Carrier what?

So you may have noticed by now that the essential oil world has it's own lingo.  You hear words tossed around like "carrier oil" "neat" and "layering" and think "say what?!"

Let's talk carrier oils.  What is a carrier oil?  What is the purpose of using a carrier oil? How the heck do I choose one?

What is a carrier oil?
By definition, a carrier oil is a vegetable or nut oil used to dilute essential oils before they are applied to the skin.

What is the purpose of using a carrier oil?
A carrier oil helps "carry the essential oil to the skin. (make sense now?!).  Essential oils are, in fact, not oily at all and do evaporate.  Using a carrier oil will help prevent the EO from evaporating, therefore you will need less oil to do the same job!  Carrier oils also help spread the oils over the skin easier.  Some oils are "hot" and need the carrier oil to keep from causing skin reactions!  

How the heck do you choose one?
Carrier oils have their own benefits and you can choose your carrier oil based on your individual needs. 
Common carrier oils:
Almond (sweet) oil:  Skin moisturizer, anti aging, strengthens hair 
Coconut oil: Antibacterial, anti fungal
Jojoba oil: great for acne prone skin
Grapeseed oil: nourishing for skin

Coconut oil is my go-to carrier oil.  Well, coconut oil is my go-to for everything.  Seriously, if you don't have coconut oil in your house, you are not truly living. Stop reading and go order some right now. (I have no amazon affiliation and that is not necessarily the coconut oil I would order, just giving you a starting point).  When looking for coconut oil, you want cold-pressed, unrefined/virgin, and organic.  Also, coconut oil is solid below 76 degrees.  It is a very stable oil, so it can melt and solidify over and over with no concern.  You can melt it by running under hot water or sitting in a bowl of hot water (just please don't microwave it.)

For roller bottles, I use either grapeseed, avocado or almond oil.  I do have fractionated coconut oil (stays liquid) coming soon, however, so that is what I will be using!


Here is a great post on carrier oils.