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For wholesale prices on bulk dried French lavender buds visit
our Wholesale website at
wholesale.limaugeboutique.com
Imagine a flower being able to
calm your nerves, reduce
inflammation and swelling, promote faster healing for
minor burns, decrease muscle
pain,
alleviate insomnia, and work
as a natural bug repellant?
That purple colored flower named
lavender, which is derived from the Latin word lavera meaning “to
wash”, is one of the most versatile
essential oils the
plant kingdom has to offer. Additionally, it’s obtained without a prescription
and the price is considered quite inexpensive.
Types of Lavender:
 Lavandula
Angustifolia is the most common type of
lavender and it hails
from England It is oftentimes referred to as
true lavender. Any
true lavender will
have the botanical name of “lavandula”
as the prefix. (There are up to 50 different species, including
lavandula officinalis
and lavandula vera, yet they will all be simply lavender).
Lavender grows all over
the world, including many parts of the United States and Canada, France,
Italy, Bulgaria, Russia, Croatia, China, and Australia. The reason the
“true” lavandula angustifolia genus is so popular is due to the low rate
of camphor, less than one percent, it retains after
distillation.
This lends the
essential oil a strong floral aroma, but it also makes it quite
effective in aromatherapy usage, especially in accelerating the healing
of minor burns. Camphor is a chemical constituent that you don’t want
near a burn, and other versions of
lavender, such as
lavandin, lavender’s cousin, which can contain up to 8% camphor - are
not effective for soothing delicate skin tissue.
Lavandin (Lavandula X Intermedia)
~ According to ‘The Illustrated Encyclopedia of
Essential Oils’ by
Julia Lawless, lavandin is: “A hybrid plant developed by crossing true lavender
(lavender angustifolia) with
spike lavender or aspic (lavender latifolia). Due to its hybrid nature, lavandin
has a variety of forms: in general it is a larger plant than
true lavender, with woody
stems. Its flowers may be blue like true lavender, or grayish like aspic.” The
scent of lavandin is also sharper and more penetrating. While the plant grows in
parts of Eastern Europe, Hungary, and Spain, cultivation is mainly in France.
 Spike
Lavender (Lavandula Latifolia)
~ Spike, sometimes referred to as Spanish lavender, is native to Spain,
France, Italy, the Mediterranean region, and Northern Africa. The bright
purple-blue flowers commonly found in
true lavender are often a
grayer hue in the spike variety. The
essential oil is very
penetrating, more herbal than floral, and retains a higher concentration of
camphor than true lavender.
Lavender 40/42
(Lavandula Officinalis)
~ The lavender
is blended with other lavenders
to bring the percentage of linalol to between 40% and 42%. Linalol is an active
component of Lavender that
contains therapeutic benefits. Some
Lavender essential oils
can contain 40% and 45%.
Historical Uses for Lavender:
“Lavender was cultivated by
the ancient Egyptians in the sacred walled garden at Thebes. They prized the
herb greatly, using it to make a soothing and healing balm that was part of the
ritual of mummification. It was turned into an expensive perfume to adorn both
the living and the dead. Perfume urns were sealed into tombs to provide
fragrance, and when Tutankhamen’s tomb was excavated, the scent of
lavender was still strong even after 3000 years.” From ‘The Book of Magical
Herbs’ by Margaret Picton.
Surprisingly,
lavender is found more frequently in commercial fragrances for men rather
than women. “This is one of the oldest scents in the fragrance world, made from
oils extracted from the
lavender and
lavandin plants grown in
France as well as spike
lavender grown in Spain.”
From the book ‘Perfumes, Splashes & Colognes’ by Nancy M. Booth. Examples of
men’s fragrances are: Aqua Lavanda, Cool Water, Drakkar Noir, Hai Karate,
Lavanda, Le Male by Gaultier, Old English Lavender, Old Spice Fresh Scent, Pino
Silvestre (conifer), Pour un Homme and Ungara Pour Homme all contain
lavender and/or lavandin
essential oils.
Benefits of Lavender:
This versatile
essential oil is familiar to many of us. You should have a small bottle of
it for your First Aid kit and/or to keep in your kitchen.
Lavender is one of the best
natural ingredients to help stop the pain from minor kitchen accidents such as
burns from the oven/stove or knife cuts. A drop of
lavender
can ease the pain, and only the addition of the gel-like innards of a freshly
sliced open aloe vera leaf is as good a remedy for instant relief. Combining the
two is recommended, as aloe vera instantly cools a hot burn.
For sunburn pain,
lavender is also recommended.
Pesky mosquito or other insect bites bothering you? Try adding
lavender essential oil
to the problem area(s) and your skin will thank you.
Headaches may disappear when you massage a tiny amount of
lavender
on your temples or the nape of your neck.
Lavender
and relaxation are two words that are virtually synonymous with each other.
