We're Jenny and Karen, and this podcast is our live classes, recorded as they happen. We blend on camera, share the recipes we make along the way, and answer the questions people ask in the chat. Most weeks it's Tea Time with the Natural Living Club, where we spend the hour with one oil you may never have met. Some weeks we replay a favorite class from our Thrive archive.
The show comes from the companies we run together. Aromahead Institute is where we teach aromatherapy, from first classes through certification. Aromatics International is where we source and bottle the essential oils we use in class, with a GC-MS report behind every essential oil lot. Thymely is our aromatherapy research assistant that answers from our own library and shows you its sources.
Whether you're opening your first bottle or have been blending for years, pull up a chair.
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Tea Time: Niaouli ct. 1,8-cineole - Make Your Own Incense Sticks
Épisode 38
mercredi 4 novembre 2026 • Durée 01:43:34
Recorded live with our community in the Natural Living Club.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class (a free 5 ml of Niaouli, a free pack of blank incense sticks, half-price tuition on Karen's Nurturing Mental Clarity and Focus with Oils workshop) expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Niaouli ct. 1,8-cineole comes from a paperbark tree in the myrtle family, alongside tea tree, cajeput and eucalyptus. Jenny explains what "ct." on the label means, reads the GC/MS on the batch from the slide (wildcrafted in Madagascar, 52% 1,8-cineole) and sets it beside Ravintsara at 59%. She covers our guidelines for 1,8-cineole around children and anyone with asthma, then makes Clear Morning incense sticks with Niaouli, Grapefruit and Black Spruce, which dry for 24 hours before you light one. In the bonus, Jenny packs for her sourcing trip to Thailand: an aloe and argan facial cleanser, a Skeeter Beater stock blend built with Thymely Premium, and two travel inhalers.
Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to Tea Time: Niaouli ct. 1,8-cineole 2:11 Getting to know Niaouli, a cousin of eucalyptus and tea tree 6:02 Smell it: one word that comes to mind 13:20 Morning Air diffuser blend 15:05 Guava Leaf, one of this month's Thai oils 21:11 A paperbark tree in the myrtle family 22:13 What "ct." means: the chemotype on the label 27:57 The GC/MS: 52% 1,8-cineole 29:09 Niaouli beside Ravintsara 31:50 Using Niaouli thoughtfully: 1,8-cineole, kids and asthma 36:29 Blend partners 37:05 Clear Morning incense sticks 43:53 Drying the sticks for 24 hours 44:58 A gentler incense for little ones at home 53:11 Bonus: packing for Thailand 54:53 Jenny's facial cleanser: aloe vera, argan oil and Lavender 1:06:30 Skeeter Beater stock blend with Thymely Premium 1:24:43 From stock blend to a 2-ounce spray 1:27:24 Travel inhalers 1:43:25 Bye for now
Tea Time: Grapefruit - Bright and Sun-Smart
Épisode 37
jeudi 29 octobre 2026 • Durée 01:14:54
Recorded live with our community in the Natural Living Club.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class (half-price Baobab Seed Oil, half-price Witch Hazel Hydrolat for ordering live, half-price tuition on Karen's Immune Boosting with Grapefruit, Thyme and Rosemary workshop, gift cards) expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Grapefruit is a well-known oil but a lesser-reached-for citrus, and Jenny spends the hour getting to know it. Our oil is cold-pressed from certified organic pink grapefruit grown in Italy, and batch GRF-128 reads 86.15% d-limonene and 0.34% nootkatone, the same component that read 6.9% in Green Vetiver batch VTG-101 and 0.21% in batch VTG-102. Because it is cold-pressed, grapefruit is phototoxic, so Jenny walks through the guideline: up to 24 drops in 1 ounce of carrier, about 4%. Then she makes the Sunny Side Sugar Scrub with half a cup of brown sugar, 2 tablespoons of baobab seed oil, Grapefruit, Juniper Berry and Green Vetiver, and a grapefruit room spray with witch hazel hydrolat (hydrosol).
Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to Tea Time: Grapefruit 9:54 A snapshot of Grapefruit: what it is known for 13:49 A diffuser blend to set the tone 15:30 Niaouli ct. 1,8-cineole, next week's oil17:45 Calendar changes: Jenny's sourcing trip to Thailand21:32 Grapefruit's story: pomelo, sweet orange, Barbados and Ruby Red23:08 Cold-pressed or steam distilled, and the 24-drop guideline27:28 The GC/MS report: 86.15% d-limonene on batch GRF-12829:14 Green Vetiver's nootkatone, batch 101 against batch 10232:05 Using Grapefruit thoughtfully: rinse-off, leave-on and diffusing34:16 Blend partners: Juniper Berry, Green Vetiver and Cedarwood37:13 Storing citrus oils38:19 Baobab seed oil: what this carrier brings40:27 Making the Sunny Side Sugar Scrub53:43 For a face scrub, 5 drops or fewer, or none at all55:24 Witch hazel hydrolat (hydrosol), and a Grapefruit room spray59:22 Jenny's travel deodorant: a crystal and a hydrosol1:05:16 This week's offers1:09:54 Your questions for Thymely Premium1:11:00 Thymely Premium: top carriers and oils for the skin barrier1:14:51 Bye for now
Tea Time: Vetiver Green - Why This Root Oil Pours Like Syrup
Épisode 36
jeudi 22 octobre 2026 • Durée 01:01:53
Recorded live with our community in the Natural Living Club.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class (a free 8 oz Pink Himalayan Salt for ordering live, half-price Green Vetiver, half-price tuition on Karen's Heart Centered Self-Care Rituals workshop, gift cards) expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Green Vetiver is a root oil that pours like syrup, and Jenny opens the bottle to show why. Our batch, VTG-101, is distilled from wildcrafted vetiver roots in India by Musa and his team in traditional copper stills, and the copper is what turns the oil green. In India it is called Rooh Khus, the soul of vetiver. Jenny sets it beside regular Vetiver: khusimol reads 13% in Green Vetiver and 12% in Vetiver, while nootkatone sits at 6.91% in Green Vetiver and 0.19% in Vetiver, so the two can stand in for each other and still smell different. Then she makes one salt blend you can use three ways, as a foot scrub, a shower scrub or a bath soak: half a cup of Pink Himalayan Small Grain Salt, 2 tablespoons of jojoba, 3 drops of Green Vetiver, 7 drops of Red Mandarin and 2 drops of Cardamom. Along the way she shares the Quiet Ground diffuser blend, how to coax a thick oil out of its bottle and the chat's words for the aroma, and she puts a live question to Thymely Premium, our research assistant.
