Difference between essential oils and fragrance

by Deepanshu Bajaj Digital Marketer

We usually observe essential oils and flavor oils everywhere either on websites or social media platforms but we are somehow not properly get indulged enough to know about them more but in this blog, we will know about the difference between fragrance oil and essential oil in brief basically, so that you can also use them in your day-to-day lives comfortably. With the help of these oils, you can make several creative and beautiful DIYs like bath bombs, Facemask, Body scrub, Lip Balm, Skin Toner, and many more.

What are essential oils?

Essential oils are concentrated liquid essence which consists of chemical compounds extracted from plants, vegetables, trees, flowers, roots, fruits, etc. The word “essential” in essential oils is used to define plant essence or fragrance inside the product. Essential oils are generally extracted by the process of distillation, cold press, solvent extraction, etc. Essential oils are generally free from synthetic colors and it is made from 100% pure plant essence. It depends on the brand or company whether they include synthetic colors in it or not. Essential oils have an evident strong fragrance but usually, it is so concentrated that inhaling it directly might confuse you sometimes so the best way to know their actual scent is diffusion or aromatherapy.

Where to use them?

Essential oils are used in several ways and it’s a long list. It is not only used in products but can also be used in some medicines and ointments for skin (stretch marks, dark spots, and cold sores), hair, respiratory problems like asthma, and some internal problems. Let’s first discuss where these essential oils are used mainly:

Scented candles
Perfumes
Scented soaps
Room sprays
Shampoo and cleansers
Moisturizers
Lotions and deodorants

Used in DIY for common issues

Essential oils are filled with medicinal properties such as anti-depressant, analgesic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, and detoxifying and this is one of the main differences between essential oils and fragrance oils. It can be used in making several homemade medicines, products, or cosmetics too for treating:

Hair problems- It promotes faster growth of hair and also makes them more shiny and smooth with less frizziness with cleansing them perfectly and also improves the growth of eyelashes.
Skin problems- You can make skin rejuvenating products such as aloe vera scrub, coffee face mask, Shea butter lotion, green tea toner, etc for clearing dark spots, fine lines, cold sores, or sunburn. These products will give your skin a glow, smoothness, moisturization as you need, and also cleanses clogged up pores.
Medical uses- Essential oils can be easily used to reduce the pain, irritation, inflammation, and infection caused because of any health or mental issues like hemorrhoids, cold sores, asthmatic bronchitis, back pain, anxiety, depression, and many more. You can get relief from these issues with the help of inhalation of essential oil with the help of a diffuser (aromatherapy), massaging essential oils after proper blending, or making certain homemade blends or ointments with the help of essential oils.

Essential oils are divided into mainly two categories cosmetic grade essential oil and food-grade essential oils. You can use food-grade essential oil in food but avoid using cosmetic-grade essential oils in your food. They might contain some harmful toxins which cannot be ingested. Make sure to read all the given information and labels related to the particular essential oil before using them in any of your DIY.

Popular essential oils

As we already discussed above where you can easily use these essential oils now let’s talk about some of the most amazing fragrances which you can include in your wish list when you are ready for making a quick wholesome DIY product. These fragrances are divided into some categories so that you can have a better idea of their scents.

Fruity aroma- It includes Vanilla essential oil, strawberry essential oil, apple essential oil, watermelon essential oil, peach essential, ylang-ylang essential oil, etc.
Spicy and strong aroma-Known for its strong scent and medicinal benefits this category works best if you want to make any ointment at home. It includes ginger essential oil, cardamom essential oil, black seed essential oil, black pepper essential oil, etc.
Mesmerizing floral aroma– Floral aroma is been one of the most popular categories. It includes oils like lavender essential oil, frankincense essential oil, Tea tree essential oil, Rosemary essential oil, rose essential oil, chamomile essential oil, and Neroli essential oil.
Refreshing Citrus aromas– Such as lemon essential oil, lemongrass essential oil, orange essential oil, bergamot essential oil, and grapefruit essential oil
Magical mint aroma- It includes pennyroyal essential oil, citronella essential oil, peppermint essential oil, and spearmint essential oil, etc.
Natural and pure forest aroma-It includes eucalyptus essential oil, cedarwood essential oil, pine essential oil, sandalwood essential, etc.

What are fragrance oils?

Now as we are done with essential oils information, we can begin with another mostly asked question. Fragrance oils are also divided into two common categories one is natural fragrance oils and the second is synthetic fragrance oils. Natural fragrance oils can be 100% pure and safe to use extracted from natural plants and flowers mixed with propylene glycol, vegetable oil, and mineral oil. Synthetic fragrance oils are made from synthetic compounds and can also exactly copy the scent of almost every fragrance. These synthetic fragrance oils can be partially or fully synthetic depending on the company and fragrance. It cannot be used for any food item or internal use. There are more choices provided in synthetic fragrance oil because they are made by using synthetic chemical compounds and can copy any scent which even cannot be extracted from plants.

