Essential Oils in Your Home

Essential oils are powerful plant extracts that yield incredible benefits! Using them in your home provides you with more than just an awesome aroma. The fresh, uplifting scents have the power to boost your mood, ease feelings of anxiety and keep you calm when things (especially during decluttering and organizing) can be extremely hectic. The use of essential oils goes beyond the diffuser and in this blog I will provide you with different blends and remedies to use in your home and gently transform your space.

Be sure to check back as I will be adding new oils and ways to use them every day this week.

1. Decluttering

Your home should be a retreat, a place to safely escape to and feel comfortable in. When your home is cluttered it could feel like everything but that. Your surroundings have a huge impact on how you function both physically and mentally. Whether it is your desk, a closet or each room having its own excess of things, this chaos negatively impacts your well-being. Clutter makes navigating through the world of your home difficult and in turn compromises your ability to live comfortably and happy within it. Clutter isn’t just physical. If you always have something going on in your mind you may refer to this as mental clutter. Mental clutter, unlike physical clutter, is hidden where eyes can see but is the stuff that keeps us anxious, pessimistic and fogs our mind. Because our surroundings play such an important role in our mental health decluttering is not only a great tactic to organize and clean your home but a magnificent way to also clear your mind and increase cognitive ability. Below are a few way essential oils can help you declutter physically and mentally.

Lavender & Wild Orange: For many, stress and anxiety can develop from having too much clutter and can certainly heighten when trying to get organized. Lavender is a calming oil and great to combat anxiety. Wild orange (which may be my favorite oil) is the oil of abundance! It is one of the most powerful mood boosters. The combination of these oils is the perfect blend to keep you calm through the chaos of decluttering but give you the extra boost to power through it all.

Peppermint & Lemon: Peppermint has been proven to improve focus and concentration. It is also an amazing energetic scent. Lemon is uplifting and energizing as well. It also gives you that fresh, clean scent which is perfect for when you are doing just that, cleaning. This combo will help keep you upbeat and positive when tackling your cluttered home

Frankincense: Frankincense is known as the king of oils. It works on many levels of the mind and spirit but is great for focus and attention. This oil has a long history of providing spiritual support and creating a sanctuary which is exactly how your home should feel, like an oasis. Topically, Frankincense promotes calmness and being oil made from a tree, it contains grounding properties. While you are decluttering this oil will not only help you feel centered and grounded but will help create a sacred space.

2 - Cleaning

Aside from smelling divine, many types of essential oils are well-known and accepted for their antimicrobial qualities. Pure essential oils are so potent that they have the ability to destroy certain microbes with the compounds they carry. To help you clean your home with far fewer chemicals than your traditional cleaning supplies, essential oils are your answer. Below are a few of my favorite oils to use when cleaning, one of which is currently part of our BOGO special!

Lemon - Citrus essential oils help to break down grease and grime which is why Lemon, combined with its fresh scent, is a great go to for your DIY cleaning formula. To create a soft scrub for cleaning your bathroom, kitchen or tile floors combine the following ingredients and store in an airtight container.

Ingredients for cleaning scrub

¾ rounded cup baking soda

¼ cup unscented liquid castile soap

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon vinegar

5–10 drops dōTERRA Lemon oil

Melaleuca (Tea Tree) – Melaleuca is generally known for its powerful antiseptic properties. This is one of my favorite oils because it is gentle enough to use on your skin (to treat pimples/cuts/etc.) but strong enough to use on the surfaces of your home. This oil is wonderful when used as all-purpose cleaner because it helps kill many strains of bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Combine the following ingredients in a glass spray bottle to make a multipurpose cleaner.

Ingredients for cleaner

10 drops dōTERRA Melaleuca oil

2 cups of hot water

½ cup of vinegar

*Feel free to add citrus oil to the combination to enhance both the scent and cleaning properties. Be cautious when using vinegar on marble or stone and do not be fearful of the vinegar smell. If the oils do not cut the vinegar smell completely it will dissipate as it dries.

dōTERRA OnGuard – OnGuard is a blend of Wild Orange Peel, Clove Bud, Cinnamon Leaf, Cinnamon Bark, Eucalyptus Leaf, and Rosemary Leaf/Flower essential oils. It kind of smells like Christmas/the winter holiday season. OnGuard has many uses and is great as a natural hand sanitizer but, it is an AMAZING cleaning product as well. With OnGuard, you simply add it to water for an effective all-purpose surface cleaner. It is best to combine the mixture in a glass spray bottle. For those who are not into DIY projects, we have you covered! dōTERRA makes a complete line of house hold products using this awesome blend!

3. Air Purifying/Fragrance

Artificial fragrances are enemy number one in the household cleaning industry. When you buy scented home products with the terms fragrance or perfume on the label, consumers are unknowingly breathing in mini doses of chemicals, some of which are known human carcinogens. Using natural products like essential oils to freshen the smell of your home eliminates breathing in these harmful chemicals found in artificial fragrance. Replacing toxic air fresheners is super easy and cost effective. Aromatherapy gives you the option to constantly change scents, blend your favorites and as an added bonus some combinations even have the power to purify the air in your home. The options are endless with aromatherapy and depending on your personal preference, mood, emotional well-being or other desired outcome there are endless scents and combinations you can create with essential oils. Below are a few of my favorites to diffuse:

Wild Orange – If you have not already realized, I cannot get enough of wild orange. It is by far my favorite scent and therefore one of my favorite oils to diffuse in my house. The aroma is refreshing and energizing. The properties of Wild Orange even purify the air. This is definitely a must have oil!

dōTERRA Elevation – Essential oils have the magnificent power make your home smell amazing while also providing many other excellent benefits. Elevation is one of my favorite blends for mood enhancement. This oil is an invigorating combination of essential oils that blends euphoric scents to elevate your mood, promote feelings of confidence, and increase your energy. This is the perfect oil for when you are feeling you need to be revitalized. Elevation can be diffused in the morning to create a positive and energetic mood or throughout the day to promote feelings of self-worth and lessen restless feelings. The aromatic notes in Elevation are floral, sweet and citrus.

dōTERRA Purify – Purify is a natural and safe way to rid your home of odors and airborne threats. The uplifting blend’s notes are fresh, herbal and airy making it the perfect combination of citrus and pine for your home. This is an amazing oil to freshen every room and beyond the diffuser it can also be used as a household cleaner or laundry aid to eliminate odors in your washing machine.

3. Healthy Cooking

Essentials oils are not just for the spa or your diffuser. They have a ton of flavor which is why they come in handy in the kitchen. They are wonderful to use as a flavor substitute or to replace hard to find ingredients. Essential oils are safe and natural so you can rest easy knowing you are not adding harmful chemicals to your food. By adding oils to your food and drinks, you are not only providing more flavors, but you can simultaneously enjoy the internal benefits like antioxidant support, digestive support, internal cleansing, and more. (Please be mindful, not all essential oils are good to digest) For more information on cooking with essential oils check out dōTERRA's e-book. <--click

Citrus oils such at GRAPEFRUIT can be added to beverages, baked goods and yogurt. Grapefruit is great for clearing toxins and supporting your metabolism

Spices like GINGER are great oils to use with vegetables, meat marinade, sweet and savory dishes. Ginger may help support healthy digestion and reduce bloating, gas, and occasional indigestion

Herbs like BASIL work well with Italian dishes, meat marinade, soup, bread, potatoes, pasta, and substitute for dry herbs. Basil is great for the body and mind. It helps reduce feelings of tension and is great for your skin. The smell of basil can even promote focus and relieve stress.