In this episode:
Green Vetiver is distilled from wildcrafted vetiver roots in India in Musa's traditional copper stills. The copper is why the oil is green, and that green deepens toward brown as the oil ages. Regular Vetiver is distilled from cultivated roots and reads brown in the bottle.
On the report, khusimol is close in both oils, 13% in Green Vetiver (batch VTG-101) and 12% in Vetiver (batch VET-115). Nootkatone, a sesquiterpene ketone also found in grapefruit, is 6.91% in Green Vetiver and 0.19% in Vetiver. Many of the remaining components are still filed as other, and Jenny says the science is catching up with the oil.
A thick, resinous oil gets thicker with age, and Jenny says its aroma keeps deepening right to the end of its shelf life. Warm the bottle in your hands, pop the orifice reducer and measure with a pipette; one drop goes a long way. Batch VTG-101 was distilled February 15, 2025 and carries an 8-year shelf life. For everyday skin blends, stay around 1 to 2%, up to 3% if needed.
Tea Time: Copaiba - Tapped From the Tree Like Maple Syrup
Épisode 35
mercredi 14 octobre 2026 • Durée 51:21
Recorded live with our community in the Natural Living Club.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class (a free Chai Spice hydrolat for watching live, a free 5 ml of Copaiba, half-price tuition on Karen's pain workshop, gift cards) expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Copaiba comes from tapping a living tree. Jenny introduces the copaiba tree, which grows wild in Brazil and belongs to the pea family: harvesters make a small opening in the trunk, collect the oleoresin and seal the opening so the tree keeps growing, a lot like tapping a tree for maple syrup. She explains why the bottle can read copaiba balsam or balsam copaiba, why the Latin name is the one to check, and how the oleoresin differs from an essential oil steam distilled from it. Batch COP-111 was wildcrafted in Brazil and tapped in October 2025. It is 41.7% β-caryophyllene, a sesquiterpene that puts it up there with Black Pepper, and it carries an 8-year shelf life. Then she makes After the Day Lotion: 2 ounces of unscented lotion with 6 drops of Copaiba Oleoresin, 4 drops of Xanthoxylum and 2 drops of Green Vetiver, about a 1% blend, and the chat plays a round of aroma confessions.
In this episode:
Copaiba is an oleoresin, tapped from the living trunk of a tree that grows wild in Brazil. Harvesters make a small opening, collect the flow and seal it so the tree keeps growing. It is filtered and minimally processed rather than steam distilled, which is part of why it pours more slowly than most essential oils.
Common names vary: copaiba, balsam, copaiba balsam, balsam copaiba. The Latin name on the label identifies the product, and the label should also say whether it is the oleoresin or an essential oil distilled from it. Distillation separates the volatile oil from the heavier resin; the oleoresin keeps both and is one step less processed.
On batch COP-111, β-caryophyllene is 41.7%, and sesquiterpenes make up most of the report. They evaporate more slowly, which helps explain why the aroma of Copaiba is soft at first and then arrives and stays.
After the Day Lotion: 2 ounces of unscented lotion, 6 drops Copaiba Oleoresin, 4 drops Xanthoxylum and 2 drops Green Vetiver, about a 1% blend. Drop sizes vary with thicker oils and from bottle to bottle, so measure larger batches in milliliters, and make small batches because unscented lotion has a shorter shelf life than jojoba.
Tea Time: Cardamom - Warm Spice, Smarter Dilution
Épisode 34
jeudi 8 octobre 2026 • Durée 01:08:36
Recorded live with our community in the Natural Living Club.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class (free jars for watching live, half-price Cardamom, a Chai Spice hydrolat deal, gift cards) expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Cardamom is the queen of spices, and Jenny makes the case for it on your workbench. The oil comes from the seeds of a ginger-family plant whose flowers and green pods grow along the ground in the shade, each pod picked by hand a few days before it ripens. Batch CAM-116, steam distilled in India from unsprayed seed, carries two chemical families in close proportion: α-terpinyl acetate, an ester, at 38.56%, and 1,8-cineole, an oxide, at 29.79%, which helps explain why cardamom can feel both soothing and clearing. Jenny makes a Cardamom, Grapefruit and Copaiba Balsam diffuser blend, then tries a no-melt Chai Cafe Whipped Body Butter live for the first time. She closes with Thymely Lite and Thymely Premium side by side, and news about the hydrosols at Aromatics International: clear bottles, and a new word, hydrolat.
In this episode:
Cardamom belongs to the ginger family and grows 6 to 15 feet tall from a rhizome in the warm, wet, shaded forests of southern India. Its flowers and green pods grow along the ground from the base of the plant, and each pod is picked by hand a few days before it ripens, because a ripe pod splits open and releases its 15 to 20 seeds. The oil is steam distilled from those seeds.
