A complete guide to aromatherapy sprays
Aromatherapy is the medicinal use of essential oils to enhance our emotional, mental, physical and spiritual health. Its practice can relax or energize you, enhance the quality of your sleep, soothe tension, calm your mind and promote healing, to name just a few of its benefits. It’s also becoming increasingly respected in scientific circles.
The professional medical community is starting to take the inherent health value of essential oils seriously. More and more research is confirming what people have long said about them: that they have the power to help, heal and enhance our lives.
But how do you enjoy the benefits of aromatherapy at home?
The answer is simple.
You can use essential oils topically or in a diffuser, or you can use aromatherapy sprays. The short bursts of mists from these sprays can be used to spritz your body, hair, furniture, pillows and general environment, allowing the oils to do their work while you get on with your daily life.
You can purchase high-quality premixed mists from Volant or you can learn how to make aromatherapy sprays at home. They can successfully be used to help with a variety of conditions and will leave whatever room you’ve spritzed them in smelling wonderful.
Use essential oil room sprays to unwind, get ready for your day, treat the blues, lift your spirits or cheer up your surroundings. You can even use an essential oil bug spray to avoid getting harassed by insects!
If you’d like to learn more about spritzing your way to a happier, healthier lifestyle with essential oils, this guide tells you everything you need to know.
Content/Quick links
- A short history of aromatherapy
- How to use aromatherapy sprays
- Brighten up the bathroom
- Create a pillow mist
- Find your focus
- Get support on your weight-loss journey
- Make a monster spray
- Aromatherapy spray recipes
- Energy Mist
- Relax Mist
- Rose Water Mist
- Sleep Mist
- Easy DIY aromatherapy spray recipes
- Boost your mood aromatherapy spray
- Citrus burst
- Clean up your act
- Essential oil bug spray
- Lovely linen mist
- Ignite your passions
- Put your feet up aromatherapy spray
- Take a walk in the woods
- Aromatherapy spray research
- Bergamot’s effect on stress
- The efficacy of aromatherapy in dealing with workplace-related stress
- Aromatherapy’s capacity to lift our moods
- How to get the maximum benefit from aromatherapy sprays
- FAQs
- What are aromatherapy sprays?
- How do you use an aromatherapy spray?
- Which essential oils create positive energy?
- Can using essential oil room sprays cause side effects?
- How long do aromatherapy sprays last?
- Unlock the potential of aromatherapy mists
A short history of aromatherapy
Although plants and their extracts have been used the world over for thousands of years now, with evidence of this practice found in Ancient China, Egypt, Greece, India, Iran and Pakistan, the West only caught on to their potency in an official capacity in the early 1800s.
It was in 1830 in Grasse, a French city famous for its perfume and a veritable epicenter of distillation, that essential oils began being studied seriously.
Venerated scientists like Louis Pasteur eventually became interested in them. His assistant, Charles Chamberland, was one of the first in the chemistry and microbiology fields to start measuring the effect of essential oils like cinnamon, clove and oregano on infectious diseases like anthrax.
Then a Lyonnais chemical engineer, René-Maurice Gattefossé, discovered the therapeutic potential of lavender after a laboratory explosion in 1910 in which he was severely burnt. The miracle healing he underwent after treating his wounds with lavender essential oil resulted in him founding the French Society of Aromatic Products.
Gattefossé also published roughly 20 works that are still respected and referenced in the present day. His work in the field greatly enhanced aromatherapy’s reputation and even gave it its name. It was Gattefossé that coined the term “aromatherapy” in 1935, and we’ve used it ever since.
How to use aromatherapy sprays
Essential oil room sprays are a wonderful way to freshen up your environment. You do, however, need to ensure that yours contains only pure essential oils. This is the only way that you can accurately predict what they’ll do and ensure that you don’t have a negative reaction to added chemicals and synthetics.
Although they work a lot like diffusers by releasing essential oils into the environment around you, you can also apply certain mists to your skin because they’ve been diluted properly with the correct ingredients.
Once you’ve purchased a mix from a trusted, reputable vendor, or learned how to make aromatherapy sprays, there is a multitude of ways you can use them:
Brighten up the bathroom
Does your bathroom need a little pick-me-up? If you answered yes, then try a citrus-based essential oil mix.
Using lemon essential oil and sweet orange on their own is also an excellent option. These uplifting scents give rooms a wonderful clean smell.
