Rose was one of the first essential oils that Sylla worked with in her aromatherapy practice. It is also one that holds deep emotional resonance for her, as it was a source of comfort during a time of grieving.
Therapeutically, Rose is an oil that can be good for practically everything. It can be helpful for skin-care blends, balancing hormones, cardiovascular issues, stress, migraines, emotional disorders, and much more.
Rose is just one of the oils featured in the Atlantic Aromatic Library. Here, we’ve included a sneak peek, so you can get a sense of what it has to offer.
In this video, you will learn:
The difference between Rose Otto and Rose absolute.
How chemistry affects the oil.
How Sylla used Rose to treat emotional issues.
Why it’s good to vary oils during difficult times.
Below, we’ve also included an abbreviated profile of Rose (full video and profile available in the Atlantic Aromatic Library).
Rose Exploration
Common name: Rose Botanical name: Rosa damascena
Part of the Rosaceae family, there are many variations of Rosa damascena. The biggest areas of production are Bulgaria and Turkey, and other names for it include Summer Rose, Bulgarian Rose, Turkish Rose, Otto of Rose, and Attar. Rose Otto is the oil, while the absolute is a thicker, richer-smelling extract. When you hear the name Rose Otto, you’ll know it’s the essential oil.
Rosa centifolia is another species that produces a much lighter oil. It comes from many different places. In the video, you’ll see that Sylla’s sample is from Russia.
In the Otto, stearoptene levels are up to 22%. These constituents are the more solid parts of the oil, which can cause the Otto to solidify at about room temperature. There are also monoterpenols in the Otto, along with geraniol and citronellol—up to 45%. The percent of phenylethyl alcohol is not as high in the Otto as it is in the absolute. The phenylethyl alcohol, or PEA, is what produces that very rosy, floral scent. A lot of people prefer the absolute for this reason.
Drawing these samples up in the pipette, you can see the beautiful color of the Damask Rose. It is clear, which is very similar to Rosa centifolia. The absolute is a little thicker, darker, and richer. More color may come through with the absolute because it’s solvent-extracted. Try blending the two together to get the best of both.
Now, we’d love to know:
Do you have a preference for steam-distilled Rose or the Rose Absolute? Why?
What are your favorite ways to use Rose?
Leave us a comment with your answers and let’s keep this conversation going!
You can enjoy this video and profile in full by joining us in the Atlantic Aromatic Library. Claim your seat now, and get ready to begin your learning journey with a collection of meditations, lessons, recipes, interviews, and more.
This book, and a particular poem in it, became a pivotal part of my healing. Here is the poem:
I will not die an unlived life
I will not live in fear
of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
to allow my living to open me,
to make me less afraid,
more accessible,
to loosen my heart
until it becomes a wing,
a torch, a promise.
I choose to risk my significance;
to live so that which came to me as seed
goes to the next as blossom
and that which came to me as blossom,
goes on as fruit.
This was almost 20 years ago. These days, I’m at the point where I’ve almost forgotten that time. I consider myself a thriver, not survivor. I had the best kind of cancer—not enough to kill me but enough to change my life. Now at age 68, I have been, done, seen, and learned so much more since then.
Life is so short, and I’m certainly not finished! I’ve packed a lot into my aromatic journey years, and there’s a lot I feel compelled to share (for historical interest if nothing else).
Use Me
A few years ago, I attended a concert featuring one of my favorite musicians, David Bromberg. After a 14-year break from performing (during which time he repaired violins and never actually stopped playing music because friends would not leave him alone!), he said, “Why not go on the road again?”
He invited all of his friends to write and record songs with him on his album. He wanted to be used! So the title of this album is “Use Me.” (I was lucky to see him again this year at a house concert—less than 10 feet away from this man who I listened to most of my adult life. Check that off the bucket list!)
I told Nyssa that’s what I wanted, to be used—in the best possible way, of course! I do not want to die with an “unused” life.
Some of the students who were lucky enough to come to my office for classes know that I call the back room the Atlantic Aromatic Library. Many more stories have come from that room as well.
I want to share those stories, share movies from trips to France and Australia, talk about the Purdue classes I took with my colleagues, share historical tidbits from 40 years of following my bliss—that irresistible calling—into the world of aromatics.
What Do You Want to Know?
In addition, I want to tell you what I use, why I use these things, and how I did things when I was getting started, so I can inspire the next generation. I want to capture special times and moments before I forget, talk about the people on my journey that inspired in me, who they were and still are, and tell my story for the next generation to learn from.
So, with all that being said, I am also asking for your advice. How can what I have to share serve you? What do you want to know? How would you like to use my knowledge? Let us know in the comments.
I’m not going to die an unlived life, but I also don’t want to go out before my life’s knowledge and wisdom is put down on paper (or screen), so that I can share with all of you and feel all used up!
Are you struggling to understand essential oil chemistry?
Do monoterpenes and aldehydes go bump in the night, sending you into flashbacks of the classes you hated in high school? (They did for me!)
Do you yearn to speak of esters and phenols with fondness, the way some aroma-nerds do?
I previously had an experienced aromatherapy teacher ask me for advice on teaching essential oil chemistry. This person has been studying essential oils since before I graduated from high school, but they still find it difficult to teach something that many students find hard to grasp.
Chemistry Can Be Fun
Chemistry is one of those subjects, which for so many, fear takes their curiosity hostage. But no more, aroma friends!
The truth is, chemistry can be enlightening, empowering, and (even) fun. Today’s interview shows you how.