However, according to author Erich Keller in his book ‘Aromatherapy
Handbook for Beauty, Hair and Skin Care’ he writes: “Lavender
is an all-purpose oil for skin care. Its effect is antibacterial,
pain-relieving, healing for wounds,
soothing for skin
diseases, deodorizing,
antiseptic,
fungicidal, insect-repelling, rejuvenating, and anti-inflammatory. It may be
used to treat all types of skin and is effective for acne and oily hair (as it
regulates sebum production), itchy skin, hand care, cracked skin, bruises, shock
injuries (in ice-cold compresses), acne scars, blisters, abscesses, furuncles,
warts, boils, eczema, athlete’s foot (tea tree is more effective here, however),
wounds, and burns.
A bath with lavender soothes and heals the skin after sunburn.”
Safety/Precautions:
Unlike many other
essential oils,
there are few safety notes to share with you.
Lavender
essential oil can be used neat, meaning without diluting it in a plant based
carrier oil, but it must be done in small amounts and only for minor skin
problems. However, it is advised to dilute
lavender with
a vegetable carrier oil such as olive oil, jojoba, sweet almond oil, etc., just
to make certain that your skin doesn’t have an allergic reaction. Please be very
careful when purchasing pure
lavender
essential oil to be used for minor medical burn treatment emergencies as you
will need true lavender, the
type containing the lowest amount of camphor, and NOT
lavandin, the genus which has
up to 8% camphor – a burn causing ingredient!
Please do not take
lavender essential oil internally!
For wholesale prices on bulk dried French lavender buds visit our
Wholesale website at
wholesale.limaugeboutique.com
Uses for Lavender:
-
Bath
soak ~ All you need is approximately 15 drops in your
bathtub of warm to hot water and you should find yourself relaxing.
- Candle ~ Add a few drops to a candle, next to the wick,
not on it as
essential oils are flammable.
Lavender will fill
the room with its soothing floral aroma and relaxation should
follow.
-
Sachet ~ Add
dried lavender buds
to a small muslin bag and store in your drawers/cupboards, and
especially where linen is stored. This method also works well as a
natural bug repellent
if you hang a scented
lavender sachet
in your closet(s) on a hanger.
- Hair ~ Add two to four drops to your hairbrush and brush
your hair. Not only will it smell great, doing this helps to
condition it naturally. Also,
lavender
is believed to stimulate hair growth and its antibacterial
properties can help eliminate scalp conditions.
Blending With
Lavender:
The happy combination of two florals is pronounced with the intermingling of
rose, jasmine or geranium (Bourbon or Rose). For more dramatic combinations,
consider mixing lavender with
the following essential oils: bergamot or any citrus
essential oil, clove,
rosemary, eucalyptus, patchouli, clary sage, cedarwood, tea tree, oakmoss,
vetiver, or pine.
Finding High Quality Lavender:
The most important things to look for on any glass bottle of
lavender essential oil
will be four categories. Naturally, you would expect to see “Lavender”
on the label. However, here are the four facts that you will find on any bottle
of essential oil from
a reputable supplier/company:
- Botanical/Latin name. If in search of
true lavender it
would be Lavandula
Angustifolia.
- Part. What part of the plant has the essential oil been
extracted from? For
lavender, that is the flowering tops.
- Method of extraction. Is it an absolute, enfleurage, carbon
dioxide (CO2), or has it been steam distilled? In this case it has
been steam distilled. While
lavender can be
found in CO2 form as it’s the most expensive, or as an absolute, the
most common type is
steam
distilled.
- Country of Origin. As noted, lavender comes from many different
countries, and my personal preference is for the type from Bulgaria.
Location can make a sizeable difference for many reasons such as
climate, type of soil, high/low altitude, etc.
Other factors to look for are price, as too low of an amount
means it has been adulterated in some way or is possibly synthetic.
Essential oils should
be stored in a glass bottle to protect the contents. Then you must continue to
keep your lavender in the best environment and that would be in a cool, dark
place.
For practical reasons, it’s better to buy a small amount. Not
only is this more economical, but this way you can determine what lavender oil
you like the best. You can consult with a certified Aromatherapist for advice on
obtaining the best quality
lavender. Another way is to locate a reputable farm where lavender is grown,
as this would be the best place in which to purchase your
lavender essential oil.
Lavender farmers will be able to answer your questions and advise you on what
type of lavender is best suited for your needs. You will be advised that
lavender is harvested in the
summertime and that immediately after it has been distilled is not the best time
to buy it - usually one to two years after distillation is when it matures. For
example, I purchased a
bottle of lavender in April, and the following spring I started to notice a
less herbal, and more rounded floral aroma. Another benefit to lavender is that
it has a fairly long shelf life (approximately five years) and, like fine wine,
can improve during its bottled lifespan.
Lisa Maliga is the bath & body products designer for
Everything Shea Aromatic Creations
www.everythingshea.com
Everything Shea offers a variety of glycerin soaps, (including
Bulgarian Lavender), lip balms, scented/unscented shea butter, Whipped Shea
Butter, Shea Comfort, custom SoapCakes and Mini SoapCakes. Discover 275+
fragrances, designer duplicates and
essential oils.
As Featured on ArticleCity.com
Reprinted by permission
www.lisamaliga.com/lavenderarticle.htm
By Lisa Maliga
© 2005
All Rights Reserved
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