Logo
bicolored-flower.jpg


What's that I smell?
The sense of smell is probably the most powerful of all five senses.  Scent can make us feel like nothing else can and when we experience a pleasant scent, we want it to last.  Scents can lift our spirits, alter our perceptions, and actually help heal our body.  Below are a few facts about scents that may help you understand where they come from and how they can affect you:

- Most scents used in products are derived from either fragrance oils or essential oils
 
- Fragrance oils are synthetic, man-made substances containing numerous chemical compounds created in a lab 

- Essential oils are derived from substances like, plants, flowers, fruits, leaves, bark, wood, resin, etc. created by nature

- Fragrance oils are created to mimic a variety of scents. Have you ever smelled a product that smells like an almond cookie, or coconut pie, or even baby powder?  It often takes dozens of chemical compounds to create these scents.  The chemical compounds used are not required to be listed in the ingredients on the packaging to inform people who may be allergic to certain substances

- Essential oils are extracted usually by using steam distillation from natural ingredients requiring nothing else, so ingredients are identifiable.  If an essential oil smells like a rose it was created from an actual rose 

- Fragrance oils are usually much cheaper in price and offer nothing more than scent
 
- Essential oils, although usually more expensive, have therapeutic properties and can be used for Aromatherapy* like physical therapy for treating muscle aches, arthritis, skin rashes , etc.  They can also be used in psychological therapy to relieve tension, insomnia, stress, anxiety, etc.  
 
*Aromatherapy is defined as the therapeutic use of plant-derived aromatic essential oils to promote physical and psychological well-being usually through massage and other holistic treatments.  These practices never use fragrance oils because synthetic fragrances do not contain therapeutic properties
 
Today, many people are becoming more concerned with what ingredients are in products and want them to be safe and be good for you.  Not only do they want them to smell good, they also want them to do good.  I am biased towards essential oils because I believe they can do both, and for that reason we only use essential oils in our products. 
 
So the next time you shop for scented products, you might want to consider what they are scented with so you understand what it is you smell.
 
Take care,
 
Brenda