Lavender is one of the easier herbs to grow in your garden. Even for someone without a knack for gardening (ahem, me), it’s virtually impossible to kill and grows all over the place. (Be aware that it will spread pretty easily so if you’re into serious gardening with a plan, plan ahead for this type of thing…we keep it in a little plot by itself, away from other plants.)
So when the last of the lavender burst out this year, I wanted to make something out of it to preserve all the benefits for the winter ahead. Since I use lavender essential oil on nearly a daily basis for promoting restful sleep and helping me feel relaxed on busy days (which, let’s face it, is pretty much every day), making a topical oil seemed like the best way to go with it.
This recipe is really easy and is a great foray into DIY-ing if you’re just getting started. You’ll need 3 ingredients, a sunny window, and just a little patience (that’s the hardest part).
Relaxing topical treatments are a dime a dozen in health care stores but getting all the benefits without all the toxic additives makes a homemade version much more appealing.
I use this homemade lavender oil in place of moisturizer on occasion (though this skin tightening eye serum and clean & clear acne fighting face serum are my usual go-tos right now), as a massage oil (I like rubbing my feet before bed), as a part of homemade hair products, and in place of lip balm.
Ingredients:
- 1/3-1/2 cup fresh or dried lavender
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons argan oil
Note: you can replace the argan oil with olive or avocado oil…they’re cheaper and easier to find but the smell doesn’t end up being quite as pleasant.
Steps:
- Combine the coconut oil and argan oil in a small glass jar. If it’s winter and your house is cold, you can play with ratio of coconut oil and argan oil to make it more or less liquidy….it just depends on how you want to use it!
- Add in the fresh or dried lavender. It’ll look like a lot of lavender but pack it all in with a spoon.
- Cap the glass jar with a lid and place on a sunny windowsill for 2-4 weeks (depending on how you deal with that whole patience thing).
- When you’re ready finalize your lavender oil, you’ll want to pour the mixture that was in the glass jar through a metal strainer or cheesecloth. If you added enough coconut oil to make it someone solid at room temperature, you’ll want to heat up the mixture in a double broiler (or in the microwave for 10 seconds).
- Once you’ve strainer out all the fresh/dried lavender, decant your newly new homemade lavender oil back into the glass jar and cap with a lid.
- The mixture can be stored at room temperature pretty much indefinitely.
XOXO,
