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Essential Oils for the Holidays & Christmas

As the days draw closer to Christmas, it's a perfect time to enjoy diffusing and blending essential oils that will help get us into the spirit of the season.

Below is a list of essential oils well suited for incorporation into your favorite holiday diffuser blends.

The oils included in this list were selected for their warming, spicy, resinous or woody aroma. This is a highly subjective list. You may want to skim through the list of 110 oils contained in AromaWeb's Essential Oil Profiles area for oils that you personally like for the season.

By their nature, spicy essential oils like Cinnamon, Clove Bud and Ginger are strong and quite warming. A little goes a long way with these oils. They shouldn't be heavily diffused into a room as they can irritate the mucous membranes. It's best to blend stronger spice oils into more gentle oils like Sweet Orange Essential Oil (see the Blending Spice Oils section below).

Essential oils commonly associated with Christmas include coniferous oils like Fir Needle and Scotch Pine, minty oils like Peppermint and Spearmint, resinous oils like Frankincense and Myrrh, spicy oils like Cinnamon and Nutmeg and woody oils like Cedarwood.

Wintertime is often a source for an increase in colds and flus. Many essential oils are naturally anti-bacterial and anti-viral, so using essential oils to fragrance your holidays instead of synthetic room fragrances can potentially help to ward off the spread of colds and flus. The below list, however, was selected based solely on their appropriateness for the holidays. For more information and to view a list of essential oils with anti-bacterial, ant-viral and expectorant/decongestant properties, read Reducing the Risk of Contracting H1N1, Flus and Colds With Aromatherapy.

Blending Spice and Mint Oils

Spice and Mint essential oils can be especially strong. When I create a seasonal essential oil diffuser blend that is intended to highlight a particular spice or mint oil, I either use the oil in very low quantity or include it in a blend at low proportion.

Citrus oils, especially Sweet Orange Essential Oil blend well with the spice oils. Some individuals like me also enjoy blending mints with the citrus and woody oils. Orange essential oil is especially abundant and is one of the most affordable of essential oils. It has few contraindications and most people love the aroma. During the chilly fall months, I love combining a few drops of ginger, cinnamon, clove, and/or patchouli with Orange, Mandarin or Tangerine. Working with the other citrus oils like Bergamot, Lemon, Lime and Grapefruit and the oils in the above list can lead to some lovely combinations.

View Holiday Recipes Within AromaWeb's Recipe Box Area

Christmas Tree Diffuser Blend

Sugar and Spice Blend

Frankincense and Myrrh Holiday Blend

Scented Greeting Cards & Tissue Paper

A Warning About Applying Spice and Mint Oils to the Skin

My focus within this article is in selecting oils for diffusion. When creating blends and topical products that you apply to your skin, remember that many of the spice oils can cause skin irritation and should be used as incredibly low dilutions, if at all.

Important Note: The information provided in the Oil Profiles area is for educational purposes only. This data is not considered complete and is not guaranteed to be accurate.

General Safety Information: Do not take any oils internally without consultation from a qualified aromatherapy practitioner. Do not apply undiluted essential oils, absolutes, CO2s or other concentrated essences onto the skin. If you are pregnant, epileptic, have liver damage, have cancer, or have any other medical problem, use oils only under the proper guidance of a qualified aromatherapy practitioner. Use extreme caution when using oils with children and give children only the gentlest oils at extremely low doses. It is safest to consult a qualified aromatherapy practitioner before using oils with children. A skin patch test should be conducted prior to using an oil that you've never used before. Instructions on conducting a skin patch test and more safety information can be found by visiting the Safety Information page. For very in-depth information on oil safety issues, read Essential Oil Safety by Robert Tisserand and Tony Balacs. 

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	Own Profiles on 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols In 375 Essential Oils and Hydrosols, Jeanne Rose supplies brief monographs (summaries) of essential oils, hydrosols and other botanicals.   Read a review of this book or purchase this book from Amazon.com for a discount off the normal retail price.

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