Create a pillow mist
There are several essential oils that can help you get a good night’s sleep. Try bergamot essential oil, cedarwood, lavender, ylang ylang or Roman chamomile.
Find your focus
If you’re having trouble concentrating, a cedarwood essential oil aromatherapy spray may be just what you need.
Cedarwood decreases hyperactivity, deodorizes indoor environments, enhances focus and lowers stress levels.
Cedarwood is also recommended when you’re making an essential oil bug spray because it repels insects, naturally helping you focus on your tasks!
Get support on your weight-loss journey
Once you know how to make aromatherapy sprays, you can harness the power of scent to help you lose weight. Grapefruit essential oil is highly recommended in this capacity because it breaks down body fat and increases your metabolism.
Using it as a base for your essential oil room spray may improve your digestion, reduce your appetite and regulate your heart rate. When you’re feeling the cravings, give a quick spritz to help you stay on track.
Make a monster spray
Every parent knows those evenings when getting the children to sleep seems an impossibility. When you do finally get them tucked in, ensuring there are no complaints of scary sounds and that there is nothing under the bed can be a little easier with Monster Spray!
Recommended for children over 5 years old, try combining lavender, peppermint essential oil, Roman chamomile, sweet orange or ylang ylang, or use them individually. Simply spritz it around the room to zap any potential imaginary threats, helping your little one to relax knowing that you’ve gotten them all!
Aromatherapy spray recipes
Before you take a look at the many recipes available for essential oil room sprays, there are a few things you should know.
Using distilled or filtered water prevents contamination or spoilage of aromatherapy sprays due to the impurities tap water contains. You can also use boiled tap water. Once you have let it cool, it’ll be clean enough for you to use.
Use the following formula and tools for any of the recipes that catch your eye and whatever spray you make going forward:
- Between 10 and 20 drops of essential oil, unless a different amount is indicated
- Two ounces of distilled/filtered/boiled water
- One tablespoon of grain alcohol as a preservative
- A spray bottle
Alternatively, you can purchase expertly created mists from Volant like:
Energy Mist
Volant’s Energy Mist is a crisp blend of cedarwood, eucalyptus and lemon essential oils. It will invigorate you in a matter of seconds and is packaged so you can easily take it with you wherever you go.
Relax Mist
Take in the floral scents of eucalyptus, grapefruit, palma rosa and ylang ylang when you use Volant’s Relax Mist. It’s perfect for when you need to unwind a little.
Rose Water Mist
This hydrating, botanical essential oil room spray can also be used on your face or body. Volant’s Rose Water Mist refreshes and calms.
Sleep Mist
Let the balmy, subtle blend of essential oils in Volant’s Sleep Mist lull you into a deep sleep at the end of a long day. The fragrances of frankincense, lavender, palma rosa and Roman chamomile will soothe you when it’s time to go to bed.
Easy DIY aromatherapy spray recipes
Now that you know a little about the possibilities of a good aromatherapy spray, it’s time to look at some easy recipes. You can learn how to make aromatherapy sprays quickly and easily with these combinations:
Boost your mood aromatherapy spray
Mist this into the air around you when you’re feeling down in the dumps:
- 10 drops Roman chamomile
- 5 drops sweet orange essential oil
- 5 drops ylang ylang
Citrus burst
Let this blend be the energizing tonic you need:
- 4 drops lemon
- 4 drops sweet orange
- 4 drops bergamot
- 4 drops frankincense essential oil
- 4 drops grapefruit
Clean up your act
When you know how to make aromatherapy spray that brightens your mood and re-energizes you, you can take things a bit further by creating one that you can use to clean various items in your household, like your yoga mat:
- 5 drops tea tree essential oil
- 5 drops lavender
- 5 drops lemongrass
- 5 drops eucalyptus
Essential oil bug spray
Spritz this essential oil bug spray blend onto your bare mattress and let it air dry. You can even use it on your sheets, your clothing and your body. It’s an excellent deterrent for insects:
- 5 drops tea tree
- 5 drops peppermint
- 5 drops lemongrass essential oil
- 5 drops frankincense
Lovely linen mist
Spritz this mix onto your linen and let it air dry to get the heavenly scent of freshly-changed bedding:
- 8 drops lavender
- 8 drops grapefruit essential oil
- 4 drops tea tree oil
Ignite your passions
Set the mood for romance with:
- 6 drops geranium essential oil
- 6 drops of sweet orange
- 4 drops frankincense
- 4 drops ylang ylang essential oil
Put your feet up aromatherapy spray
Create a calm, serene, peaceful space by blending:
- 10 drops lavender
- 5 drops bergamot
- 5 drops of frankincense
Take a walk in the woods
Bring the outside in and transform your space with:
- 5 drops frankincense
- 5 drops spruce essential oil
- 5 drops cedarwood
- 5 drops eucalyptus essential oil
Aromatherapy spray research
As far back as 1929, a pharmacist known only as Sévelinge from Lyon, France illustrated how effective certain essential oils were for fighting bacteria. In the 1950s, Dr. Jean Valnet, a French military physician, used oils to treat soldiers injured in the Indochina War. And another Frenchman, Pierre Franchomme, an aromatologist and pharmacologist, was responsible for decisive progress in this field in 1975.
