• Perhaps your introduction to essential oils was through an aromatherapy oils diffuser. Somewhere, either at a party or in a health food store, you smelled lavender or lemon or peppermint and decided you wanted your home to smell like that. Diffusers are a popular way to use essential oils for sure, but certainly not the only way.

Discovering Aromatherapy Uses

Essential oils can play a role in your overall wellness protocol. If you’re not sure what else to do in addition to diffusing, you may want to consider a consultation appointment with an aromatherapy practitioner. A certified aromatherapist can help you figure out other ways to incorporate essential oils in your life— and will do it in a way that is safe. Trained aromatherapists understand how to help clients navigate the multitude of information that’s on the Internet and shared at parties, including what’s safe and what isn’t.

What an Aromatherapy Consultation Includes

First of all, an aromatherapist should be clear about what he or she can’t do. Aromatherapists aren’t doctors. We can’t heal, prescribe, or treat. We don’t have patients; we have clients.

What we can do is look at how essential oils have been used historically and how they can be part of a wellness program today.

Your aromatherapy appointment will probably include the following:

• Filling out an aromatherapy consultation form. Your aromatherapist should have you record your medical history. Be sure to be honest with any health conditions you have and any medications you take. This is important because some essential oils can react with meds or be contraindicated for certain health conditions. Be sure to note if your are pregnant (or trying to become) or nursing.
• Deciding on purpose of appointment. Do you want to improve physical health? Mental health? Or are you more interested in beauty products? Mention any problems or conditions you would like to address. For example, is stress a problem? Or perhaps you would like a chemical-free natural perfume.
• Picking a focus. In my aromatherapy business, once we’ve talked through all their concerns, I like to have my clients decide what is the most important item on their priority list and start there. Trying to address too many items at once muddles things up, and it’s hard to know what is helping what. When you’re working on one thing at a time, it becomes obvious if the aromatherapy protocol is  effective.
• Choosing a protocol to try. Usually, your aromatherapist will present several possible essential oil options, and you choose what best resonates with you. Be an active part of your wellness plan. When you are invested, you are more likely to follow through on the plan.
• Be honest in the follow-up. Be sure to let your aromatherapist know any results you see from your protocol, good, bad, or indifferent. Generally, natural products take longer to work than medicines because they are working to help balance the body, although some things may have a quicker response.
• Pick additional areas to work on. Once you have addressed your most important issue, decide if you would like to tackle another area.

Taking the step to make making an appointment with an aromatherapy practitioner can give you another tool in your quest for health and wellness for you and your family. I offer consultations in my Botanically Me aromatherapy business in Indiana and also offer aromatherapy workshops if you’d like to try a fun, informative make ‘n take event. Contact me today for more information.

If you like handcrafted items and you live in Central Indiana, you’ll want to come check out the Nickel Plate Arts 2018 Maker Faire Saturday, June 16, in Noblesville, Indiana.

The faire will be held at historic Noblesville Square from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and features local artisans and makers. St. Michael’s Strawberry Festival will be going on at the same time, so enjoy strawberry shortcake 🍓while you’re perusing the booths.

I will have a booth at the faire and am excited to meet lots of people at this fun event.

Discount at Botanically Me Booth

Anyone who stops by my Botanically Me booth (#7) and mentions seeing this blog or any of my social media posts will receive a 10% discount on purchase!

Rose Balm

I will be featuring some of my favorite items at the faire:

🌸Beeswax Perfume 🌸Rose Balm 🌸Baby Salve 🌸Bath Tea 🌸Sweet Dreams Sleep Oil 🌸Lotion Bars

🌸Beeswax Candles 🌸Green Clay 🌸Workout Cream 🌸Aromatherapy Inhalers 🌸Herbal Facial Steam 🌸🌸Coconut Orange Lip Balm 🌸Vintage Lockets & Compacts (filled with beeswax perfume of your choice)

Heart Beeswax Candle

Can’t wait for Saturday and looking forward to meeting you!

