I'm not an aromatherapist but do like using essential oils in an oil burner. However, I've had a few disappointments when I've bought an oil thinking it would be nice and it's not really been! It seems that shops sell only sealed bottles of oil, with no tester to sniff. I just wondered if anyone knew of anywhere that has testers so I could smell the oil before committing to buy?
Many thanks for any ideas
Sarah X
Yes, testers for essential oils is a rare thing, probably because of the cost of them, and if people leave the tops off then it can degrade the oil and the smell.
That's why it's good to get to know particular manufacturers, where they source their oils from, and if they provide good quality pure oild rather than blending it with others or diluting it with base oils (some oils are so expensive that it's inevitable they will get diluted which you'll find is common for them).
I'd personally avoid the ones that are just given the common name e.g. "Geranium oil" and look for the ones where they can tell you which specific geranium it is sourced from i.e. look for the latin names. The good manufacturers will be able to tell you the specifics about the plant it's extracted from and where it's been sourced from (some countries have better growing conditions for some of them than others).
Of course you could always buy yourself a perfume still and make your own, if you're into growing things and enjoy the challenge. We've done that and made a few from our own plants so we know the source, we know they're organic, and we can experiment and find what works in terms of different species of plants etc. It helps if you've been on a distillation course so you know how to do it too. 🙂
All Love and Reiki Hugs
Try your local branch of Neal's Yard remedies.
As Energylz said, he more expensive oils (rose otto, Sandalwood etc) will almost certainly not be in a tester bottle - but they usually have testers for at least half their oils.