The Benefits of Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender is my favourite essential oil and is always my ‘go-to’ oil if I need calming or de-stressing. It has a lovely floral smell and helps with anxiety. Incorporating lavender oil into your natural skincare routine can enhance its effectiveness, and is an ingredient that should be used for anyone seeking the best vegan and organic products for their skin. This is a versatile oil derived from lavender plants, with such a huge amount of benefits for the body and mind including:
Calms the mind and nerves
A powerful antidepressant
Helps relaxation and promotes restful sleep
It is healing, soothing and rejuvenating for the skin
Stimulates skin cell regeneration and is useful for all skin types and conditions
Good for treating headaches, migraines, muscular and nerve pain, and easing menstrual cramps
Antiseptic, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory
Using Lavender in my Natural Skin Care Products
In my natural and vegan skin care products, I use 100% pure Organic Lavender Lavandula Angustifolia Essential Oil from France, which has been steam distilled from the flowers. It gives my products a beautiful floral scent, and is also wonderful blended with other essential oils.
My vegan skincare products include Calming Calendula Facial Oil containing lavender oil mixed with Chamomile which creates a sweet, floral, and relaxing scent. The lavender is soothing for sensitive skin and helps irritated/inflamed skin, as its an anti-inflammatory. My Relaxing Lavender Bath Oil has lavender oil mixed with frankincense, creating a calming scent to help you enjoy a relaxing luxurious bath, while softening your skin and helping aching muscles.
Lavender Facts
There are over 900 varieties of lavender
Lavender derives from the Latin word ‘lavare’ meaning to wash: the herb successfully cleans wounds, cleans laundry, and is used in bathing
Lavender is native to the Mediterranean but is now cultivated all over the world including England, Italy, and Greece
Lavender usage can be traced back to over 2,500 years ago. The ancient Egyptians used it in the mummification process and in perfumes, and the ancient Romans used lavender for its soothing fragrance in washing and bathing
The calming effect of lavender water was described as early as 1608 by Rembertus Dodonaeus, and lavender oil was even traditionally diffused to calm excited children!
The Magic of Lavender: Calmness and Anxiety
The best thing about lavender is its ability to calm the mind and help relieve anxiety. I know this from personal experience but there have also been various studies carried out over the years which have proven that lavender helps people suffering with depression and anxiety. Gradually it seems that hospitals are starting to use lavender to help patients, which is fantastic.
Lavender oil has a high concentration of naturally occurring aromatic chemicals, specifically linalool and linalyl acetate. These effectively reduce anxiety at tiny concentrations, making this a brilliant alternative to treating anxiety with drugs. Evidence indicates that lavender oil has similar properties to some anxiety medications; the active ingredients in the oils affect neurotransmitters in the brain to induce a calming effect.
Quotes about Lavender
Lavender is one of the most popular flowers thanks to its many beneficial qualities. Here are some quotes about it:
“Meanwhile, spring came, and with it the outpourings of Nature. The hills were soon splashed with wild flowers; the grass became an altogether new and richer shade of green; and the air became scented with fresh and surprising smells -- of jasmine, honeysuckle, and lavender”
― Dalai Lama XIV, Freedom in Exile: The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama
“Being yourself is just like the fragrance of lavender—calm, centred, fresh, and soul awakening” – Anonymous
“To make a perfume, take some rose water and wash your hands in it, then take a lavender flower and rub it with your palms, and you will achieve the desired effect” – Leonardo da Vinci
“As Rosemary is to the spirit, so Lavender is to the soul” – Anonymous
“Put a drop of lavender essential oil on my pillow before I go to sleep” – Melissa Joan Hart
“Dear God, you must be a lavender for your aroma makes me calm” – Anonymous
Lavender and Sleep
Lavender oil is known for being a great oil to help you sleep. Lavandula Angustifolia is the best type of lavender oil to use for this. It works as a sedative to increase relaxation and help bring about sleep. Here are some tips on how to use lavender to help you get a great night of sleep:
Use a lavender scented spray in your room before you go to bed
Burn lavender oil using an essential oil burner with a tealight about an hour before bed - this will allow you to relax and deeply inhale the scent
Use a lavender oil diffuser near your bed
Put a few drops of lavender oil on the underside of your pillow