Using Essential Oils Safely + Easy DIY Perfume

Hey everyone! I hope you’re all having a great week!

A lot of the projects we’re going to be doing on this blog coming up use essential oils for scenting and therapeutic actions, so I thought we should probably do a quick intro to essential oils and touch on some important safety factors.

For those of you that are brand new to essential oils, they’re the aromatic compounds that come from different parts of plants. They can come from the roots, leaves, stems, bark, flowers, and other parts of plants. In nature, they help protect the plant and aid in the pollination process.

Essential oils have been used for thousands of years for a variety of health, wellness, and beauty concerns. Although the essential oils used back throughout history aren’t the same things that we know as essential oils today, the concept is very similar.

Essential oils are generally created using steam distillation (most essential oils), cold pressing (citrus oils), or solvent extracted (plants with a low yield of oils – rose, jasmine, etc.).

Using Essential Oils Safely:

1. Always follow proper dilution ratios. I’ll have a chart ready for you guys soon to help you figure out how much essential oil to use in your homemade bath and body products, please note that when I’m giving you a recipe to try, I’ll always let you know how much oil to use =)

2. Only use essential oils that are pure – using oils that aren’t pure can lead to adverse skin reactions. You can find a great brand of essential oils here.

3. If it’s your first time using a specific oil, do a skin patch test first. Directions for how to do this are located here.

4. Keep essential oils out of the reach of children and pets. It’s best to store them in a cool, dark area, preferably in a locked box or cabinet if you have children.

5. Never use essential oils on the skin without a carrier oil, don’t eat them, and please, don’t add them to your drinking water.

Those are the main safety guidelines for using essential oils safely and effectively. By following these, you’ll be well on your way to making safe bath and body products with essential oils.

Easy Essential Oil Perfume

empty 10 ml roller bottle

Vegetable oil of choice – I like to use fractionated coconut oil for this since it has no scent

12 drops essential oil(s) of choice – One of my favorite combinations is lavender, sweet orange, and vanilla for this, but you can use any essential oils that you like (please avoid using citrus oils such as lemon, lime, grapefruit, and bergamot as they are phototoxic oils and could cause skin burns if worn in the sun).

Directions:

Add all essential oils to your empty roller bottle, top off with your vegetable oil, cap off the bottle, and mix gently. To use, dab a little on your pulse points and refresh throughout the day as needed.

Happy Crafting!

This Apple Tart Soap is such a sweet little soap-making project, and I love how it turns a simple melt and pour soap base into something that looks almost good enough to eat. The idea of using clear glycerin soap with apple pie fragrance oil, cinnamon, and a whipped white soap topping gives this project a warm, cozy dessert-inspired feel without making it overly complicated.

What makes this project especially appealing is how beginner-friendly it is. Melt and pour soap is one of the easiest ways to get started with handmade soap, and this recipe keeps the ingredient list short while still creating a finished soap that feels fun and gift-worthy. The whipped topping detail is a clever touch because it instantly makes the soap look more like a tiny apple tart or bakery-style treat.

I also really like the packaging potential for this project. These soaps would look beautiful wrapped in clear cello, brown kraft paper, or a small handmade gift box. Adding dried apple rounds, a cinnamon stick, twine, or a rustic gift tag would make them perfect for fall gifts, teacher presents, craft stalls, Christmas hampers, or homemade bath and body gift baskets.

Because the soap uses cinnamon and fragrance oil, I would treat this as more of a novelty hand soap or decorative gift soap rather than something for very sensitive skin. As with all handmade bath and body projects, it is a good idea to use skin-safe fragrance oils and soap-safe colorants where possible.

Overall, this is a charming little melt and pour soap project with lots of handmade gift appeal. It is simple enough for beginners, pretty enough for gifting, and has that cozy apple pie scent that makes it especially lovely for autumn, holiday markets, and homemade Christmas gifts.

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