**REVIEW** Pure Lavender Oil by aVo Essentials

While I love essentials oils, sometimes I forget what a the "true" scent of something is. I ordered a vanilla essential oil once and, while it was great in a blend of other oils, on it's on, it was not something I was crazy about. Probably that's because my general idea of "vanilla" was so influenced by all the fake scents used in products. The oil I got was exactly like what I remembered from my mother's cooking.

My idea of the lavender scent was influenced mostly by store-bought products. My one memory of "real" lavender was from flowers that a sweetheart used to give me. Good memories.

When I got the chance to try this, I was excited to see if it matched my memories of the lavender flowers I once loved so much.

Notice the dates of the product. Fresh!

This is a Pure Lavender Oil from  āVō Essentials. (I love when the oils come with a stopper.)

Lavender is one of the scents I like for certain moods. I don't want to smell lavender in my coffee or food, but I love having this one.

Of course, like I said, I wasn't sure what to expect of the scent. I wasn't disappointed at all. In fact, the best thing about this oil's fragrance is that, even though the scent is very distinct (just like the actual flowers), it's not overpowering at all. I had a fresh head cold when I first received the oil and I couldn't smell it at all. Once my sinuses cleared up, I could  tell that I had a "true" oil. Perfect. It really did match my memories.

Like I said, this is not something that I would use in food, but I understand that some people do use actual lavender in the kitchen (mostly for baked goods) and I find that interesting. Of course, keep in mind that this oil is for external use only!

What I have liked using it for is adding it to my shampoos and bathwater. Also, I like to blend it with some of my sweet orange oil to wear as a fragrance. I tried blending it with the vanilla oil I wasn't crazy about that as a wearable fragrance, but I did like it in the bath. Both scents are very soothing. I'm going to play around some more with the different blends. One way I did like using it is to add a drop to the hand sanitizer I carry in my purse. I did it to make the sanitizer smell better, but I later found out that lavender is a natural anti-bacterial.

Even though I loved the scent of my lavender bouquets, I didn't know at the time that lavender can be used for relaxation and stress relief. I realized it after using the oil in my bath water. Again, I think it's the whole "soothing" thing. I do know that it works well to help you sleep. If you apply a dab on your temples (with another carrier oil), it does ease a tension headache.

I've been using mostly coconut oil for as a carrier for this one. The regular coconut oils smells amazing when mixed with this, but if you want to keep the lavender scent undiluted, a fractionated coconut oil works nicely. The argan oils are heavier and, though they don't really disturb the lavender scent, it's more cost efficient to use an FCO for more body coverage.

 āVō Essentials offers a 100%  money-back guarantee, but the product is really good. The price seems a bit high, but the 4-ounce size makes it worth it. Lavender is a potent enough fragrance that it doesn't take much for most uses. Besides, you will need to use a carrier oil for applying to the skin because the lavender oil is concentrated.

There are a lot of other uses I want to investigate. Here are links to some information and usage suggestions:

• WebMD is my go-to for basic warnings and usage notes
• Use as a bug repellant, among other things...
• Anti-fungal, anti-bacterial agent
• Some lesser-known uses
• Interesting general to specific info
• Some recipes for that bottle of lavender oil
• My favorite: Chapped Lip Relief

If you haven't tried lavender oil before now, this is a good one to start with. Because of the product size/cost, multi-use, quality and the brand guarantee, you should be happy with this one.

Peace

--Free

DISCLOSURE: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Do Yourself Beautiful (Naturally)

So many things to do with some of the products I get a chance to review. A friend of mine came to visit today and we were sharing and exchanging beauty products. She fell in love with the organic coconut oil I shared with her. She was telling me about a sugar & coconut oil skin treatment she's been wanting to try. All that talk of beauty products and recipes got me to thinking about putting together this post.

There are a lot of yummy-sounding recipes for and ways to use Coconut Oil, Argan Oil, Lemon Oil and some others ingredients. Here are some of the ones I've run across that I really like the sound of:


Coconut Oil

• Homemade hand scrub
• A face cream also using Shea Butter & Tea Tree Oil
• A non-toxic eyeliner
• Some beauty tricks using Coconut Oil

Argan Oil

• A hair serum treatment
• 3-ingredient customizable facial oil
• Cuticle oil cream

Lemon Essential Oil & Lemons

• 43 uses for this oil
• 10 uses for it
• 11 beauty uses for lemons
• Household uses for lemons
• Uses for lemons "that will blow your socks off" (love the title)

Other Essential Oils

• Always good to know cautions of using essential oils
• And to know surprising uses for them...
• A ton of ways to use essential oils in almost every way

Good stuff, right? 

I will do more posts on using some of the other products I have either reviewed or just run across in my daily life. 

By the way, many thanks to all these sources for some good and useful info! If any of you have more DIY stuff that you like or have heard about, please share with the rest of us.

Peace

--Free

**REVIEW** Majestic Pure Therapeutic Grade Lemon Oil

Yes, I know. I'm getting as wild about essential oils as I've always been about moisturizers. I keep getting to try such good quality oils that I am starting to come up with my own recipes for using them in all kinds of ways.

I LOVE this one by Majestic Pure

I am thoroughly enjoying the benefits of their fractionated coconut oil, so I wasn't surprised to be so pleased with this product. It's their Therapeutic grade 100% pure lemon oil.

Okay, so one of the ways that I used this oil (and this is a new use for me) is to moisturize. I know that lemon oil is not the first thing most people might think of as having a moisturizing effect, but... As you know, I've been on a weight-loss journey. I'm really happy to say that I am getting into the best shape I've been in for about 4 years. Like with most people who lose weight, I have to work at keeping toned. Also, I want to keep my skin in good shape, so I moisturize like crazy.

Here is my favorite way to moisturize (and de-stress) using the lemon oil: I put a couple drops of the lemon oil in my palm and add a couple drops of one of my other moisturizing oils (coconut, black castor, argan or rosehip). I rub that mixture onto my belly, the backs of my legs and my thighs just before bedtime. The lemon oil really does seem to give my skin a revitalized look. The fragrance is amazing. And very soothing. Also, it feels so good when my legs are a little sore from any exercise. The whole experience - the massage, the fragrance and moisturizing - is great for relaxing the mind and body after a stressful day. And, whoo! I have had some stressful days recently!

Of course, it's no big secret that lemon is a wonderful scent, but this oil is also good at clearing away other smelly odors around the house - where shoes are stored or garbage is collected or where dirty laundry is stored.

The other way I used this oil was by putting a single drop (seriously, just one) onto a damp towel to toss into the dryer with some of my clothes. I'd left some clothes in the washer for a couple hours and  wanted to see how the oil worked as a fabric freshener. It was pretty nice. You get that really clean, fresh scent without having to use dryer sheets.

So, yes, this is another oil I am adding to my "staples" of natural products.

Oh, and, just so I could add to this blog post, I tried using the lemon oil with some raw sugar as a lip scrub. It works great. I went very light on the lemon oil - just a dab onto my finger - and I made sure to use some coconut oil also. Nice.

Finally, I can tell you that the lemon oil makes for a great household cleaner. I haven't gone crazy in the cleaning department yet, but I did try the oil out in the bathroom. What I did was put a couple of drops on a really warm wet cloth to wipe down the sink and counters. It was a little embarrassing that this cleaned some spots that I missed with a regular cleaning just a day or so before. The best thing about using the oil to clean sinks and countertops is the smell that is left. Normally, we use a lot of spray-on products with added bleach for the sinks and counters. The lemon smells way better and is safer.

The dropper is a great way to dispense the oil. I've figured out how many drops to use for most uses. I can add just about 3 or 4 drops to a 6oz spray bottle to use as an air freshener. For moisturizing , I can use about 3 drops mixed with another oil to treat my body from the shoulders down. I am more careful with my face - just using a dab on my finger for my forehead and neck. Also, I only do this at night because I worry about sun exposure. (I haven't gotten up the nerve to use the lemon oil on my hair yet, but I bet I could get some streaking going on! LOL)

 As with other products that supply the information, I like knowing what the manufacturing date and shelf-life is.

I love  this oil. I like the good quality, I like the size it comes in, and I like that there are so many ways to use it. My next recipe is to mix a little bit of this lemon oil with some of my peppermint oil into my drinking water...

Majestic Pure will refund your total purchase price if you are not happy with the product.

Peace
--Free


DISCLOSURE: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services that I believe will be good for my blog readers.

**REVIEW** Pure Body Naturals Peppermint Oil

Since I was able to use and review Pure Body's Lemon Oil (and am loving it), I noticed when they posted another product. At first, I wondered if I'd be able to find any use for a big bottle of Peppermint Oil -

Pure Body's Peppermint Oil. Nice, big bottle, just like their Lemon Oil. 4 ounces might not sound like a lot, but this stuff is so concentrated that I'll be good for a while.

Of course, I did find a way to use the Peppermint Oil. There are about 3 million of us here in the house for the holidays, and... Okay - there are really only 13 of us that have been hanging out under one roof but, still. What happens when 1 person out of 13 catches a nasty cold? That 1 person plays tag and passes their cold around to the rest of us. That's what happens.

By Day 4 of our family festivities, I think it was 3 of us who were down for the count. Enter me. And my magic Peppermint Oil. And a q-tip.

oil & q-tip

Plus

a stuffed up sniffer

That really helped get the sick folks around here breathing better. Then, because we were taught by my Mama to do hot liquids for a cold, when my turn came around, I put my oil to use again. Since I already had the Lemon Oil, I added a drop of it with a drop of Peppermint Oil into my tea. 

I love this oil. Both of them, actually - the Lemon and Peppermint.

I was so busy finding uses for the oil on my own that it wasn't until yesterday that I got around to paying attention to the other many different uses. Pure Body's list includes:

• Quick Relief from Stress
• Migraines
• Headaches & Anxiety
• Helps Treats Indigestion, Nausea, Diarrhea, Heartburn, IBS and More
• Delivers Fresh Minty Scent & Aroma For House, Home & Office 
• Also Serves as great repellent to SPIDERS, MICE, FLEAS & ANTS

If I check other sources, I find more:

• As a fragrance in soaps & cosmetics
• As a flavoring in foods & beverages

And the oil MIGHT  help with:

• Bacterial overgrowth of the small intestine
• Gas
• Colds
• Coughs
• Inflammation of the mouth and throat
• Sinus and respiratory infections
• Menstrual problems
• Liver and gallbladder problems

Of course, you have to use some common sense before you go off using any product. Also, I did see somewhere (probably online) a warning that some essential oils can break down the rubber in the stoppers they come with. To remedy that, I replace the stopper with the screw-on cap when I'm not using the oils.

By the way, I just mixed some of the 2 oils together for a hot tea. Getting some double benefits in the fight against whatever this nasty cold/virus is that I have.

A couple of final notes: This product is suitable for vegans/vegetarians, and Pure Body offers a Lifetime Money-Back promise if you are unhappy for any reason. I guess you could beat that with a stick, but I don't think you'll want to.

Peace

--Free

DISCLOSURE:

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

**REVIEW** Pure Body Naturals Lemon Oil

Wow. This:

Pure Body Naturals

Lemon Oil

When I applied to try this lemon oil, I was only thinking of using it for skin purposes (I'd heard lemon oil is good for softening calluses and for other body care issues), but then I started checking out some of the other ways it can be used. This is a list of what I've come up with:

• Cleaning household items (stainless steel, counters, etc.)
• Freshening the garbage disposal
• Using with a diffuser to freshen a room
• Adding to water in spray bottle to get rid of smoke & general funky stuff in the air
• As a hair highlighter
• In cooking and flavoring (I like mine in tea and water)
• As a detoxifying drink (when used in water)
• To cleanse the skin (and treat oily skin)
• To freshen stale laundry

The list goes on but these are the ones I just listed caught my interest right off.

