Try These Natural Essential Oils For A Sensual Valentine's Day Vibe In Your Home

If you'd rather avoid artificial fragrances but still enjoy natural scents, there are many essential oils you can use to create a subtle fragrance in your home. Choosing and using essential oils should be done carefully, as they are very concentrated substances, so be sure to familiarize yourself with basic safety precautions. There are several essential oils associated with romance and sensuality that are great for creating a pleasing vibe in your space, just in time for Valentine's Day.

Perfumery language tells us that perfume blends have base notes, middle notes, and top notes. The relative "weight" of these notes corresponds to the staying power of their fragrance. Base notes are often associated with essential oils that are thicker in substance, such as those coming from woods and plants with a high concentration of volatile essential oils, like cedar, vetiver, or patchouli. Middle notes are lighter in weight and include resins (like frankincense or myrrh) and various plants, like lavender or juniper berry. Top notes are lighter and more fleeting and are associated with flowers, herbs, spices, and grasses, such as rose, palmarosa, or nutmeg.

Choosing essential oils is a matter of personal taste. Some essential oils are associated with effects that help create an atmosphere conducive to romance — like a feeling of calm — while others have psychological associations that may put us in the mood for love. Try out some of these suggested fragrances for Valentine's Day.

People use essential oils in different ways. Diffusers are popular, but there are other great ways to utilize their many properties. Putting a few drops in a pan of warm water allows for slow diffusion of the scent into the air. You can refresh with more drops and gently reheat the water. Stainless steel or glass cooking pots are best for this. Adding essential oils to a simple potpourri made with natural materials such as dried flower petals and pine cones is also a gentle method for adding natural fragrance to your space. Or you can add them to a potpourri "simmer pot."

Essential oils are sometimes used topically. Putting scents in massage oil is a good way to use them, as sometimes applying them directly on the skin (or "neat") may cause skin irritation. Sensitivity to scents can vary from one person to another, and even natural products like essential oils can cause reactions in some people. It's important to try things out in small amounts to see if they work for you. Creating a custom massage oil is also a good choice for Valentine's Day!

Massage oil can be made with a simple carrier oil that is nourishing to skin, such as light olive oil, grapeseed oil, or jojoba oil. Add essential oils a few drops at a time and mix gently in a glass container. Shake the container gently before use to blend the oils together.

Certain essential oils are associated with sensuality for various reasons. One effect that these oils have is that they work on the parts of the brain that help the body relax and calm the effects of stress. The olfactory nerves (that allow us to smell things) are closely linked to memory, which is why the experience of deja vu is often catalyzed by smelling something in our environments. This means that certain smells may have positive memories or associations that give us a pleasant feeling.

Some of the more relaxing essential oils include earthy scents like patchouli, sandalwood, vetiver, oakmoss, and cedar. These all have a somewhat "masculine" profile. These can be blended with other oils that have somewhat lighter fragrance profiles like frankincense, juniper berry, ambrette (which is slightly musky), or herbal, "green" scents like sweet basil, petitgrain, violet leaf, or black pepper.  Some of the more "feminine" profile scents are distilled in the form of absolutes, not essential oils; these include rose, jasmine, and neroli. Other sensual feminine scents include ylang-ylang, balsam peru, and palmarosa.

Don't mix too many essential oils together, as the ones chosen for blending may not always create a pleasing fragrance. Adding one drop of patchouli essential oil to a blend of three drops each of rose (or neroli), frankincense, and sandalwood is a good base recipe, with a nice balance of warming, sensual scents.