Most oils lead with one chemical family. Cardamom carries two in close proportion: in batch CAM-116, α-terpinyl acetate, an ester in the same family as linalyl acetate, is 38.56%, and 1,8-cineole, an oxide, is 29.79%. That pairing helps explain why cardamom can feel softening and quieting while it also feels fresh, bright and opening.
Keep track of your batch number. CAM-116 was steam distilled in India in October 2025 from unsprayed seed, with 29 components and a 5-year shelf life, and a 2021 batch from Guatemala reads differently. The farm and the growing season move the numbers.
Cardamom safety: fresh oil matters, because an oxidized oil that contains cineole can irritate. If you are blending for someone whose breathing is sensitive, have them smell the cap first and check for any tightness in the chest. Keep it away from the face of children under 10, leave it out of their steam blends, and use caution from ages 5 to 10 because of the 1,8-cineole.
Tea Time: Carrot Seed, Two Ways - One Plant, Two Reports
Épisode 33
mercredi 30 septembre 2026 • Durée 01:04:05
Recorded live with our community in the Natural Living Club.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class (free dropper caps, a free Carrot Seed or Rosehip gift, gift cards) expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Carrot seed on a label can mean two different oils. Karen hosts this week and puts them side by side: the garden carrot, Daucus carota subspecies sativus, whose seed is harvested in the plant's second year, and the wild carrot, Queen Anne's lace, subspecies carota. It is one Latin name with two very different reports: carotol leads the garden carrot at 71%, while geranyl acetate, an ester, leads the wild carrot at 33%. Karen smells the two side by side, sorts carrot seed oil from carrot seed carrier oil and macerated carrot root oil, and makes a Roadside Calm diffuser blend, a one-drop Carrot Face Moisturizer and an Ember Glow Grounding Balm. She closes with a tour of Thymely Lite and Thymely Premium.
In this episode:
Carrot seed on the bottle is only the beginning of the story. The garden carrot is Daucus carota subspecies sativus; the wild carrot, Queen Anne's lace, is Daucus carota subspecies carota. Many sellers print only Daucus carota, so read the GC/MS report, or smell them.
The garden carrot smells strongly of carrot: warm, earthy, softly sweet and lingering, and carotol is over 70% of it. The wild carrot is lighter, fruitier, gently floral and green, and geranyl acetate, an ester, leads it at 33%.
Three different things come from the carrot: the steam-distilled essential oil from the seed, pale yellow and very aromatic; a cold-pressed carrier oil from the seed; and a macerated oil from the root, which is the orange one. For the root oil at home, dry shredded carrots, grind them to a powder and let them infuse in olive oil for a couple of days.
Carrot seed is not a sunscreen: the 38 SPF you may read online has not been proven. It is usually avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and when in doubt, choose an alternative.
Carrot Face Moisturizer: fill a 1 fluid ounce bottle with argan and rosehip seed oil, about half and half, then add 1 drop of the garden carrot seed. Jojoba works in place of either carrier. Label it with what is in it and when you made it.
Tea Time: Nutmeg - Karen's Thrive Live, Replayed
Épisode 32
jeudi 24 septembre 2026 • Durée 44:51
Recorded live with our Thrive community in November 2023, and replayed in full as week three of Tea Time: The Oil Less Traveled.
📝 Heads-up: this is a replay of a members' class. Upcoming classes, workshops and member perks mentioned on air are from the original broadcast. It's for education only, not medical advice, so please talk with your doctor before using essential oils alongside any medical condition or medication.
Karen and Jenny make a warming diffuser blend with Nutmeg, Cardamom and Peppermint, open the fruit to show where nutmeg and mace each come from, remember a nutmeg distillery tour in Grenada, and read the GC/MS report for the one line, myristicin, that decides how much nutmeg a blend can carry. Then comes known safety, the drop math for a 0.5% dilution, and a topical blend in jojoba with Nutmeg, Ghandi Root and Jasmine, made at the table.
In this episode:
Nutmeg and mace come from the same fruit: nutmeg oil is distilled from the seed, and mace from the red-orange covering wrapped around it.
The ethers, myristicin above all, set how much nutmeg a blend can carry, and the amount varies a lot by country; Grenada is known for a low myristicin content. Read your batch's GC/MS report before you blend.
A 0.5% dilution works out to 3 to 4 drops of nutmeg in an ounce of carrier. Nutmeg is strong, and even 1 drop tucked into a blend is noticeable.
With pets, watch for sneezing: if a cat starts to sneeze, turn the diffuser off.
Nutmeg keeps about 4 to 5 years, the shortest shelf life in the topical blend, and a blend keeps changing over its first 24 hours.
