seems. You can blend oils in different ways to make one scent or a new one altogether. Essential oils are highly concentrated and potent, so they can really pack a punch when mixed together. It’s important to know how much of each oil to use so that your final product won’t be too strong or weak for your needs.

It’s a good idea to start by using this breakdown: 30% top notes, 50% middle notes, and 20% base notes. For your blends, use no more than 5 – 20 drops at most. This way, you can adjust by adding more as you go. Start the blend with essential oils only, adding carrier oils or alcohol afterward. This way, if you decide you don’t like the blend, you haven’t wasted the carrier oils. Use amber bottles to store your blends. This will help keep them safe from the sun!
Once you’ve created your blend, store it a few days so that the oils can mix and get to know one another. Often, the scent will change slightly, and you might love it more or less.

For best results when mixing multiple ingredients at once into lotions or scrubs, consider using around 1 part carrier oil per 1–2 parts total amount of essential oils being used—and then go from there according* As long as all ingredients were measured correctly during mixing stage (see above), then no miscalculations should occur during application phase.

One thing to keep in mind is that the more you blend, the better you’ll get at it. This can be a fun hobby or part-time business for some people, but it also offers something to everyone: relaxation and stress relief as well as opportunities for creativity and personal growth.

Try a Few Basic Recipes First

Simple Blending Formula

1. Fill 0.5 0z (15 ml)amber glass bottle almost to the top with your choice of carrier oil.
2. Select 3-5 oils you’ll be using for your blend.
3. For a safe dilution rate use up to 8 drops of your oils.
4. Start with one drop of each oil and see how it smells.
5. Adjust from there, adding one drop at a time, until you’ve reached 8 drops total.

Carrier Oil Perfume

• 15 – 25 drops of your blend
• 1 tablespoon of carrier oil (coconut oil, sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil or other carrier oil)
• Blend all oils and always perform a skin patch test first to ensure the blend doesn’t irritate your skin.

Alcohol/Water Base Perfume/Cologne

• 4 ¼ teaspoons vodka
• 1 ½ teaspoons distilled water
• About 60 drops of your perfume blend
• Blend and store for about two weeks, gently shaking the bottle during that time. Then filter (through a coffee filter is just fine) into a new bottle and do a skin test.

Create Unique Scents By Blending Essential Oils In Different Ways

Blending essential oils is a creative process. It’s fun to play with different combinations and see what you can come up with. You may want to create your own unique scent, or match the scent of an essential oil to its effect.

You can blend essential oils in many ways:

• Try using them in a diffuser or vaporizer.
• Add them to body lotions, soaps, shampoos and other personal care products.
• Mix them with carrier oils such as jojoba oil for massage blends (add 10-15 drops per ounce).
• Make candles using your essential oil blends.

Safety Tips When Blending Essential Oils

• Be careful when blending phototoxic oils and other potent oils.
• See our Safety Information page for further details when using essential oils.
• For further information, we recommend the following reference books.
• You may also read our article A Beginner’s Guide to Using Essential Oils.

*This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease.