The delicate sense of smell is one that we often ignore, but that colors our world in such a profound, meaningful, emotional and intuitive way that life would lose much of its richness and pleasure without it.  If you have ever had a cold so bad that you lose your sense of smell, you understand how much this subtle scent contributes to your experience of food and of the atmosphere of a place.  Smell can let us know when something is rotting, burning, or just plain off, and it can also let us know when something is delicious and good to eat or when a place is calming, safe and peaceful.  Our nose communicates with our brain on a very subtle level in which we are able to intuitively understand things about our experience and the environment around us with little to any conscious thought or deduction.

Many ancient medical traditions understand the importance of the sense of smell in the experience of the mind and body and learned to manipulate that sense using different plant based scents to produce specific effects.  They often did this through burning various incenses and plant resins to release their smoke in to the air.  In the 12th century AD we find the first historical references to the production and medical use of essential oils from Ibn al-Baitar, an Andalusian pharmacist and chemist.

Essential oils are concentrated liquids containing volatile aroma compounds extracted from plants.  These oils contain the distinctive scent of the plant from which they come and are usually easily identifiable by fragrance.  They are generally created through distillation or extraction, although other methods are also sometimes used, depending on the plant in question.  We proudly carry only the finest grade oils available; ones called "therapeutic-grade" essential oils from Essential Oil Exchange; a member-driven website devoted to providing verifiably quality essential oils at co-op prices.

Essential oils have many applications in life. They can be used medicinally and therapeutically to naturally help with physical troubles and ailments, such as headaches, skin rashes, symptoms of PMS, and many more, and they can also be used to enhance mood and concentration, or to calm your body, your mind, our your space.  Plants have been used in "Ayurvedic" and "folk" medicine for millennia, and people forget that 40% of all medications used today are the result of extracting active components from various plants.  With essential oils, you have the opportunity to experience the powerful healing capabilities of plants in a concentrated, all-organic, natural liquid form.  One drop of an essential oil can equal up to an entire ounce of plant material! - Now that's a powerful drop!

Essential oils can be particularly useful when inhaled as a vapor or consumed as a lozenge to cure respiratory troubles that do not respond well to over the counter medication.  In particular, eucalyptus, capsaicin and camphor, as well as others that work as decongestants and expectorants are very helpful in this capacity.  Essential oils such as clove oil cause numbing and kill a great many bacteria, and therefore have long histories of use as antiseptics and local anesthetics.

Essential oils are also a key components of aromatherapy, which uses the aromatic elements of plants to create health, balance the body and the chakras, and lift the mood.  There are many different essential oils to choose from and all have markedly different effects when consumed.  Many are grounding and clarifying and remove toxins, cleansing the respiratory system and the body as a whole.  Certain essential oils, such as tea tree oil, can also be applied to the skin in order to care for blemished skin. However, it is very important to research each essential oil you use separately, as they all have different applications and different methods of use, and some are dangerous to apply directly to the skin.

Essential oils can be vaporized in the air or inhaled as vapor, they can be added to carrier oils to make massage oils for specific applications, can be added to a bath to heal spiritual and physical ailments, and can sometimes even be consumed in very small quantities with water in order to internally kill bacteria and improve well being.  Each type of essential oil you work with will have a number of different potential applications, from house cleaning to mood improvement, and when working with them you will get to explore all of these.  These oils are completely natural and, with a little bit of research, you will be surprised and thrilled by how versatile they are.  No matter what you are looking to do for your body or your environment, there is an essential oil available that will help you to reach your goals!  And with just a little bit of exploration you will be able to get started using essential oils to improve your health and life in moments!