Chapters: [0:00] Welcome, and what this class covers [1:18] The diffuser blend: Nutmeg, Cardamom and Peppermint [4:34] Bergamot Mint as a swap in the blend [5:50] Meet the plant: the fruit, the seed and the mace [6:59] Where nutmeg grows, and a distillery tour in Grenada [8:38] The chemical families: monoterpenes and ethers [9:19] Mace oil and nutmeg oil [10:26] Reading the GC/MS report [12:12] Myristicin, and why it sets how much nutmeg a blend can carry[13:24] Nutmeg in the kitchen[15:46] What the research looks at in nutmeg's components[19:17] Safrole, sassafras and the original root beer[22:50] The emotional side: inner strength, support and self-worth[29:45] Nutmeg in Chinese medicine[31:30] Known safety, and nutmeg around pets[32:37] Methyl eugenol, and working out a safe dilution[34:21] The drop math: 0.5% is 3 to 4 drops per ounce[36:29] Making the topical blend in jojoba[38:23] Shelf life, and finishing the blend with Ghandi Root and Jasmine[40:35] How a blend changes over its first 24 hours[41:09] Questions from the class
Tea Time: Xanthoxylum - The Nepal Berry With More Linalool Than Lavender
Épisode 31
mercredi 16 septembre 2026 • Durée 01:11:28
Recorded live with our community in September 2026, week two of Tea Time: The Oil Less Traveled, a year of Wednesdays spent with one lesser-known oil at a time.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class, a free 5 ml of Xanthoxylum, free amber bottles, a half-price anxiety workshop, gift cards, expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Xanthoxylum is distilled from the sun-dried red fruit of a thorny tree in the citrus family, wildcrafted in the Himalayan foothills of Nepal. This batch reads 47% linalool, more than lavender, with almost 26% d-limonene beside it. Jenny's shorthand is lavender meeting a citrus in one bottle. She opens her new Blend Planner, reads the GC/MS report line by line, runs a Mountain Calm diffuser blend, and pours a Quiet Evening Massage Oil on air, then closes with a tour of the new Thymely Lite and Thymely Premium.
In this episode:
This batch of Xanthoxylum, batch 109, distilled in 2024, carries 47% linalool, more than lavender, almost 26% d-limonene, and about 12% methyl cinnamate, the warm component that gives it a faint cinnamon edge. Jenny's shorthand is that it is what you would get if lavender met a citrus.
Xanthoxylum keeps for 5 years, and an oil gets richer and more nuanced across its shelf life, robust until the moment it is not. A 2024 batch still has years in it.
The Blend Planner: name the intention and who you are blending for, choose 2 to 4 oils, confirm them with the chemistry, then let one anchor oil carry the main purpose while the supporting oils reinforce it. Science, then art, then heart.
When Jenny reaches for it: rest during cold and flu season, anxious days (Karen keeps it in a panic inhaler and an evening lotion), and a muscle and belly comfort blend, because it is antispasmodic. Grounding and uplifting in the same bottle.
Mountain Calm for the diffuser: 3 drops of Xanthoxylum, 2 of Sugandha Kokila, 1 of Blue Tansy. To Jenny the oil smells sweet and uplifting with a slight peppery note; chat heard licorice, geranium, and a sour grassy edge.'
Tea Time: Blue Tansy - The Oil That Turns Blue in the Still
Épisode 30
jeudi 10 septembre 2026 • Durée 01:06:32
Recorded live with our community in September 2026 — the first episode of Tea Time: The Oil Less Traveled, a year of Wednesdays spent with one lesser-known oil at a time.
📝 Heads-up: the perks in this class — free jars, half-price Blue Tansy, gift cards — expired with the broadcast. Every Tea Time has its own deal on that week's oil, so join us live in the Natural Living Club: https://www.skool.com/natural-living
Blue Tansy is distilled from a bright yellow flower and comes out of the still deep blue. Jenny opens the series with the chemistry behind that, reads this batch's GC/MS report line by line, and whips a Blue Tansy body butter on air, frozen bowl and all.
In this episode:
The flower is yellow. The oil is blue because matricine turns into chamazulene in the heat of steam distillation, and German chamomile and yarrow get their blue the same way.
On this batch's GC/MS report camphor and sabinene each sit just under 16%, beta-pinene at 7%, and chamazulene at only 5.74%. A small percentage can still define an oil.
Blue Tansy has a strong middle note, a little apple and a little dill. Lavender softens it, Frankincense Sacra gives it a resinous base, sweet orange or yuzu brightens it. It tints a butter or lotion a soft blue but does not tint your skin
Reach for it on hot, itchy, irritated skin, in massage oil for muscles and joints, and where things are congested. Pairing it with German chamomile puts two blue oils to work on the same deep ache.
The whipped body butter: 56 grams of shea butter, 28 grams of mango butter, 1 fluid ounce of jojoba, then 6 drops of Blue Tansy, 18 of lavender, 10 of Frankincense Sacra and 6 of sweet orange. Ten minutes in a frozen bowl was enough to whip it.
Sweet orange is never phototoxic, and neither is yuzu. Grapefruit takes 25 drops in 1 ounce to become phototoxic, bergamot only 3, so check the guideline before you swap a citrus.
Chapters: [0:00] Welcome to Tea Time, and the year ahead [2:18] The gift for watching live, and the jar the recipe goes in [4:15] Inside the Club classroom: building out the Tea Time course[6:57] The recipe PDF, the data sheet and the workbook[10:18] The workshop opens: a yellow flower from Morocco[12:04] "The road not taken", and the working lineup for the year[14:00] Bright Confidence diffuser blend: yuzu, lavender-infused frankincense, Blue Tansy[17:10] Blue on the orifice reducer: matricine becomes chamazulene[19:53] How the weekly gift and the half-price oil work[21:02] Melting the butters: 56 grams of shea, 28 of mango[25:34] The heart, the art and the science of an oil[28:15] Reading the GC/MS report: camphor, sabinene, beta-pinene and 5.74% chamazulene[30:06] Yellow flower, blue oil: the distillation chemistry, and the other two blue oils[31:21] Blending with Blue Tansy: apple, dill, and what to tuck it in with[32:56] When Jenny reaches for Blue Tansy, and does the blue stain?[35:42] Enrollment week: the Blenders Guild and the 12-month study group[38:58] Jojoba goes in, Larry drops by, and the frozen-bowl trick[41:16] Claiming the gift and the half-price Blue Tansy, step by step[46:00] Dropping in the oils, and the phototoxic line for citrus[48:11] Into the frozen bowl, then questions from the chat[50:17] More body butter recipes, the app, and asking Thymely[53:09] The Club classroom, a drop on white, and leaderboard thank-yous[56:36] Whipping the butter: purple foam to peaks[1:00:50] Over-whipped? Add jojoba back[1:02:03] On the skin, and counter or fridge?[1:04:12] Ten minutes in the freezer, the homework thread, and goodbye
Simple Natural Skincare: Clay Masks, Hydrosol Mists & Salt Scrubs
Épisode 29
mercredi 2 septembre 2026 • Durée 01:13:21
From our live class archives — recorded live with our community in March 2026, as Week 2 of our Natural Living Makeover. That six-week pop-up group has since closed, and all of its content now lives inside the Natural Living Club.
