Have you ever heard of essential oil notes? Not sure what they are or what that means? Don’t worry, we’re here to break it down for you!
We’ve put together a guide to help you understand essential oil notes and how to blend essential oils together!
Contents
- What Are Essential Oil Notes?
- Why Are Essential Oil Notes Used?
- Why Blend Essential Oils?
- How To Blend Essential Oils
What Are Essential Oil Notes?
Essential oil notes describe how long an aroma lasts. Some oils evaporate quickly when diffused or used in cosmetic products, so they won’t last very long. However, some essential oils evaporate very slowly and their aroma lasts a long time.
There are 3 different groups that essential oils can be split into. These are top notes, middle notes and base notes.
What Are Top Note Essential Oils?
Top notes are the first scents you’ll experience when inhaling an essential oil. They are the first scents people will notice in a blend. Top notes are usually fresh and light and give an instant little lift.
A fragrances' top note is usually the first to evaporate which is why they don’t last as long as the middle or base notes.
Citrus essential oils are commonly top notes. That includes orange oil, lemon oil, bergamot oil, grapefruit oil and more. Other top note essential oils include eucalyptus oil, lemongrass oil and coriander oil.
What Are Middle Note Essential Oils?
The middle notes are the ones that make themselves known as the scents of the top notes fades away. Middle notes are often herbal or floral scents and they function as the main body of a blend.
As middle notes are longer lasting, usually for around two hours, they are beneficial in the blend to body and mind, helping to calm, de-stress, reduce pain or invigorate.
Some common middle notes include lavender oil, rosemary oil, tea tree oil, geranium oil and chamomile oil.
What Are Base Note Essential Oils?
Base notes linger the longest before evaporating as they contain heavier molecules. As the top and middle notes fade away, just the base note is left - which is why when you test a perfume on your skin it smells different after a while.
These deeper scents can affect your mood and are the crux of your oil blends, so they must be carefully chosen so that they work in harmony.
Some popular base note essential oils include ylang ylang oil, frankincense oil, patchouli oil and vetiver oil.
Now you know what each note means, here’s a list of every essential oil and their note…
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Middle Note |
Base Note |
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Why Are Essential Oil Notes Used?
Essential oil notes are used when blending essential oils together. When blending essential oils, you need to keep in mind what note each fragrance is in order to create a beautiful, balanced aroma.
To make a well rounded blend, you should blend a base note, middle note and top note together.
Why Blend Essential Oils?
Essential oils are blended to make an aroma that lasts for longer and to create a more interesting scent. Blends are often used in perfumes, diffusers, aromatherapy, soaps and cosmetic products.
But can you just use one essential oil?
If you want to just use your favourite essential oil, that is fine! But creating a blend with that fragrance will make it much more interesting. For example, if lemon oil is used on its own in a perfume, it will feel very flat and won’t last very long! Adding a middle note (like lavender oil) and a base note (like cedarwood oil) to this essential oil will bring more body to the fragrance and make it last much longer.
How To Blend Essential Oils
A good guide to follow when blending essential oils is following the ratio 30% top note: 50% middle note: 20% base note
This ratio is a guideline, but you do not have to stick to it exactly. Here’s some examples of essential oil blends:
- Lemon oil 5 drops
- Lavender oil 3 drops
- Cedarwood oil 4 drops
- Eucalyptus oil 4 drops
- Clary sage oil 6 drops
- Cedarwood oil 2 drops
- Bergamot oil 5 drops
- Lavender oil 4 drops
- Patchouli oil 2 drops
Continue Reading
Now you know what essential oil notes are, why not continue reading?
- Want to try some more blends? Try these winter diffuser blends!
- Use a blend of essential oils in cold process soap with this patchouli and orange soap recipe!
- Interested in using essential oils in candles? Try our autumn candle recipe!
Let us know in the comments what you think about essential oil notes
