What are essential oil carriers?
If you use essential oils, you’ll hear a lot about “essential oil carriers.”
There are carrier oils, carrier butters, and other types of carriers.
Let’s talk about what these are and why they’re important to aromatherapists!
What are essential oil carriers?
A carrier is a natural plant-based oil, butter, or wax that you can use to dilute essential oils.
Most carriers are full of rich fatty acids that nourish the skin.
Some carriers work all by themselves as natural moisturizers and skin protectants. Others are easier to work with when they’re blended together. (Cocoa butter is a carrier, but it’s generally too firm to use alone. It’s perfect when melted and blended into body butters and balms, though!)
Substances like hydrosol, clay, salt, and Castile soap can also serve as carriers.
Why are carriers important?
Diluting essential oils is important for safety reasons.
Essential oils are highly concentrated. Consider that it takes from 30 to 50 rose blossoms to produce just ONE drop of rose oil. That’s a LOT of plant material to apply to a very tiny, drop-sized section of your skin! It’s so potent that it can cause irritation—which is where carriers come in.
Adding that drop of Rose to a carrier oil dilutes it, so you get a less concentrated application. It’s so much safer for your skin! This is also why diluting your essential oils helps them last longer. You don’t have to use as much.
Of course, there are a LOT of carrier oils and butters to choose from! Each one has different benefits for your skin, and affects the products you make differently.
Here are some of our favorite carriers
The more you learn about a variety of carriers, the more choices you'll have when they’re blending. Using different types of carriers allows you to make a wider variety of products (with more specialized uses) than if you simply reach for the same carrier every time.
Pressed from dried avocado flesh, this oil is thick and penetrates skin deeply. It’s used for anti-aging, moisturizing, and healing the skin after damage.
A light, silky, golden yellow oil cold-pressed from the seeds of baobab trees in Africa—also known as “upside down trees” for the unique crown of their branches!
A solid butter pressed from roasted cocoa seeds. It’s richly moisturizing for super-dry skin and contains vitamin E. And it smells like chocolate!
Cold-pressed from coconut flesh, this oil has a tropical scent. It helps soothe irritated, inflamed skin and restores moisture to dry skin.
Jojoba is technically a liquid plant wax. Since it’s not solid, it’s often called “jojoba oil.” You can use it like an oil, too! It’s pressed from the beans of the jojoba bush.
A dark, chocolate-colored, somewhat sticky butter that’s pressed from the seeds of kombo fruits in Africa. It’s often used to care for sore joints.
Pressed from the kernels of the palm fruit, this oil has a solid, butter-like texture and a warm, nutty aroma. It’s used to moisturize skin and soothe muscles and joints.
A smooth, deeply moisturizing butter made from the seeds of shea trees in Africa. Shea butter soothes irritation and protects skin. It’s a common ingredient in natural products!
Renowned for healing skin and preventing scars, tamanu is a luscious, thick oil from Madagascar. It has a sparkling golden color that sometimes looks a hint of green or blue!
A blend of carrier oils infused with three herbs: arnica, St. John’s wort, and calendula. Trauma Oil combines nature’s most powerful healing herbs in a single bottle.
Ready to learn the basics of blending your essential oils? How to Blend Essential Oils is for you!
This free course is perfect for beginners who want to create therapeutic blends. In just one hour, we'll explain the difference between essential oils and carriers, show you how to create three different blends and teach you how to use the drop-by-drop method so you can start creating your own blends today!