Heads-up: this class was packed with live-only perks. All of them have expired with the original broadcast. For current deals, browse our Sale Bin: https://www.aromatics.com/collections/on-sale
In this episode, Jenny picks up where our Essential Oil Foundations class left off and puts it to work on skin. Natural skincare is where most people start — but it only works once you understand formulation and dilution. We get into what actually makes a formula function, then blend two recipes start to finish on camera.
In this episode:
Every carrier oil behaves differently — texture, absorption rate and fatty acid profile all change how a blend lands on skin.
Hydrosols carry the plant's water-soluble chemistry, not concentrated essential oil — which is why they're gentle enough for a baby's diaper rash or an open scrape when an essential oil isn't.
The shelf-life rule: the shortest-lived ingredient sets the shelf life for the whole blend. One citrus oil drops a 20-year jojoba blend to 1–2 years.
Preservatives matter for water-based products, not oil-based ones — and small fresh batches usually mean you don't need one at all.
Extraction method decides it: steam-distilled Lime is not phototoxic, cold-pressed Lime is.
Estimating is fine for a clay mask or a salt scrub — not for a therapeutic blend.
Two recipes blended live: a French green clay Glow & Ground Mask, and a Citrus Forest Polish shower scrub.
Chapters: [0:00] Welcome — Week 2 of the Natural Living Makeover [1:03] Leaderboard Thank-You Gifts and a Community Tour [6:56] The Natural Living Club Support Circle [12:15] Quiz Round — Five True or False Questions [12:49] Every Carrier Oil Behaves Differently [15:00] Fatty Acid Profiles: Jojoba, Argan and Apricot Seed[17:42] Do Hydrosols Hydrate Because They're Full of Essential Oil?[19:18] A Word on Essential Oils in Food[22:00] What a Hydrosol Actually Is[23:02] Why Hydrosols Are Gentle Where Essential Oils Aren't[25:44] When Preservatives Genuinely Matter[27:54] The Shelf-Life Rule for Oil-Based Blends[28:57] Water-Based Products, Mold and Natural Preservatives[33:16] Linalool and Skin-Soothing Properties[37:04] Substituting an Oil by Chemical Family[41:21] Cooling, Warming and Hot Oils[45:42] The Five Week 2 Skincare Recipes[49:59] Blending Live: Glow & Ground Clay Mask[56:25] Why a Clay Mask Tightens as It Dries[57:29] Blending Live: Citrus Forest Polish Shower Scrub[1:04:58] Wipe Down the Shower — a Real Safety Note[1:09:48] Closing, Winners and Next Steps
One salt blend, three ways: half a cup of Pink Himalayan Small Grain Salt, 2 tablespoons of jojoba, 3 drops Green Vetiver, 7 drops Red Mandarin and 2 drops Cardamom, as a foot scrub, a shower scrub or a bath soak. Mix half small grain and half fine grain for a gentler scrub, and wipe out the shower floor when you are done.
Blend for the person in front of you. Some love vetiver on its own; others tuck it in so it sits behind the oils around it. Red or Green Mandarin bring a lighter citrus note, Lavender and Rose pair with it, Cedarwood and Patchouli add earthier, deeper notes, and Devin likes it with Cedarwood and Sandalwood as a smoky cologne.
Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to Tea Time: Green Vetiver, a salt scrub, and hellos from Missoula to Wisconsin 0:48 Robot voice fixed: what everyone is sipping, and where you are tuning in from 1:51 Getting to know Green Vetiver: the roots, the copper still, and a Rachel Carson quote 2:25 A 1, 2 or 3: how well do you know Green Vetiver? 4:00 The plan: two vetivers compared, two components on the report, a thick oil, one salt blend three ways 4:32 Your Green Vetiver course in the Natural Living Club: data sheet, workbook, slides and recipes 6:12 A snapshot of Green Vetiver: grounding, cooling, and known in Sri Lanka as the oil of tranquility 8:24 For a scattered or uprooted day: a base note that helps you feel held 8:57 New this week: hold a question for Thymely Premium, our research assistant 10:44 Quiet Ground diffuser blend: 3 Grapefruit, 2 Cardamom, 1 Green Vetiver 12:29 A thick, resinous oil: pop the orifice reducer and reach for a pipette 14:13 A hard season for our family, and the blends that steady it 15:28 Aunt Ora's advice: visit your grief, but don't live there 16:36 Copaiba homework winners: Diane, Margaret and Lise 17:45 Part 1, the heart: who would you blend Green Vetiver for today? 19:24 Reading the chat: who you are blending for 20:26 Lesser known than Vetiver, and why this class moved to today 21:49 Rooh Khus, the soul of vetiver: wildcrafted roots in India and Musa's copper stills 22:26 Green from the copper, wild from the grass: how Green Vetiver differs from Vetiver 23:33 Musa's stills, and roots deep enough to hold a hillside 24:07 Vetiver around the world: 500 plants on a Costa Rica slope, cooling mats in India, the oil of tranquility 25:24 Smell along: describe your Green Vetiver, and your Vetiver, in the chat 26:28 The chat's words: smoky, sweet earth, fresh outdoors, a little like frankincense 27:00 Love the aroma or tuck it in? Jenny's own journey with vetiver 28:46 Blending for the person in front of you 29:19 Devin's pick: vetiver with Cedarwood and Sandalwood, a smoky cologne 29:53 Part 2, the science: how it pours and how it lingers, a perfumer's fixative for centuries 31:00 Batch VTG-101: distilled February 15, 2025, with an 8-year shelf life 31:31 Khusimol at 13%, nootkatone, and the components still filed as other 32:08 Two vetivers on the report: VTG-101 deep green, Vetiver batch VET-115 brown 32:40 Khusimol 13% and 12%, nootkatone 6.91% and 0.19%: not the exact same oil 33:10 Using vetiver thoughtfully: a cooling oil in Ayurveda for centuries 33:42 Dilution for everyday blends: 1 to 2%, up to 3% if needed 34:13 Part 3, the art: partners from Red and Green Mandarin to Lavender, Rose, Cedarwood and Patchouli 34:45 Warm a thick oil in your hands, and the pipette that measures it 35:22 One recipe, three ways: foot scrub, shower scrub or bath soak 35:55 The blend: jojoba, 3 Green Vetiver, 7 Red Mandarin, 2 Cardamom, a callback to the Cardamom class 37:15 The class-day gift is the scrub's base: 8 oz Pink Himalayan Small Grain Salt 37:50 Half small grain, half fine grain for a gentler scrub 38:33 This week's offers at a glance, then setting up to blend 39:11 Half a cup of salt (the slide missed it) and 2 tablespoons of jojoba 40:13 Like making a salad: find your own salt-to-carrier texture 41:26 Pair the oil with the right modality: scrub, shower or soak 42:03 3 drops of Green Vetiver, 7 Red Mandarin, 2 Cardamom, then mix 43:05 Blending with a colored oil, and salt or sugar variations 43:39 Into a plastic jar for the shower, and the Looney Tunes warning: wipe the floor 44:44 Jenny's take-home tweak: fine grain salt, more jojoba, a few more drops 45:18 The spoon shot: a hint of green, clipped for Instagram 45:53 A heads-up on the checkout gift box, and a shopping walkthrough while Megan fixes it 48:00 Rooh Khus perfume oil: 3 Green Vetiver, 3 Red Mandarin, 2 Rose Absolute in 10 ml jojoba, plus an evening diffuser blend 49:12 This week's offers, and Karen's Heart Centered Self-Care Rituals workshop 49:47 Claiming the salt and the Vetiver in the checkout box 50:52 Thank you to the 7-day leaderboard, led by Natasha 51:27 Next week: a whole hour on Grapefruit and a sugar scrub, Wednesday, October 28 52:08 More vetiver in The Thriving Aromatherapist: Karen's February 2025 Oil of the Month 53:11 Thymely Premium members get Thrive too; now send in your questions 54:15 Inside Thymely Premium: the pantry, and blending with the 10 oils you have 54:48 A listener's question goes to Thymely Premium, live 56:23 Reading the answer: calming, grounding and restoring blends, and a reminder to talk to your healthcare practitioner 57:30 Thymely's suggeste...
Blend for the person. If someone you blend for does not enjoy the aroma of Copaiba, Jenny suggests reaching for another oil rich in β-caryophyllene, and names Black Pepper, Hops, Juniper Berry and Lavender as substitutions to consider.
Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to Tea Time: open your Copaiba Balsam and start smelling it 0:56 Hello from everyone tuning in 1:20 Over 400 Cardamom homework comments, and why Copaiba is not an essential oil 1:52 Your Tea Time course in the Natural Living Club: data sheet, recipe PDF and workbook 4:13 The gifts for this week's live class 6:53 John Muir, and a 1, 2 or 3: how well do you know Copaiba? 7:24 What everyone is sipping 9:34 The plan: from the tree to the blending table 10:40 Diffuser blend: 4 drops Copaiba with Grapefruit and Xanthoxylum 11:17 An oleoresin, so it pours slowly: a word on viscosity 12:56 Gentle aromas in a bold blend: Copaiba as the background player 14:04 A different make every week: butters, lotions, perfumes and salt scrubs 14:44 Cardamom homework winners, and how to join this week's post 15:53 Part 1, the heart: who would you make a lotion blend for? 16:27 Meet the copaiba tree: wild in Brazil, the pea family, tapped like maple syrup 18:11 Copaiba, balsam, balsam copaiba: why the Latin name on your label matters 18:44 Oleoresin or distilled essential oil: two products from one tree 19:21 Why we carry the oleoresin 21:00 Part 2, the science: why every batch report is different 21:31 What distillation takes out, and what the oleoresin keeps 22:06 Batch COP-111: 41.7% β-caryophyllene, up there with Black Pepper 22:46 An 8-year shelf life 23:17 Sesquiterpenes, and why the aroma lasts 23:50 Where essential oil research is headed 24:25 Part 3, the art: Copaiba with Xanthoxylum and Green Vetiver 24:57 After the Day Lotion: 2 oz unscented lotion, 6 Copaiba, 4 Xanthoxylum, 2 Green Vetiver 25:58 Drops or milliliters: how to measure a bigger batch 26:30 Making it: lotion into a 2 oz glass jar 27:02 Unscented lotion has a shorter shelf life than jojoba, so make small batches 27:36 Six slow drops of Copaiba, on plant time 29:14 Xanthoxylum, then Green Vetiver 30:18 Stirring it in: just a hint of green 31:24 On the skin: subtle and thoughtful 31:58 Label the jar, and who to give it to 33:01 Is there an oil you don't love? Jenny on Helichrysum 34:05 Devin, Nutmeg, and four hours of pouring 34:37 Confession time: the oils the chat tucks into a blend 36:42 Blending for the person: another β-caryophyllene oil when the aroma doesn't suit 38:52 Kim says Palo Santo smells like new Barbie dolls 39:24 Copaiba on its own: 2 drops in a 10 ml jojoba roll-on 40:35 A walk through the Copaiba data sheet 42:15 A middle to base note: soft, sweet, resinous warmth that arrives and stays 42:51 More in the Club classroom, from Aromatherapy 101 to the chemistry series 43:24 Substitutions by chemistry: Black Pepper, Hops, Juniper Berry, Lavender 44:37 This week's offers 46:26 Gift cards for the Club's 7-day leaderboard 46:57 Next week: Green Vetiver and salt scrubs 47:27 Claiming the gifts at checkout, and what changes next week 49:11 Questions? team@aromatics.com and team@aromahead.com 50:55 Thank you, and see you next week
Diffuser blend: 3 drops of Cardamom, 2 of Grapefruit and 1 of Copaiba Balsam. Copaiba is thick, so stir the drops together on top of the water before you turn the diffuser on, or mix all three in a small bowl first.
