A beginner's guide to carrier oils

If you have ever wondered how to actually use an essential oil, the answer usually starts with a carrier oil. Carrier oils are gentle base oils, pressed from nuts, seeds and fruits, that dilute concentrated essential oils and sit happily on skin and hair on their own. They are the quiet half of aromatherapy, and the half most people skip past. Here is a simple guide to getting started.

What a carrier oil does

Essential oils are highly concentrated and are meant to be diluted before they touch your skin. A single drop of lavender essential oil holds the work of a great many flower heads. A carrier oil takes that drop and spreads it across a larger area, so a blend can be smoothed over the arms or the ends of your hair instead of landing in one spot.

The difference is in how they are made. Essential oils are distilled and volatile, which is why you smell them from across the room. Carrier oils are pressed from the flesh, kernel or seed of a plant. They are fatty rather than volatile, so they stay put, spread easily and smell faint and nutty rather than sharp. That is what makes them good carriers.

A few to know

Each carrier has its own weight, texture and finish. Choosing between them is mostly preference. A few worth meeting first:

• Sweet almond oil. Light, faintly nutty, pale gold. It absorbs at a moderate pace and leaves little shine. The sensible all-rounder if you are buying one bottle.
• Jojoba oil. Technically a liquid wax rather than an oil. Nearly odourless, sinks in quickly, and keeps far longer than most. A good choice for blends you want to make and keep.
• Argan oil. Silky and deep gold with a warm, faintly toasted scent. A few drops warmed between the palms are a common way to condition dry ends.
• Aloe vera oil. Light and soft on the skin, easy to spread, mild in smell.
• Grape seed oil. Thin, almost dry to the touch. Massage blends glide with it and it does not feel greasy afterwards.
• Unrefined coconut oil. Solid in a cool room, liquid the moment it meets warm hands, with an unmistakable coconut smell.
• Rosehip oil. Richer and amber-coloured, with a distinctive earthy scent. Often used sparingly on the face at night.

How to blend

Work in drops per tablespoon and you will never need a calculator. One tablespoon, about 15 ml, of carrier oil is your base.

• 6 drops of essential oil per tablespoon gives roughly 2 percent, a sensible everyday strength for the body.
• 3 drops per tablespoon gives about 1 percent, better for the face, for sensitive skin, and for older adults.
• 9 drops per tablespoon, around 3 percent, is a reasonable ceiling for a short-term blend on a small area.

Mix in a small glass bottle or bowl, then patch test before you commit: dab a little on the inner forearm and leave it alone for 24 hours. If anything stings, itches or reddens, wipe it away with plain carrier oil, wash with a mild soap and set that essential oil aside. Read the label on both bottles every time. If you have a nut allergy, skip the nut-pressed carriers and reach for jojoba or grape seed instead. For external and aromatherapy use only, never swallowed.

Using them on their own

Carrier oils are lovely by themselves, and plenty of people never blend at all. Argan on damp hair, jojoba after washing your face, sweet almond down the arms after a bath: no essential oil required. Start with less than you think you need. These oils go further than they look like they will, and a blob the size of a lentil is usually plenty for a face.

Storing them well

Carrier oils go stale, and you will smell it when they do: a flat, crayon-like note replaces the fresh nuttiness. An oil past its best is more likely to irritate skin, so let your nose retire it. Keep the cap sealed, keep the bottle out of the sun and away from the stove, and use most carriers within six to twelve months of opening. Jojoba is the exception and keeps for years. The more delicate pressings, rosehip among them, are happiest in the fridge once opened. Write the opening date on the label and you will never have to guess.

If you are still deciding, our carrier and infused oils are the place to browse, and each listing describes how the oil feels and smells so you can choose by texture rather than guesswork. When you are ready to add a drop of something aromatic, the essential oils sit alongside them. If you are torn between two bottles, write to us. We would rather talk it through than have you buy the wrong one.