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I didn’t think planting season would ever arrive this year.

All winter long I’ve been anticipating growing an aromatherapy garden, but cold temperatures through April and dreary weather in the Midwest made me put my plans on hold. In literally one week in May, we went from late winter temperatures to early summer, and I eagerly jumped wholeheartedly into planting my scented garden.

But, I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s back up a bit so I can briefly explain how I went about the concept of planting an aromatherapy garden, in case you want to also.

Researching an Aromatherapy Garden

As an aromatherapist, I have wanted to grow a garden that I could use in my business as a working garden for harvesting and as a beautiful place to let clients wander through. I spent some time during the winter reading and planning how to plant an aromatherapy garden. Some things to consider:

• Plot size. You can go small or big, or even all in containers if you need to. I decided to repurpose a 15 x 19 garden plot that we let lie fallow last year while we were gone on a trip.
• Garden style. After scouring several garden books, I realized that I LOVE natural cottage gardens. That worked out perfectly because many of the plants that are considered cottage garden plants also happen to be aromatherapy plants.
• Plant list. Make a list of must-have plants that you want in your garden.
• Lay out. I made a rough sketch, with the emphasis on rough, of my plot size, fitting in where I wanted the large size plants to go and the garden path. I didn’t add in all the smaller plants, because I like to do that when I’m outside so that I can actually see and add them in as I’m working.
• Buy list. Figure out what you can buy locally and what you will need to order online.
• Budget. As we all know, buying plants is addictive and it’s easy to go overboard. At least it is for me! Try to stick to your budget.
• Care. I want my garden to be as organic as possible. I don’t like chemicals, and I want to harvest my plants to use in my products that I make for my Etsy shop and use with my consultation clients.
• Garden accessories. I knew I wanted an arch for the entrance of my garden and I wanted a fence for the back side that I could use for vining and creeping plants. I was so happy to find a vintage arch at an antique shop and an easy-install fence at Menards.

Aromatherapy Garden Plants

Here’s a list of the plants in my garden:

Calendula, lavender, alyssum, basil, rosemary, nasturtium, poppies, sweet peas, Larkspur, thyme, scented geraniums, German chamomile, yarrow, lemon verbena, curry (not the spice but helichrysum)

Heliotrope, Rosa Rugosa Hansa (rose hedges), pinks, hollyhocks, cosmos, violas, Shasta daisy, mock orange, musk mallow, mallow, butterfly bush, hydrangea, fragrant honeysuckle, a climbing rose called Pearly Gates, stock, pineapple sage, sage, sunflowers, and poppies

Whew! I know that’s a long list, but choose what you can handle and what you like and start there. If you’ve not gardened before, start small. You can always add more later. A simple, small aromatherapy herb garden of lavender, chamomile, scented geraniums, calendula, and mint would be a great start. Tip: plant the mint in a pot so that it doesn’t take over the whole garden.

Most of my plants I bought at a nursery, but a few of them I started from seed and transplanted into the garden. And I sowed the sweet peas and sunflowers directly into the garden.

Don’t Forget This Too

• Soil. In my case, I have clay soil, so I bought many bags of peat moss and bags of a combination of manure and compost. I dumped all the bags in the middle of the garden, mixed it up, and worked it into the soil. If you are planting in containers, you will want to purchase a potting mix formulated for containers. If you are planting in a raised bed, you’ll also probably want to amend the soil to enrich it for planting, especially if you’re using the Square Foot gardening method or something similar.
• Watering. Until your plants have established a healthy root structure, you’ll need to water them frequently. Try to water in the morning from the base of the plant and not douse the entire plant with water,which can lead to burns on your leaves and the start of fungus issues. If the weather is very hot, check them each day for watering and that goes doubly so for container plants.
• Weeding. Doing a bit each day/week can keep weeds at bay. Trust me. I learned this the hard way. It’s not fair, but weeds seem to grow waaayy faster than plants do.
• Feeding. Depending upon the plant, you may need to feed them to encourage growth/flowering. I work organic fertilizer into the soil before planting and then throughout the season I use compost, compost tea, and/or worm castings.