Chai Cafe Whipped Body Butter, one 4-ounce batch, no melting: let 3 ounces of shea butter soften at room temperature (or warm the bowl in your hands), mash it with a fork, add 2 tablespoons of jojoba and whip with a hand mixer for 2 to 3 minutes. Add 20 drops of Cardamom first and mix, then 16 of Sweet Orange, 8 of Ginger and 4 of Black Pepper. Jenny used vanilla-infused jojoba, and a little more jojoba softens a butter that is whipped too stiff. Whipping nearly doubles the volume, so use an 8-ounce jar or two 4-ounce jars.
The hydrosols at Aromatics International are moving from amber to clear bottles, which makes a bloom easier to spot, and you will hear hydrosol and hydrolat used interchangeably; hydrolat is the more precise word for the water from a distillation. For a while an order may arrive in either bottle.
Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to Tea Time: uncap your Cardamom and name its aroma in one word 1:48 Today: a diffuser blend, a whipped body butter and news about hydrosols 3:25 What everyone is sipping 5:33 Relaxes us, yet firms our resolve: Gabriel Mojay on cardamom 7:08 The plan: where the pods grow, two names on a batch report, and three questions 8:23 Diffuser blend: 3 drops Cardamom, 2 Grapefruit, 1 Copaiba Balsam 8:55 Two ways to get a thick oil like Copaiba into a diffuser 12:19 Carrot Seed homework winners 14:31 Where the homework and the Cardamom page live in the Club 16:32 The heart of cardamom: start every blend with your intention 18:41 Cardamom personified: a neighborhood cafe in the desert 19:12 Karen's cardamom waffles, and a month of cardamom in The Thriving Aromatherapist 19:47 The plant: ginger family, 6 to 15 feet tall, pods along the ground 20:30 Hand-picked pods, and seed from India and Guatemala 21:01 The queen of spices: a Sumerian tablet, kyphi at Edfu and Arabian coffee 22:38 The earth element, sattva and prana, and is it warming or cooling? 24:24 The science: α-terpinyl acetate at 38.56%, an ester 26:20 1,8-cineole at 29.79%, an oxide: two families in one oil 27:58 Batch CAM-116: India, unsprayed seed, 29 components 28:33 Why batch numbers matter: India 2025 next to Guatemala 2021 29:07 Tracking your batches in the Thymely Premium pantry 31:25 Cardamom safety: fresh oil, a smell test first, and care with children 33:42 Meet Thymely: what kinds of cardamom oil are there? 35:23 True green cardamom, and why black and false cardamom are not aromatherapy oils 35:55 The pantry: your whole shelf in one place, and blends from what you have 37:33 That rumble is the parking lot being repaved 38:11 Thymely Lite or Thymely Premium: the same question, side by side 40:18 Chai Cafe Whipped Body Butter: shea, jojoba and four spice oils 41:24 A confession: the no-melt method, tried live for the first time 42:25 Soften, mash, whip: the method 43:31 The gift for watching live, and half-price Cardamom in any size 45:06 Chai Spice Hydrosol, and claiming both at checkout 49:59 Plot twist: vanilla-infused jojoba 52:45 Whipping: shea that starts solid needs less time 53:31 Whipped too stiff? A little more jojoba softens it 54:40 The drops go in: 20 Cardamom, 16 Sweet Orange, 8 Ginger, 4 Black Pepper 57:33 It nearly doubles: why a 4-ounce batch wants an 8-ounce jar 58:40 A holiday gift idea, and the texture on a spoon 1:01:25 Melting or no melting: about two thirds of the time saved 1:02:28 The 7-day leaderboard and its $25 gift cards 1:03:29 Next week: Copaiba, tapped from the trunk of the tree 1:04:08 News: the hydrosols at Aromatics International move to clear bottles 1:05:51 Hydrosol or hydrolat: why the word is changing 1:07:05 This week's homework: make a blend with Cardamom, and signing off
Ember Glow Grounding Balm, 1 ounce: melt 3 grams of beeswax, add apricot kernel oil, then 5 drops each of Wild Carrot, Cedarwood Atlas and Red Mandarin. Cedarwood Deodar can stand in for Atlas, and a vanilla jojoba changes the aroma of the whole balm.
