I have always been curious and intrigued by essential oils but was a little nervous to take the plunge. I didn’t really know where to start and hadn’t taken the time to research them. As a Pharmacist I tend to research these things in depth prior to diving in.
Not only are there so many brands of oils available nowadays, but you can buy them online, through Amazon and even in the Target dollar spot (crazy)! How do we know which oils are really pure and come from a trustworthy source? Then one day, several months back, I heard my sister in law talking about Young Living and their oils. I sent her a message immediately! I couldn’t believe she had been using them for months now and didn’t even tell me. We talked all things oils and she had me over to smell and see all of her collection. I ordered my kit immediately and never looked back!
I would say my main motivation for trying oils and other YL products was to decrease the amount of toxic products we brought into our home. They are everywhere! I know that it is personally unrealistic for us to completely rid our home of all toxins, but I figured the more we know the better we can do! I started small by using dryer balls with a few drops of lavender essential oils instead of dryer sheets. I love the smell of fabric softener and dryer sheets but they are full of chemicals and aren’t good for our clothes, dryers, or our skin. So that was a quick and easy swap. I’m slowly transitioning our home to be a safer and “cleaner” place one product at a time. Continue reading to see the ways we have used and benefitted from oils at home!
Diffusing
I love to diffuse essential oils and this is probably the most widely known way to use them. Not only do they smell great, they have many benefits as well. They can aid in relaxation, sleep, stress relief, mood and confidence boosting just to name a few. There are so many oil combinations to mix in the diffuser as well and it is fun to experiment and try new scents together. I have been trying to slowly replace my candles with diffusers and have one in almost every room of the house. Here are a couple of my favorite diffusers:
- The dessert mist (pictured above). This one came in my starter kit! It’s so pretty and blends in with my decor. It has many different light/color settings and even a flicker option so you feel like your home is lit by candle light. It also has 3 diffusing settings, high, low, and intermittent.
- This is another favorite diffuser of mine that I got on amazon. I love this one for the same reasons as above and it also has a timer setting.
You do have to be careful when buying diffusers online. I bought a few others on amazon to try them out and ended up sending them back. The quality was poor and one even broke after a couple uses. I’ve had my dessert mist from YL for several months and have never had an issue with it.
Cleaning your diffuser is easy. I do it once weekly and use my thieves cleaner. I just spray the inside with my cleaner and use a q-tip to gently clear away any buildup then rinse with water. Thats it!
Here are a few of my favorite combos to diffuse:
-Stress away and Valor 3-5 drops each depending on size of diffuser or room
-Volcano Scent (anthropologie Candle)
- 5 drops Grapefruit
- 2 drops Orange
- 3 drops Idaho Blue Spruce or Northern Lights Black
- 3 drops Geranium
-Rootbeer float
- 4 drops stress away
- 4 drops panaway
Lemon bar
- 4 drops lemon
- 4 drops stress away
- 4 drops lemongrass
I could go on and on! The combination of blends is endless.
Cleaning
Another change I made was using Thieves cleaner. I was obsessed with bleach infused products. I felt that it needed to have bleach or other harsh chemicals in order to clean deep enough and kill all the germs. I was skeptical of how well thieves would work. How can one product work so well on every single surface? Because it’s all natural and plant based of course! I’m not exaggerating when I say I use it everywhere! Countertops, wood furniture, wood floors, windows, mirrors, tile, backsplash, cabinets, upholstered furniture, sinks, toilets, door handles, light switches, toys- the list is endless! It is also safe to ingest and use topically so I don’t have to worry about cleaning around my kids or pets like I would with the harsh chemicals I was using.
I also love to clean with lemon essential oil. Lemon is great for cleaning off stuck on residue and will remove unwanted labels with ease! I also love to use it to clean my sink. I sprinkle baking soda on the bottom of my sink, add a few drops of lemon oil then scrub. It smells so fresh and brightens up my stainless steel sink!
Beauty
Like I said before chemicals are everywhere and that includes our skin and hair care products. Once again I haven’t eliminated everything but I’m slowly learning and changing out items in my beauty regime to make it safer and less toxic. One swap was my face wash. I started using Young Livings charcoal bar. I love how clean it makes my face feel. I also swapped out my moisturizer for my homemade glow serum.
Glow serum
- 2 Tablespoons Jojoba Oil (great for skin and is a 2 on the comedogenic scale meaning it has a low chance of clogging pores)
- 1 tbsp aloe vera gel
- 6 drops Frankincense – this brightens skin and fights blemishes
- 3 drops Geranium-promotes cell regeneration and smooths skin
- 3 drops Copaiba- anti-inflammatory and reduces scarring
- Add them all to an amber glass dropper bottle and apply twice daily to clean skin. Shake well before each use. (it may help to use a blender to mix the aloe in better or if you can leave it out altogether.)