Enjoy Your Garden

It’s been about three weeks since I planted my garden. It’s been so much fun and so much work! I am learning a lot. I can tell my Pearly Gates roses will be my biggest challenge, as roses can be hard to grow organically, and mine are being attacked by bugs and fungus. We’ve had a very hot dry spell for May, so I’ve had to water a lot, but overall I am finding the process of growing an aromatherapy garden to be a joy. I keep finding more plants I want at garden shops and tucking them into the garden. It’s exciting to watch the plants grow and thrive.

Here’s a picture right after planting.

And here’s a picture three weeks later.

You can see, I still need to figure out what to do about my path. I’m leaning toward stone, so I need to finish that. I would also like to find a rustic bench to put at the end of the path.

In a future post, I’ll cover how I will be using/harvesting some of the plants.

Thanks for reading about my aromatherapy garden!

And now I’m wondering about you. Let me know what you’re planting this season.

Botanically me,

Today’s verse is Nehemiah 9:31, but if you have time, read all of Chapter 9. 

It helps to know a bit of Israel’s journey to the promised land as we discuss this reflection.

Three thoughts stand out to me from Nehemiah’s reflection on Israel’s history.

1) God had set aside the promised land for Israel, but they still had to go in and take possession of it.

2) God sustained them in their exile on the way to the promised land.

3) Once they were in the promised land, their sin caused them to be taken from their promised land as slaves to a foreign country.

Even though I don’t like to admit it, my reactions to life’s circumstances aren’t always that different from the Israelites’. Listen below with Only By Prayer  to see how this may apply to your life too.

Feel free to leave a comment, and if you’d like, subscribe to our podcast on iTunes.

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I took this picture for an Instagram post last month and love it so much because it captures some of the botanical products I make or aromatherapy ingredients/tools I use for Botanically Me. I thought I’d explain a little about each item.

We’ll start at the top left and move clockwise.

1. #1 is a one-0unce beautiful glass jar with shiny silver lid that I use for my Rose Facial Balm. It can be difficult to find pretty jars for my products, and I was so happy to find this one.
2. #2 is a green perfume atomizer I found at a discount store. I haven’t tried it out yet, but I will when I make an alcohol-based perfume.
3. #3 is a vintage glass bartender stirrer that I discovered at my favorite vintage store. Glass stirrers can be hard to find today, as so many of them are plastic. Glass is perfect for using with essential oils because the glass won’t absorb the oil. I use these all the time when I’m making my products.
4. #4 is a stunning glass perfume bottle that I found on my husband’s and my trip Kick Up Some Dust trip across the country last year. I got it at a discount price because one of the glass flower petals had fallen off and they had glued it back on. It’s barely discernible. I will have to make a very special perfume indeed to go in this special bottle.
5. #5 is one of my heart-shaped pure beeswax candles that I make for my Etsy shop.
   
6. #6 is a tin of my Love Blessings Beeswax perfume that I make for my Etsy shop. It’s prominent notes are rose and sandalwood.
7. #7 is a glass jar filled with dried rose petals. I just love working with rose petals and can’t stop myself from smelling them every five seconds. I use them in everything from sugar scrubs to bath teas to oil infusions.
8. #8 is a handy little tool I found that removes orifice reducers from essential oil bottles. These can be particularly hard to get off, and this tool makes it much easier. I just wipe it off with alcohol before using it on another bottle.
9. #9 is a set of my Blessings Beeswax Taper candles from my Etsy shop. These were very popular over the holidays.
10. #10 is a tin of my Baby’s First Salve product. This is perfect to use as a diaper cream or on other irritated skin of baby. It’s even safe for newborns because there isn’t any essential oil in it.
11. #11 is a tiny 2-ml glass bottle that I use when creating a custom perfume for a client. I like to use these to hold perfume samples.
12. And finally, #12 is a bottle of Angelica essential oil. Angelica is used in the perfume industry and is a herbaceous, earthy, spicy aroma. It is either a mid or top note, depending on what else it’s blended with. It also has therapeutic properties for the respiratory, digestive, and reproductive systems. It’s known as an aphrodisiac and antispasmodic and can be useful for a depressed state of mind.