The first way I used it was on accident. I was opening the bottle because my sister and I were excited to see what the oil smelled like. As soon as I took off the lid, we could smell the scent without even getting our noses close to the bottle. That gave me the idea to put a few drops in a little glass bowl with some water. I set the bowl high up on a shelf (that my toddler nephew can't reach) and just let that fragrance go to work. Even such a small (diluted) amount immediately freshened the air. This is nice because when we have the windows shut against the winter air, all the cooking and other household odors turn stale. Another thing about the fragrance is that it's supposed to be soothing. What I can tell you for sure is that when I left a drop on a bowl on the windowsill overnight, I loved falling off to sleep with the calming scent in the air.

My next use was as a detoxifier. I added one drop - just one - to a 33.8oz bottle of water. This lemon oil is so concentrated that I ended up using the treated water to treat smaller bottles of water. I`m going to work my way up to drinking the stronger-tasting 33 ounces next. I just wanted to give you an idea of how concentrated (I guess that`s the word I`m looking for) this oil is. 

This much water with a single drop of oil

The reason that I`m so happy with the strength of this oil is because with all the different ways I'm going to be able to use it, this 4oz bottle is going to last a while. I agree with the comment I saw another Amazon user make, saying that usually essential oils come tiny bottles. Not this one. And the quality is apparently not sacrificed for the size.

As far as ingredients, there is only one: Lemon (Citrus Medica Limonum) Peel Oil. That`s it.

Usually, when I do a positive review of a product, I not only have to like the ite,, but I'm also thinking of the company and service. For this one, I think there are a lot of Pros (here comes another bullet list!):

• The all-natural ingredients
• Clear labeling and warnings
• Labeling of Country of Origin
• Bottled in the U.S.
• Good length of after-opening time (PAO of 12 months)
• Quantity and quality
• Cruelty-free
• Outstanding satisifaction guarantee

, this is one of those products I've tried that I will be using from now on. I have a whole list of ways to consider using lemon oil.

Pure Body Naturals is a brand you will want to keep in mind, not just for the quality, but also for the prices. If you have bought essential oils, you know what they can cost. Once you try Pure Body Naturals, I think you are going to be hooked like I am.

If for any reason you aren't happy with the product, then you will still come away happy as a customer because of their "3 months 100% money-back guarantee". And you even get to keep what's left of your bottle. That's my kind of guarantee. There's no way you can lose by trying out the product.

If there was one thing I`d like to see, it is a pamphlet of info for all the suggested uses of each essential oil. Still, this is such a good product that I don`t mind doing the searching for myself. I've just finished trying out Pure Body Naturals Argan Oil, which I will be blogging about shortly, and I only wish they made more products than they do. As a matter of fact, the next oil I`ll be trying from them is Peppermint. I can`t wait.

Peace
--Free

DISCLOSURE:
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Oils, Oils, Oils (for skincare)

I'm baaaack!! Vacay was wonderful. I got to spend lots of time with my brothers and sister and nieces and nephews and my crazy-beautiful-sweet sis-in-laws. I swear, I would just look around every now and think, not just what a great bunch of folk I'm related to, but also how hot they all are. Dang! One s-i-l hit a birthday (and it's not her 30th) and she holds down nursing school, fixing meals for the kids, keeping a great-looking house, and going to the gym. And the heffa still looks as good as she did when I met her many, many, many (hahaha) years ago.

Anyway, I didn't shop like a maniac. I did shop wisely. I hit all the local bargain spots and scored a handful of makeup, some boots and.... some oils. Let's talk about these oils.

Here are the ones I picked up at T.J. Maxx and Marshall's:

• Grape Seed (and please don't ask me about that stuff in the sidebars!)
• Sesame
• Sweet Almond
• Avocado
• Marula
• Sweet Orange

My 2 favorites are the Marula (because it made my skin feel amazing) and the Sweet Orange (love the scent!), but those are also the ones I've been using daily. By the way, while the 1 fluid ounce bottles for most ran at $3.99, the Marula was $9.99.