For me and my daughters hair I made some mermaid hair spray (recipe below). This helps to detangle as well as promotes growth and strengthens hair. It also can help prevent lice. For myself I use it while I’m diffusing my hair at the roots to add moisture and texture. On my daughter I spray it on before combing while her hair is still wet as a detangler.
Mermaid hair
- 5 drops rosemary- strengthens and promotes hair growth
- 5 drops lavender- stimulates hair growth, strengthen hair follicles, natural antiseptic
- 5 drops cedarwood- stimulates hair growth
- fill 2 oz spray bottle with 1 oz witch hazel and 1 oz water
- pinch of epsom salt
- shake before each use
I also made an invigorating hair mask that I use monthly although you can use more often. This mask helps to moisturize dry hair, stimulates the scalp and improves hair growth.
Hair mask
- 5 drops peppermint-hair growth and stimulates scalp
- 5 drop lavender
- fill the rest of 1 oz dropper bottle with fractionated coconut oil
These are the beauty items I use regularly as of right now. I plan on incorporating more into my routine but this was a start. I will keep you all updated on what else I try out!
Oils and Kids
At first I wasn’t planning on using any oils topically on my children, but as I started researching and seeing the benefits and different blends I could make for them and how to safely use them on children I decided to give it a try. I also have a great group of women around me that are very knowledgeable about oils too and have been a great resource. We have gotten together and made our own blends for the littles a few times now. Some of my go too’s have been: tummy troubles, sweet dreams, ear ache, fever fighter, and immunity support. If making your own blends isn’t your jam, YL has a whole kids line that is already diluted! You can just pop on a roller ball (one comes in your starter kit!) and use directly from the bottle. I roll it on the bottoms of their feet or down the spine. For ear ache I rub behind their ears and tummy troubles, right on their tummy. You can even get the kids involved, with your supervision of course. My daughter is 3 and loves helping me make roller bottles or place drops in the diffuser. When she is upset or being difficult I ask her if she would like to smell some oils and she calms right down. There is just something about these magical plant juices that makes us all happy! Not only do they smell great they are also safe, all natural and have so many health and wellness benefits. Not to mention Young Livings Seed to Seal promise.
Tummy Troubles
- 4 drops Digize
- 2 drops Peppermint
- fill 5ml roller with coconut oil
Immunity Support
- 2 drops Thieves
- 2 drops Frankincense
- 2 drops Lemon
- fill 5ml roller with coconut oil
Ear Ease
- 3 drops Lavender
- 2 drops Tea Tree
- 1 drop Purification
- fill 5ml roller with coconut oil
Fever Fighter
- 3 drops Lavender
- 2 drops Peppermint
- 1 drop Lemongrass
- fill 5ml roller with coconut oil
Sweet Dreams
- 3 drops Lavender
- 3 drops Peace & Calming
- fill 5ml roller with coconut oil
Supplies
Here are a few of my favorite supplies I use with my oils.
Essential oils pocket reference
Starter Kit – if you are interested in trying oils but don’t know how or where to start, I recommend getting a starter kit. This kit contains a diffuser and 12 of the most popular/commonly used oils. It also comes with a sample of the thieves cleaner that you can make two 16 0z bottles of cleaning solution with! You will also receive a sample of Ningxia Red, reading material to help you get started on your oily journey, a roller ball and sample bottles to share with your friends. There are a few kits to choose from. If you to were choose the dessert mist for example, it is a $400 value when you buy everything individually, but you get it for $165 when purchased as a kit!
How To get Young Living Oils
ORDER HERE and sign up as a MEMBER by getting a starter kit and make sure this number 17892625 appears in both the “sponsor” and “enroller ID” space. This doesn’t mean you have to sell and you get wholesale pricing for life! To keep this 24% discount you only have to place an order for at least 50 PV per YEAR.
You can also sign up for the optional ESSENTIAL REWARDS. The benefits of ER are earning points back on what you purchase. You earn 10% back on your orders months 1-3, 20% back months 4-24, and 25% on months 25 +. You can use these points to buy more product!
If you have any questions on signing up or how to use your oils message me and I would be happy to help. I have loved having oils in my life and just wanted to share this love with everyone! There is a great community of support that you can be added to as well where you can learn more about using oils and connect with others on the same journey.
Disclaimer: Any suggestions made on this blog are specific to Young Living essential oils and it is not recommended to use with oils from another source. Statements made here about Young Living products have not been evaluated by the FDA. The information given on this blog is not intended to treat, diagnose, prevent or cure any disease states and you should consult your physician if suffering from injury or disease and before starting or stopping any medication.
Modern Midwest Nest 
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