Thanks for taking a peek into some of the tools I use and products I make in my business. If you have any questions, please just ask in the comment section.

Botanically me,

Ever the game players, my daughter and son-in-law asked us to play a word game just shortly after arriving to our house for Thanksgiving. “Hmm. They’re getting a little overanxious with this game thing,” I remember thinking.

Five minutes later we were trying to puzzle out a maze of words when my husband started yelling, “Is it true? Is it true?”

With my mind on Thanksgiving details, I was only half with it. I looked closer at the words. “Andrew. August. Amber. Baby. Expecting.

I jumped up and down for the next five minutes as it sank in that we were going to be grandparents!

Best Diaper Cream for Babies

With that joyful news, I started pondering what botanical product I wanted to make for the baby shower. I’m all about chemical-free and natural, so I thought a salve that could double as a diaper rash cream would be perfect.

As I worked on the formulation, I realized that for a newborn, simple is best. Over the last few years, information has changed a bit regarding essential oil usage on newborns. The current information that I learned in my certification studies is that it’s best to wait until a baby is about six months of age before starting to use highly diluted essential oils topically. Please keep in mind that this applies even more so for premature babies because they have high skin permeability. (And please remember, it’s never a good idea to have a baby ingest essential oils, either.)

Now the caveat to my previously mentioned “nevers” is if your child is under the care of a doctor, naturopath, or clinical aromatherapist, and they advise otherwise.

However, in this case, I left out all essential oils from the recipe so that I—or you—wouldn’t be worried about using the baby salve on any age baby.

With that in mind, let’s look at the recipe. It’s really pretty simple.

About the Ingredients

Olive oil is a wonderful oil to use when making medicinal type products. It has a low risk of oxidative degradation. It contains vitamins E, K, squalene, and carotenoids. It’s an antioxidant that is helpful wound healing, dry skin, and for eczema,  just to name a few things.

Calendula oil is an herbal oil you make through infusion, and it’s a powerhouse oil for the skin. I love growing my own calendula, drying it, and using it to infuse olive oil. It’s wonderful for wound healing and tissue repair, inflamed skin conditions, cracked skin, cracked nipples due to breast feeding (nontoxic to baby), burns, insect bites, and damaged tissues and ulcers.

Beeswax is an emulsifier and a thickener, which makes it so beneficial in natural cosmetics. It helps seal in moisture to your skin. It is also healing for your skin. A powerful trio of ingredients used together in many recipes are beeswax, honey, and olive oil. It’s interesting to note that beeswax is being studied for its antimicrobial properties.

 How To Use Baby’s First Salve

There are several ways to use this salve.

•  Apply it when changing baby’s diaper to protect the skin and help heal it.
•  Nursing mothers can use this salve on sore/cracked nipples. It is not harmful to babies.
• Irritated patches of skin. My grandson has been teething and was constantly drooling, which caused a rash on his chin. My daughter applied some of the salve to this area.

For sanitary purposes, I would recommend reserving a separate container of the salve for using with diaper changes and a separate container for other uses.

Baby’s First Salve is a simple, easy way to safely care for and nurture your little blessing. And best of all, since you made it, you have complete control over every ingredient. If you decide you don’t want to make your own, you can purchase Baby’s First Salve from my line of botanical products.

Use in good health!

Botanically me,