Where to use them?

As it is named fragrance oils it is mainly used to give any specific fragrance to your DIY items. It does not provide any taste or nutritional value to the product. As they do not have any nutritional value so don’t use these fragrance oils in any homemade medical remedy. Here are some products in which you can use fragrance oils:

Scented candles
Scented lotions or creams
Room spray
Car air fresheners
Perfumes

Popular fragrance oils

With a large variety of choices of fragrance oils, you can use fragrance oils in numerous DIYs which will let your creativity comes out beautifully. Please avoid using fragrance oils for aromatherapy because compounds inside the fragrance oils are not good enough to provide you any calming or relaxing effects. With that been said let's continue to discuss some most used fragrance oils:

Refreshing water mist fragrance- It includes some refreshing fragrances such as oceanic mist fragrance oil, cool blue fragrance oil, pacific ocean pearl fragrance oil, etc
Morning shine fragrance- It's best for the mornings when you want a soothing and calming start to your morning. It includes lemon and honey fragrance oil, coffee fragrance oil, Oudh twist fragrance oil, sandalwood fragrance oil, etc.
Sweet floral fragrance- It includes Jasmine fragrance oil, lavender fragrance oil, rose water fragrance oil, tropical fruit fragrance oil, etc.
Smooth and mesmerizing fragrances- These are some fragrance oils that you need if you are not a fan who needs strong scents but prefer some smooth milder scents such as vanilla fragrance oil, chocolate fragrance oil, cocoa butter fragrance oil, frangipani fragrance oil, etc.
Citrus fragrance- It includes spearmint fragrance oil, orange energy fragrance oil, pure lemon fragrance oil, lime orange fragrance oil, etc.
Fruit fragrance-It includes creamy peach fragrance oil, ayur musk fragrance oil, mango fragrance oil, green apple fragrance oil, etc.

1. Shelf life

Fragrance oils: Fragrance oil comes with shorter shelf life. You can use fragrance oil for at At least 6-12 months after that it could harm to use them in making any product.

Essential oils: Essential oils come with a longer shelf life in comparison with fragrance oils. You can use them comfortably for at least 2-15 years. For detailed shelf life information on essential oils please do read the label of the product.

2. Can essential oils and fragrance oils are mixed?

There is some mixed sort of advice on this that whether we can mix fragrance oil and essential oils. There is no particular answer to this question you can mix both of them, for experimentation, many people do so to improve the quality of fragrance but make sure to use them in an appropriate amount and after knowing the ingredients well.

3. DIY recipes by which you can start

Essential oil candles

This recipe will help you to make 4 essential oil candles least.
Melt 4 cups of beeswax pallets in the microwave.
Once the beeswax melts add some drops of any of your favorite mix of essential oil and mix well.
Now pour this liquid into the jar and position a wick in the middle of the jar.
Let the mixture cools down.
Now cut the wick into half and your amazing scented candle is ready now.

2. Fragrance oil body perfume

Take a 10 oz spray bottle.
Pour one cup of water into the bowl.
Add half a cup of witch hazel to the bowl.
Now add at least 10-12 drops of any of your favorite fragrance oil.
Transfer the liquid into the spray bottle and shake it well.

5. Precautions

Essential oils

Do not apply essential oils on your skin without doing a patch test on your elbow.
Keep essential oils away from the direct contact of your eyes.
After patch test if you feel any skin irritation or redness then avoid using that product on your skin again.
Always do a proper dilution of essential oils either with water or carrier oils like Jojoba oil, almond oil, or coconut oil.
Some essential oils are phototoxic so it can be dangerous to go out after applying those oils on our skin.
Read the labels thoroughly.

Fragrance oils

Keep fragrance oils in a dark place and out of direct sunlight.
Store fragrance oils in a cool and dry place.
Close the lids of the oils properly.
They are highly flammable so keep them away from any fire or flames.
Do not use fragrance oil in any food item. They are not meant to be suitable for human consumption.
Do a patch test before using fragrance oil on your skin. If anyhow these oils cause any irritation or pain after applying then wash that part of your body with cold water and soap immediately.
Read the labels thoroughly.

6. Conclusion

Choosing a particular type of oil can be confusing for you but all the basic information and planning help you out in comfortably differentiating between essential oil and fragrance oil. They work best in their different fields and it totally depends on you whom you choose as per your need. It is been evidently observed that essential oils are a little more costly than fragrance oils. Fragrance Oils have a stronger scent in comparison with essential oils. Now we provided you enough information essential oil vs. fragrance oil blog you can let your creativity come out without spending so much money on chemical-filled cosmetics now you can your own products at home at less cost.