How To Make Homemade Lavender Oil | Recipe

Have you ever wondered if you can make lavender oil at home? This lavender oil recipe is simple and incredibly versatile, so you can use it in a variety of ways including cooking and skincare.

 

 

Lavender Infused Oil vs Lavender Essential Oil

This recipe is for lavender infused oil, which is a gorgeous, scented oil that’s easy to make at home and has a variety of different uses including cooking, skincare, and haircare.

Lavender essential oil is more concentrated and requires specialist distilling equipment to make at home. This won’t be covered in this article.

 

Lavender Oil Ingredients

• Fresh lavender
• A carrier oil of your choice (I recommend coconut, jojoba or extra virgin olive oil)
• A mason jar for infusing
• A muslin cloth for straining
• A bottle or tub of your choice for storage
• Extra: a saucepan and stove for if you choose to use coconut oil as your carrier oil

 

 

Which Carrier Oil Should You Use To Make Lavender Oil?

I recommend using either coconut, jojoba or extra virgin olive oil. All three are edible and are widely used in homemade beauty products, making them versatile options for your lavender oil.

If you have other oils lying around the house then you can absolutely use them to make lavender oil – just make sure they’re suitable for what you intend to use your lavender oil for.

 

Best carrier oil for a body lotion: Coconut oil

Coconut oil is solid at room temperature, making it the perfect carrier oil for a lavender infused body lotion. 

 

Best carrier oil for a face oil: Jojoba oil

Jojoba oil is lightweight and scentless, making it the best carrier oil for a moisturizing face oil.

If you have dry skin then coconut and olive oil are also suitable to use, but you should be careful since these oils are heavier and more likely to clog your pores. 

 

Best carrier oil for cooking and baking: Extra virgin olive oil

Since lavender is edible, lavender infused olive oil is the perfect addition to your bakes and dishes. 

 

Best carrier oils for deep conditioning hair treatments: All three

Coconut, olive and jojoba are all fantastic for your hair and make for great deep conditioning treatments. Apply your lavender infused oil to the ends of your hair a few hours before shampooing and you’ll have silky smooth hair all week.

If you use jojoba oil or olive oil you can also add your homemade lavender oil to a spray bottle and spritz it on your ends each morning for some added shine.

 

 

 

How To Make Lavender Oil – Method 

If you’re using coconut oil as your carrier oil then skip to the next section!

 

Step 1: Crush the lavender

You can use a pestle and mortar or simply tear it up with your hands. The idea here is to increase the surface area of the lavender, giving you the best infusion.

 

Step 2: Fill your mason jar with lavender

Fill your mason jar up with lavender. You want it to be as full as possible, but don’t cram it in since you’ll still need room for the oil.

 

Step 3: Fill your mason jar up with your chosen carrier oil

Fill your mason jar almost to the top with cold jojoba or olive oil. You want to leave a small amount of space so that you can easily stir the oil by shaking the mason jar.

 

Step 4: Store in a warm place for 2-6 weeks

Store your oil in a warm area of the house for 2-6 weeks while it infuses. Make sure to keep an eye on it and shake the jar every so often to ensure the lavender is properly dispersed.

 

Step 5: Strain and store

After 2-6 weeks your lavender infused oil will be ready. Use a muslin cloth to strain it into your chosen storage container. You may need to use a funnel!

 

 

How To Make Lavender Oil at Home Using Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is slightly trickier to infuse since it’s solid at room temperature, but the finished product is well worth the extra steps.

 

Step 1: Melt the coconut oil

Add your coconut oil to a saucepan and heat gently until it melts. It’s important that you don’t overheat the oil, so use a thermometer at all times. Your oil should never reach above 120°F or 50°C.

 

Step 2: Add the lavender to the pan

While your oil is melting, crush the fresh lavender using a pestle and mortar or just by tearing it. Then, once your oil is fully melted, add your crushed lavender to the pan.

 

Step 3: Infuse for 2 – 4 hours

Since you’re working with warm oil, your lavender oil will finish infusing much quicker than if you were using cold oil. Infuse your oil on a low heat for 2-4 hours, making sure to stir occasionally.

 

Step 4: Strain and store

Use a muslin cloth to strain the lavender oil into its container. Since the coconut oil will set once it reaches room temperature, it’s best to store it in a tub rather than a bottle.

 

What’s The Shelf Life of Homemade Lavender Oil?

As with anything homemade, knowing how long your lavender oil will keep for can be a little tricky. To be on the safe side I recommend following the storage directions of your carrier oil and discarding it a few months before its use by date.

 

 

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