Mixing Essential Oils for Magic: Aromatic Alchemy for Personal Blends (12 page)

nutmeg,

cypress

myrrh

anise, lemon

orange (
sweet
)

lemon, lime,

citronella,

Orange (sweet)

clary sage

labdanum,

sage (
common
)

tagetes

cinnamon,

myrrh,

ginger

oakmoss

lavender (
spike
)

camphor,

Oregano

cedarwood,

oakmoss

lavandin, pine

cypress

rose (
Damask
)

lavandin,

Palmarosa

cananga,

amyris,

grapefruit

geranium

cypress

sandalwood

74 Blending by Perfume Note

Table 5.2 Oils that Combine Well According to Perfume Note (continued)

Top

Middle to Top

Middle

Middle to Base

Base

anise,

myrtle,

Parsley

clary sage,

oakmoss

rose (
Damask
)

tea tree

coriander,

ylang-ylang

cumin

bergamot,

angelica (
seed
),

geranium,

angelica (
root
),

Patchouli

rose (
Damask
)

lavandin

lavender (
true
)

clary sage

myrrh

lime,

lavandin,

lavender (
true
),

Pepper

frankincense,

rose (
Damask
)

rosemary

marjoram

rose (
Maroc
)

sandalwood

Peppermint

catnip,

lavender (
true
),

benzoin

myrrh

lemon,

citronella,

marjoram

spearmint

rosemary

Petitgrain

litsea,

carrot, neroli,

benzoin, clary

frankincense,

lavender (
spike
)

rosemary,

palmarosa

sage, jasmine

valerian

tea tree

lemon,

Pine

lavender (
true
),

cedarwood,

birch,

sage (
common
) cajeput, tea tree

mugwort,

cypress

spikenard

savory

Rose (Damask)

litsea,

chamomile

clary sage,

frankincense,

bergamot,

lovage (
leaf/

(
Roman
), neroli

jasmine

sandalwood

lemon

stalk
)

anise,

litsea, tagetes

clove, ginger,

Rose (Maroc)

patchouli,

bergamot,

lavender (
true
)

benzoin,

sandalwood

lemon

pepper

cassia, lime,

Rosemary

cumin, elemi,

cedarwood

frankincense,

peppermint

bay, pine,

mugwort,

(
Atlas
), pepper

labdanum

thyme

oregano

Sage (common)

grapefruit,

lavender (
true
),

clary sage,

hyssop, lemon

lavandin, pine

orange (sweet)

pepper

lavender (
spike
) eucalyptus (
bg
),

Sage (Spanish)

cedarwood,

pine, rosemary

elemi, ginger

clary sage

Blending by Perfume Note 75

Table 5.2 Oils that Combine Well According to Perfume Note (continued)

Top

Middle to Top

Middle

Middle to Base

Base

bergamot,

grapefruit

geranium,

benzoin,

Sandalwood

fennel (
sweet
)

palmarosa

jasmine,

vetiver

rose (
Maroc
)

lemon, lime

pine, lavandin,
Savory (summer)

oakmoss

rosemary

lavender (
true
)

bergamot, lime

lemongrass,

Savory (winter)

oakmoss

pine, rosemary

orange (
sweet
)

Spearmint

basil, lavandin

dill,

jasmine

myrrh

mandarin

lavender (
true
)

lavender (
spike
),

bay, pine

dill, geranium,

clary sage,

Spikenard

petitgrain

lavender (
true
)

rose (
Maroc
)

labdanum

Spruce

lavandin,

galbanum,

benzoin,

amyris,

pine, rosemary

lavender (
true
)

cedarwood

oakmoss

rose (
Damask
)

lavandin,

Star Anise

rose (
Maroc
),

pine

orange (sweet)

ylang-ylang

rose (
Damask
)

lavandin

galbanum,

jasmine,

Storax

lavender (
true
)

ylang-ylang

mandarin,

Tagetes

lavender (
true
),

clary sage,

frankincense

petitgrain

grapefruit,

orange (
sweet
)

jasmine, rose

litsea

(
M)

lime

basil, pine

Tarragon

chamomile (
G
)

labdanum,

galbanum

oakmoss

petitgrain

Tea Tree

cinnamon,

clary sage,

oakmoss

pine, rosemary

clove, ginger

ylang-ylang

bergamot,

Thyme

fir (
balsam
),

pepper

myrrh,

lemon

pine, rosemary

lavender (
true
)

turmeric

myrtle, thyme

clove, ginger,

clary sage,

Turmeric

nutmeg

ylang-ylang

labdanum

76 Blending by Perfume Note

Table 5.2 Oils that Combine Well According to Perfume Note (continued)

Top

Middle to Top

Middle

Middle to Base

Base

mandarin,

pine,

lavender (
true
)

cedarwood

Valerian

petitgrain

rosemary

patchouli

rose (
Damask
),

angelica (
seed
)

ginger,

clary sage,

Vetiver

yarrow

lavender (
true
)

jasmine

sandalwood

Yarrow

myrtle, pine

chamomile (
R
)

cedarwood,

myrrh,

hyssop

clary sage

oakmoss,

vetiver

bergamot,

cajeput,

allspice, neroli,

Ylang-Ylang

birch, oakmoss,

lemon,

lavandin, litsea,

palmarosa

jasmine

sandalwood

mandarin

tea tree

Sample Blend

I like to use this blend for divination, working with astral familiars, or any time I feel the need for support in focusing my mind and energies. All three oils, bergamot, geranium, and clary sage, help sustain concentration. Geranium supports psychic energy and work in the astral realm, bergamot brings psychic protection as well as heightened awareness and communication with spirits. Clary sage, which I use as the base note in this blend, supports psychic abilities, divination, and clairvoyance. It is also associated with truth, which brings a sense of authenticity.