It was then that he proposed the idea of a chemotype, a botanical chemical ID card, and said it should be carefully considered. Franchomme went one step further and listed the most important aromatic compounds that characterized each plant and noted how these affected their properties.
Nowadays, aromatherapy is a full-fledged focus of an array of different scientific studies and is gaining status as a credible branch of medicine, as research continues to prove.
Bergamot’s effect on stress
After two 10-minute aromatherapy spray sessions with bergamot essential oil, it was found that the parasympathetic nervous system functioning of school teachers was enhanced.
We can thus conclude that it’s possible to learn how to make aromatherapy spray with specific essential oils to drive subconscious nervous activity towards a more balanced state.
The efficacy of aromatherapy in dealing with workplace-related stress
Considered a very serious occupational hazard amongst nurses, this 2013 study proved that essential oil room sprays are a convenient, non-invasive, simple and very effective way to relieve stress.
The 50+ nurses in the experimental group inhaled lavender essential oil, and their stress levels decreased from 6.1 to 2.8. The almost 60 nurses in the control group saw their stress levels increase from 5.6 to 5.8.
Aromatherapy’s capacity to lift our moods
This study revealed that bergamot essential oil aromatherapy sprays improved positive feelings in people stuck in the waiting room of a mental health treatment center.
Using the Positive and Negative Affect Scale, 50 women aged between 23 and 70 years were included in the pilot study. After 15 minutes of exposure to bergamot essential oil, it was found that positive feelings in this group increased by almost 20% more than those in the control group.
How to get the maximum benefit from aromatherapy sprays
Not all essential oils will benefit all of us equally, and it’s important to take this into account when you’re creating your aromatherapy spray. Your preferences and individual body chemistry will play a role in what works best for you.
It’s wise to check in with a medical professional before commencing any type of alternative therapy, especially if you’re taking medication, have a medical condition or are pregnant or breastfeeding. You may find the effectiveness of your other medication being altered, and certain health conditions can be exacerbated.
And if you plan to use a spray on your body, clothing or bedding, do a patch test first to ensure you don’t react to it.
While reactions to aromatherapy mists are rare, it’s always best to err on the side of caution to ensure you enjoy their full benefits.
FAQs
What are aromatherapy sprays?
They are a way to use essential oils by converting them into a sprayable form. They’re easy to make at home, or you can find ready-made versions.
How do you use an aromatherapy spray?
Follow the directions provided. Don’t spray them onto your skin unless it is safe to do so. Do a patch test to ensure you don’t have a negative reaction.
Which essential oils create positive energy?
Oils like spearmint essential oil, peppermint, sweet orange, rosemary and lemon all promote feelings of positivity.
Can using essential oil room sprays cause side effects?
Although they're rare, side effects can occur. Talk to your doctor before you start using them if you’re taking medication, have a medical condition, are pregnant or breastfeeding or are particularly sensitive to new substances.
How long do aromatherapy sprays last?
This depends on several factors, including the quality of the vendor you’re buying from, the oils you’re using and how often you’re using them. Budget for roughly four months.
Unlock the potential of aromatherapy mists
Whether you’re interested in creating an essential oil bug spray or want to experiment with mists to balance your environment, create positivity in your surroundings or get better sleep, there’s an oil blend to suit every need.
Volant’s essential oils are 100% pure and organic, so they’re ideal for use in your aromatherapy sprays. Or, you can simply purchase any one of our pre-made mists to give your body and mind a great-smelling boost.
