It is a simple question, especially since they have gained so much popularity in the past decade.
But what are essential oils? Why the name "essential"? And why am I writing about them?
The term "essential" in essential oils is attributed to the work of Paracelsus , a German-Swiss alchemist. Paracelsus believed that distillation extracted the most important parts of a plant; he thought that this process separated the "essential" constituents from the "non-essential." Paracelsus was born in 1493 and died in 1541. He lived in an era where magical powers were attributed to plants and other natural things. Still, his work helped expand the knowledge of the actual effects and uses of materials of natural origin.
Note the dates: he lived at the turn of the XVI Century. So, essential oils are nothing new; they have been around for centuries.
Essential oils are concentrated and volatile extracts from various plant parts, including flowers, leaves, stems, roots, and fruits. They are hydrophobic, meaning they do not blend or combine with water. These oils capture the distinctive fragrance, therapeutic properties, and unique essence of the plants from which they originate. Often referred to as the "heart" of the plant, essential oils are obtained through steam distillation, cold pressing, and solvent extraction, which help preserve their potent natural compounds.
In many species, different oils are extracted from various parts of the same plant; for example, one can extract essential oil from the leaves or seed pods of the clove plant, Syzygium aromaticum, or the juniper tree, Juniperus communis can render essential oils from its needles or berries.
In my blends, I use essential oils from many different plants, flowers, seeds, roots, bark, wood, and coniferous needles. By the time I conceived RHR Luxury as a luxury home fragrance brand, I had spent a few years studying the use of essential oils and why they mattered as materials of natural origin, as part of the foundations of classical perfumery. When used appropriately in a blend, essential oils contribute to creating different aromatic profiles , which is how we differentiate a floral from a green or amber fragrance.
Essential oils comprise a complex mixture of chemical constituents—terpenes, phenols, aldehydes, esters, and ketones—each contributing to the oil's aroma and potential benefits.
These chemical constituents can be specifically isolated and later added to a fragrance formula to enhance a specific aspect or achieve a desired effect. For example, a component called geraniol is part of the essential oil of geraniums and roses (a rose essential oil is called a "rose otto"). I may use geraniol to reinforce a specific aspect of a rose or geranium accord. The isolation of geraniol as a molecule would not have been possible if someone had not distilled the leaves of plants containing it.
So, there is a connection between the history of distillation, the use of essential oils, and how they and their natural constituents form part of fragrance formulas.
Due to their highly concentrated nature, an important step is taken: essential oils are typically used in small quantities and often diluted with carrier oils when applied topically to the skin.
However, they are also diluted when forming part of a fragrance formula. Dilution helps create "space" between the multiple volatile molecules of a particular essential oil -or any aromatic chemical, for that matter- aside from making their smell less harsh. Highly concentrated, many essential oils can and will smell harsh when smelled out of the bottle and will continue to make their presence noticed when used undiluted in a fragrance blend.
I dilute essential oils according to the effect I want to create in a particular accord or a final fragrance formula. For example, a cedarwood essential oil may be less or more diluted when I use it as a base note, depending on the other materials I include as part of the base notes. A woodsy fragrance formulation could have a more substantial cedarwood accord. In contrast, in a floral formula, the cedarwood essential oil may be softer -less intense, more diluted, or less of it - to support other notes that may be important to the floral composition, such as patchouli or amber.
In addition to their fragrant properties, essential oils have been valued for centuries in various cultures for their therapeutic benefits, including stress relief, mood enhancement, antibacterial properties, and support for overall well-being. They do have some of these properties in perfumery, too. Don't your perfumes make you feel better when you spray them? And wouldn't they keep some of these properties in home fragrance?
The use of essential oils and other materials of natural origin has been debated in the home fragrance market. This is due in part to their cost and also due in part to the fact that their use requires extensive and ongoing research and testing. It takes a lot of time and effort to work with them. Natural materials perform differently in a candle, a diffuser, or a room spray than synthesized materials, and this is because their molecules can be "heavier" or "thicker." They can burn with undesired effects like harsh, chemical, or burnt notes when not used appropriately.
It all depends on how they are used.
An essential oil aromatic profile can be reproduced using all-natural ingredients (other oils and isolates) or synthetic ingredients, and their effect in a formula may be very close to or almost the same as that of the natural, distilled version. However, it lacks one aspect: authenticity.
As the perfumer behind RHR Luxury, I design and blend all the fragrance formulas in my library. Mastering essential oils and other natural materials took a few years, requiring patience and a considerable investment. It is a key differentiating aspect between RHR Luxury and other luxury home fragrance brands. Authenticity.
One of the foundations of classical perfumery is the use of materials of natural origin. These contribute to creating complex fragrances that diffuse differently, last longer, and provide a different aromatic experience. And I like to think I give just that: an unparalleled level of luxury in home fragrance.
RHR