Both oils are strong, so 1 drop goes a long way (maybe 2 of the wild carrot). The chemistry sets the shelf life too: about 8 years for the garden carrot, about 4 for the wild carrot.
Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to Tea Time: Karen hosts while Jenny travels 0:33 What everyone is sipping 2:15 Inside the Club classroom: the Carrot Seed page, the recipes and Jenny's workbook 3:21 Roadside Calm diffuser blend: 3 drops Wild Carrot, 2 Xanthoxylum, 1 Vetiver Green 8:47 The plan: two carrot seeds, two GC/MS reports, two makes 9:52 The garden carrot and Queen Anne's lace: one Latin name, two subspecies 11:34 From seed to oil: two years in the ground, and the flower head that curls into a nest 12:38 Carrot seed oil, carrot seed carrier oil and macerated carrot root oil 13:47 Make your own macerated carrot oil at home 18:08 Smelling them side by side: warm and earthy, or light, fruity and green 19:12 The garden carrot's GC/MS report: carotol at over 70% 21:31 The wild carrot's report: geranyl acetate at 33%, an ester 22:32 Side by side: grounding and lingering, or lifting and bright 25:16 One drop is enough, and a shelf life of about 8 years or about 4 26:32 Is carrot seed a sunscreen? And pregnancy and breastfeeding 28:05 Carrot Face Moisturizer: argan, rosehip seed and 1 drop of Carrot Seed 30:45 Ember Glow Grounding Balm: 3 grams of beeswax on the tea warmer 33:01 Apricot kernel oil, Wild Carrot, Cedarwood Atlas and Red Mandarin, and the swaps 36:46 From the chat: Carrot Seed hydrosol, and where the recipes live in the Club 38:24 Spritz a hydrosol first, and carrier oil, essential oil and hydrosol explained 38:56 The drops go in: 5 Wild Carrot, 5 Cedarwood Atlas, 5 Red Mandarin 40:45 What to take home: two very different oils, so read the whole Latin name 42:21 Karen's deep dive, and a Thrive Live that goes further with Carrot Seed 43:24 Meet Thymely, the aromatherapy research assistant: Thymely Lite and Thymely Premium 46:17 This week's gift with a $40 order, and the gift for watching live 50:14 The Skool leaderboard and its $25 gift cards 51:19 Xanthoxylum homework winners, and a diffuser blend with a hint of warm peach 55:17 Inside Thymely Premium: the pantry, and asking about the Roadside Calm blend 59:42 askthymely.com, the two plans, and the tool Jaren built 1:01:34 From the chat: what Thymely Lite can answer 1:02:04 Signing off, and the finished Ember Glow balm
Quiet Evening Massage Oil, about 2%: 2 ounces of apricot kernel oil and 2 of jojoba, then 18 drops of Xanthoxylum, 12 of lavender, 6 of Frankincense Sacra and 4 of Blue Tansy. Oil into oil stays blended; only a water base like aloe or a hydrosol needs something to bind them. Divide everything by 4 for a 1-ounce bottle.
In the bottle the blend reads a little like dill; on the skin it turns sweet, because skin changes an aroma and it lands a little differently on everyone.
Chapters: [0:00] Welcome to Tea Time, and a new way to say Xanthoxylum [2:43] Inside the Club classroom: the Xanthoxylum page, the data sheet, recipes and workbook [4:16] The Blend Planner: the intention, who you are blending for, and the anchor oil [7:30] Pairing the planner with Thymely Premium, and the Blenders Guild [9:51] Back to the slides: a berry oil from Nepal, and what everyone is sipping [12:05] The Blue Tansy homework thread, and a 5 ml Xanthoxylum with any $40 order [15:03] Members' Blue Tansy blends, and the body butter that melted in the car [17:28] Why meet Xanthoxylum: the Himalayan foothills, the floods, and the distillers [19:11] A 5-year shelf life, more linalool than lavender, and three recipes to start with [22:55] Mountain Calm diffuser blend: 3 drops Xanthoxylum, 2 Sugandha Kokila, 1 Blue Tansy [25:48] Chat describes the aroma: sweet, peppery, licorice, geranium, a sour grassy note [28:00] The plant: red sun-dried fruit, timur in the kitchen, and sustainable wildcrafting [30:06] Reading the GC/MS report: batch 109, 47% linalool, almost 26% d-limonene [34:01] Science, then art, then heart: what each component brings, and letting the person smell along [38:14] Karen's Xanthoxylum inhaler and evening lotion, and her 90-minute workshop [39:35] Time to blend: the live gift, a 4-pack of 4-ounce amber bottles [41:16] Apricot kernel oil: the monks' orchards, and the distiller who chooses Aromatics every year [43:57] Half jojoba, half apricot kernel, and a sourcing trip to Thailand in November [45:37] The oils go in: 18 Xanthoxylum, 12 lavender, 6 Frankincense Sacra, 4 Blue Tansy [47:54] A blue drop suspended in the carrier, and why oil in oil stays blended [48:58] Dill in the bottle, sweet on the skin, and scaling the recipe to 1 ounce [51:21] The gift for watching live, the $40 Xanthoxylum, and the Tea Time Kit [54:13] The workshop closes; a tour of the new Thymely Lite and Thymely Premium [1:00:01] Out of beta: Thymely Lite, and the perks for app and Club members [1:03:01] Chat says the bottles will not add, so Jenny walks the checkout live [1:04:46] Next week: the Nutmeg replay while the team is at the AIA conference [1:05:53] Leaderboard prizes, two things called Thymely Lite, and a grace period [1:09:32] The Blenders Guild kicks off October 1, and goodbye