I recently sat down with my friend and colleague, Dr. Timothy Miller. Tim is a naturopathic physician, licensed acupuncturist, and registered aromatherapist whose passion is in teaching. In this arena, he wears his heart on his sleeve—making his love for aromatic chemistry known far and wide. But not only that, he also wants to spark that love in all of us.
In this interview, you’ll learn:
How the love of chemistry (and the teaching of it) started for Dr. Tim.
What the biggest blocks are when studying chemistry—and how to break through them.
How aromatherapy sometimes gets chemistry wrong (or just not-quite-right).
How to study essential oil chemistry at home.
What makes trans-anethole unlike any other component.
We hope this interview can help clear up some misconceptions and allow you to approach chemistry in a new light. Once we start embracing this molecular science, we can enjoy a deeper understanding of the aromatic materials we’re working with. It can make us better students, better teachers, and better aromatherapists.
Did something in this interview spark a love for chemistry in your heart?
Leave us a comment and let us know what you learned. What fascinates you about essential oil chemistry? In what ways could essential oil chemistry still woo your heart? What larger questions do you still need answered?
Thank you for sharing in the love of chemistry and essential oils with us. We are grateful, as always, to be a part of your journey in aromatherapy.
Here is a profile for Patchouli, to follow along with on the video or to read on your own.
Patchouli Exploration
Common name: Patchouli Botanical name: Pogostemon cablin
Part of the Labiatae family, Patchouli is a hardy, leafy plant. It is perennial, and it originates in Indonesia and the Philippines. Most of the world-production of Patchouli is from North Sumatra. The plant prefers warm, moist, well-drained conditions.
The leaves and flowers of the Patchouli plant are picked and soaked in water before distillation. Unlike other plants that are quickly distilled, Patchouli must first be fermented, and then it has a long distillation process. Eucalyptus and Lavender may take about an hour to distill, whereas Patchouli takes approximately six to 24 hours. Quite the difference!
Chemically, Patchouli is made up of lots of little components. The dominant molecule family is sesquiterpenes alcohols, with up to 45% sesquiterpene alcohols present in the oil. The sesquiterpenes are what make the oil have the soothing, calming, anti-inflammatory properties we all enjoy.
Patchouli is an antidepressant and anti-inflammatory. It is also antimicrobial and antibacterial, and it can help with things such as staph and strep. It is also great for the skin, as it helps regenerate skin cells, and it is especially good for older tissue. Patchouli can help with things like acne, scars, and wrinkles.
Like a fine wine, Patchouli ages well. The odor is rich, intense, earthy, and woody—a result of the Patchouli alcohol. In perfumery, Patchouli is often a part of chypre (characterized by citrus, cistus, and oakmoss notes) fragrances.
You can see the variety of Patchouli’s color in this video. Indonesian is dark and rich, almost like syrup. The Indian CO2 select is light and golden. The last sample (country of origin unknown) is very light in color, showing just how much variety can exist.
Tell us what you learned! How do you like to use Patchouli? Is it on your list of favorite also?
We hope you enjoyed the sneak-peak of our Patchouli exploration!
We are happy to announce that we have a new instructor on board. The wonderful and talented Shellie Enteen will now be teaching our classes. Shellie lives in South Carolina but hopes to serve those seeking live classes in the Carolinas and Georgia. Massage therapists may recognize her name from her regular column, The Aromatic Message, in Massage Today. Since 2001, Shellie has contributed over 40 wonderful articles on all aspects of aromatherapy to this publication.
Shellie also hosts a weekly radio show on the Esoterically Speaking Network. On this show, she promotes using essential oils to help cope with the current energies. She recently interviewed Sylla on her show, and they discussed what is going on in the field of aromatherapy. Check it out here.
We thought we would put Shellie in the interview seat and ask her a few questions, so you can get to know her a little better.
Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy: How did you get started using essential oils?
Shellie Enteen: In the mid 1980s, I received an Aromatherapy Full-Body Treatment from a friend who’d studied in England and felt the incredible power of Lavender. Then I was introduced to Pat and Gerri at Nature’s Symphony and started incorporating them in my massage oils.
AIA: What were some of your first favorite ways to use aromatherapy in your daily life?
SE: Back then, I used them mainly for therapeutic results—for myself and for clients.
AIA: What is one of your favorite ways to use essential oils now?
SE: It’s hard to pinpoint one specific way, as these oils are in many aspects of my life now, including cleaning. I am a big advocate of perfumes, room diffusion, and recognizing the subtle aspects for all kinds of therapy.
AIA: Describe a favorite memory from your experience of teaching aromatherapy students.
SE: I have so many wonderful memories from teaching, but one that stands out is when I was in Dallas, TX, giving an Introduction to Aromatherapy class for LMTs. I was talking about Chamomile (Anthemis nobilis). I mentioned in the “subtle” information [part of the class] that it helped relieve anger and that I personally felt that made it a good choice for clients with TMJ clenching. Unbeknownst to me, a student was trying out my theory with the bottle I’d passed around. She started waving her hand, and when I called on her, she revealed that she had been struggling with severe TMJ and the moment she applied a drop of chamomile to her joint area, the muscles immediately let go. It was quite an impressive demonstration for everyone.
AIA: What do you think is most important for new students to know?
SE: Apart from the basics of essential oil properties, methods, and safety issues, I think having a full understanding of the aromatherapy industry and how essences are sourced and created is important for students to be able to make wise choices.
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A few years ago, I attended a concert featuring one of my favorite musicians, David Bromberg. After a 14-year break from performing (during which time he repaired violins and never actually stopped playing music because friends would not leave him alone!), he said, “Why not go on the road again?”
.” (I was lucky to see him again this year at a house concert—less than 10 feet away from this man who I listened to most of my adult life. Check that off the bucket list!)
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