Because I know that for myself and lots of other folk, it's important to know have some info on where our products come from, I did a tiny bit of checking on these oils. Also, I know that quality of oils might vary depending on how they are produced and by which brand. If any of you have more info about these brands, do let me know. For now, I will share what I have so far:

Except for the Marula and Sweet Orange, these oils are from the Little Oil Shoppe (a trademark of Jocott Brands). They are labeled as being "100% pure and chemical-free". I did find that one site gave Jocott a low score when the brand was reviewed. I won't link that here because, while the site was clear on what each rating stood for, it was not clear on why it issued the scores to the brand. 

As far as how the products I bought were labeled, I liked that statements were clear and uncluttered. Each of the items I purchased have one ingredient listed - which lines up with the 100% pure statement. Directions for use are just as clear. There are symbols showing the oils as "not tested on animals" and another symbol I had to look up. That turned out to be the "PAO" symbol, indicating  lifetime of a product after opening. Live and learn, right?

now you know

The labels for the Little Oil Shoppe oils show a PAO of 24 months. 

The front of Marula oil bottle itself is labeled as Sonoma Naturals. Closer inspection of the bottle and the box packaging shows that Dermapeutics is the producer. (Love the oil but that name seems just made up to lure in the hopeful-wishful among us who are obsessive about our skincare!)

Marula

Silly name, IMO

I mentioned that the Marula oil is one of my faves. This is because, after the first 2 days I used it, one of my relatives mentioned how soft my skin was after they kissed my cheek. They didn't just say my skin was soft, they went on and on about it. (It's not like I had hard skin before! Really.) I had noticed a fresher kind of softness myself, but hearing it from someone else is always nice. 

Let me mention now that the Marula oil I bought is actually labeled as "Marula Anti-Oxidant Facial Treatment Serum". 

"Omega rich" caught my eye.

Notice that Marula is not the only ingredient (but it is listed first) 

I'm still learning about oils and how to best use them internally and externally. The ones I've talked about here are, of course, those that I use in my beauty care regimen. I'm looking into some other oils to try for this and for my hair care and body health. I am pretty ignorant of different uses for oils and only just now learned (thanks, Adrienne!) that not every fragrant oil is an "essential" oil. I learned some other stuff too, but I'm still learning more.

If you are like me and enjoy scanning random information, here are a couple places to check out when it comes to oils and their uses.

• I like this site especially
• A directory of essential oils
• Making your own perfume oil
• One place for wholesale oils
• Info from Rocky Mountain Oils
• Plantlife Natural Body Care is another resource
• Some home cleaning and body care recipes
• Mountain Rose is a very popular site
• WebMD on aromatherapy

I really encourage you to be careful when dealing with essential oils for various uses. This goes for when dealing with anything you are knew at are in general ignorance of. I have a close personal friend who is no dummy. She is into all things natural and healthy, and even she had a close call recently. She was taking oregano and learned firsthand that taking too much can stop your breathing! So... careful, careful, careful.

As for finding these oils at a good price (and quality), I am going to be checking lots of different sites and doing some research. My local health food store is reputable but can be very pricey. Still, I wanted to share this info with you guys and stir up some interest. (I sure wish I had been using all these oils and potions about 25 years ago!)

Anyway... Now that I am back from the vacay, I am catching up on reviewed products. This is what I came home to:

TONS of stuff... ~sigh~

And more is coming every day. That's the beauty of Tomoson - which I will be doing another little review of soon.

Peace
--Free

P.S.:
If you are interested, here is more info on cosmetic labeling:
http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/Labeling/Regulations/ucm126444.htm

Also, be sure to check out this wonderful posting here: http://wholenewmom.com/health-concerns/essential-oils/. Matter of fact, the entire Whole New Mom site looks interesting.