Love Lavender?

I love Lavender though I think it may be a bit like Marmite – No not smell like it, but it’s one of those aromas that you either love or hate.

I love it because it reminds me of my lovely Nan and Mum, they both used to use it in their drawers so the bed linen always smelt of it, a great idea I think given it’s well known calming properties.

My mum used to grow it in her garden too and I have happy memories of picking it as a child and trying to make perfume from it, or using it to fill small bags to put in my drawers – I don’t do that anymore but maybe I should?

I use it now in my bath and body products but as I said earlier people either love or hate it. I feel those who hate it, and I remember one person saying she couldn’t use it because it gave her husband a headache, are missing out on some of it’s wonderful therapeutic uses.

Lavender oil has a soothing and calming effect on the nerves, relieving tension, depression, panic, hysteria and nervous exhaustion in general and is effective for headaches, migraines and insomnia. It is also very beneficial for problems such as bronchitis, asthma, colds, laryngitis, halitosis, throat infections and whooping cough and helps the digestive system deal with colic, nausea, vomiting and flatulence.

Lavender oil relieves pain when used for rheumatism, arthritis, lumbago and muscular aches and pains, especially those associated with sport. On the skin, lavender oil tones and revitalizes and it is useful for all types of skin problems such as abscesses, acne, oily skin, boils, burns, sunburn, wounds, psoriasis, lice, insect bites, stings and also acts as an insect repellent.

Lavender oil is one of the few essentials oils that can be used neat on the skin, and this is especially useful when treating a minor burn wounds.

There are so many different ways to use it, though it would be hard for us to extract the essential oil it is a great plant to grow in the garden, it is relatively hardy it just needs a bit of a prune after it has flowered. The aroma even when it isn’t it flower is gorgeous and it attracts bees and aren’t we supposed to be encouraging them back into the garden?

I’d love to go and lie in a field of lavender would you?

Before using essential oils please check out the safety guidelines
http://www.essentialoils.co.za/essential-oils/lavender.htm