Find Out How To Make Homemade Essential Oils

By Karina Frost


Valuable essential oils bear aromas and flavors of plants they are derived from and can be used for scenting, massages, healing and many other purposes. These volatile liquids will quickly evaporate, and you need to keep them in closed, dark glass made containers, away from heat and light. Here you can find out how to make homemade essential oils easily.

Precious content of plants needs to be extracted. It is done in several different ways, and the most common one is called steam distillation. This method requires special equipment, but it provides very nice results. Cold pressing and using carrier oils are simpler methods you can easily try without any special expenses.

When it comes to citruses, cold pressing is the simplest technique, although it does require some time and effort. You have to collect sliced or grated peels of selected, organically grown citrus, for example, lemon, and soak them in distilled water for a few days. Strained peels should be placed into a press and exposed to a high pressure for some time, to release oils and juices.

Once these fluids get extracted, they need to be separated. Oils are lighter than juices, and they will naturally layer on the top of your mixture, you just have to collect them and strain using sterile gauze of cheese cloth. You do need a great deal of patience, but this is perfectly clean and pure oil, highly aromatic, with all ingredients saved.

Another popular and simple method is using carrier oil. Using highest quality virgin olive oil obtained by cold pressing is always a good choice. You will need approximately one quarter ounce of dried herb or flowers for one cup olive oil, or one quarter cup of fresh herbs or petals for one cup of carrier oil. You can put the mixture in a pot and cook for six to eight hours on 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Strain.

Sunlight method is simpler. Place the mixture in a mason jar and close tightly. Leave on full sun for at least two weeks. Strain the mixture using sterile gauze and hold it in dark glass bottle. You should label these bottles and keep them away from light and heat. The shelf life is usually around six months.

Steam distillation unit is called the still. This type of equipment is very similar to one used for making booze. You can design and make your own equipment, or spend couple of hundreds for smaller units. This equipment make things much quicker and easier, and you will get the largest amount of final product this way. You may use dried of fresh plants here.

Stills should be made of stainless steel, with steel and glass parts, without using plastic or copper. Although copper pots are still used, they can alter the chemical structure of your oils, and they aren't recommended. If you are interested in making larger quantities of oil, maybe you should invest in one of these practical steam distillation units. Using them is really simple. Besides, they make things so much easier, and you will get your product in just a few hours.




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