Psychic Focus Blend

Bergamot: 7 drops

Clary sage: 4 drops

Geranium: 3 drops

In the next chapter we will explore a method of blending based on my own exploration into the Pagan symbolism of the various parts of plants.

C H A P T E R 6

As Above, So Below

The morphological mixing of herbs was a common practice among Medieval herbalists

who believed that different parts of plants served different purposes. In ritual and magic work, we often use various parts of plants because of their symbolism, which in turn enhances the energy and power of our intentions. It did not take any stretch of the imagination for me to see that using an essential oil or blend of oils in place of an actual piece of plant would work just as well.

From below the earth, roots keep our energy grounded and give our work stability.

Wood and bark represent the middle or center giving us balance, helping us grow, and providing protective energy. Resins represent life-giving blood and vitality, furnishing control, and the power to heal. Leaves symbolize growth and expansion and can be used as an aid in developing our purposes. Flowers represent beauty, fertility, and sexuality. With the base word fruit, fruition means completion or culmination, and so a piece of fruit symbolizes the manifestation of intentions or desires. Also symbolizing abundance, fruit can be used to amplify or increase energies. Seeds and nuts represent the beginnings of things and can be instrumental when encouraging something new in our lives. They also represent duality such as the alternation between life and death or light and dark. Because of this they can provide balance, embody change, and represent cycles.

Just as we may use an acorn to symbolize beginnings and the promise of the future,

or an apple to represent abundance, so too can we use essential oils because most are produced from specific parts of plants. While single oils work well for this, creating blends can amplify energy and boost intentions, which is why I devised this method. And of

course, it’s always fun to create new mixtures. While the individual categories are fairly 77

78 As Above, So Below

straight forward, I found it useful to combine them into two larger groups that I call As Above and So Below. While using these larger groupings expands the number of oils from which to choose, they also provide a broader level of energetic support. For example, a combination of root and wood oils can form a powerful grounding and centering blend for use after ritual. A leaf and fruit oil combination can be used to manifest purpose. Let’s take a look at the plant part classifications.

AS ABOVE

Flowers

Leaves

Fruit

Leaves & Flowers

Seeds

Wood & Bark

Resins

Twigs &

Leaves

Roots

SO BELOW

Figure 6.1 The As Above—So Below categories of oils.

The major groups of As Above and So Below are each divided into three categories

plus one sub-category. Categories in the So Below group include roots, wood & bark, and resins. The resins category actually consists of resins, oleoresins and gums. The sub-category in the So Below group is twigs & leaves. While these oils are produced partly from leaves, an As Above category, I felt that the bark and woody parts of twigs would make these more energetically suitable for the So Below group. However, you may want to experiment to see where these oils fit best for you. The general attributes of the So Below group are:

As Above, So Below 79

Roots: grounding, stability, longevity, secrets, the Otherworld/Underworld;

Resins: vitality, healing, control, spirituality;

Wood & bark: protection, growth, balance/center, strength;

Twigs & leaves: leaves add energy to wood & bark attributes.

The categories in the As Above group include leaves, flowers, and fruit, with the sub-category of leaves & flowers. The general attributes of the As Above group are:

Leaves: energy, growth, purpose;

Flowers: beauty, attraction, sex, fertility;

Leaves & flowers: a combination of these categories;

Fruit: manifestation, success, abundance, increase.

Straddling the worlds of As Above and So Below is the category of seeds, which includes nuts. I have found that these oils function well with and support the energy of both the As Above and So Below groups. In addition, seeds provide a wheel-of-the-year continuity that underlies our sabbat and esbat rituals. The general attributes of seeds are—beginnings, changes, cycles, balance/duality.

Parts of plants and their respective essential oils also relate to the elements:

Air: leaves, flowers, leaves & flowers

Water: fruit, resins

Earth: roots, wood & bark, twigs & leaves

Fire: seeds

At first we may think of seeds being associated with the element earth because they rest in the ground, however, they hold the fire/spark of life that sets the cycle in motion.

Likewise, we may think of wood relating to fire, however, while a tree is alive it is connected with the Earth—think of woodsy/earthy scents.

80 As Above, So Below

AS ABOVE

AIR

Flowers

Leaves

Fruit

WATER

Leaves & Flowers

Seeds

FIRE

Wood & Bark

Resins

Twigs &

Leaves

Roots

EARTH

SO BELOW

Figure 6.2 Plant parts and the elements.

There are three ways to create a blend with this method:

• Use oils of the same plant part

• Use oils of multiple plant parts from either the As Above or So Below

groups

• Balance several oils from both groups

Keep in mind that even two oils can create a nice mix that will enhance your work. In many instances you will notice that plant parts often coincide with scent groups, something to keep in mind while planning. The tables in this chapter provide details about which oils blend well together within their plant part categories and group as well as oils in the opposite group. As with the blending methods in the previous chapters, follow the same procedures for mixing and assessing your oil combinations.