Heather Scent Aromatherapy: Storing Essential Oils

{May/10 - An update on my essential oil storage situation will be coming soon. I’ve long since outgrown this leather box.}

I probably own about 50 different types of essential oil. They are stored in a beautiful, velour-lined, leather-wrapped box. It is the perfect height to accommodate amber glass bottles, from the tiny 5mL size, up to the 30mL size. (I keep my extra large bottles in another location, as those are the ones I use for making products, not for personal blending.) My EO box also blocks out all light and keeps the bottles from being exposed to the air, just in case I ever forget to tighten a cap (as if I would ever be so careless!).

As you can see in the photo below, I put little labels on the top of each lid so I can easily identify which oil it is. I try to keep them in alphabetical order, but sometimes it’s hard to put them all back in the correct spot, especially if I’m removing several bottles at once. I also use little coloured dot stickers to signify whether the oil is a top, middle or base note. Green for top, yellow for middle and red for base. The scent that wafts out whenever I open this box is amazing – all the different oils combined. It’s indescribable. I keep a small stack of business cards with my oils, so the cardstock becomes infused with the scent of all the oils. That’s my pendulum in the little black velour bag; I use it for reading chakras.

These are the basics must-dos for storing your EOs:

1. Keep them in the dark. They must be stored in a box (with a tight-fitting lid) made from an opaque material (NOT a Rubbermaid container!) And although the bottles can be quite pretty to look at, leaving them out on a shelf for display is the worst way to store your oils.

2. Keep the lids screwed on tightly – always! EOs are very volatile and will evaporate quickly. The less they are exposed to the air, the better.

3. Keep them cool, but NOT in the fridge.

4. Keep them out of the reach of children and pets. The scent of some oils can be very appealing to young children. Although you will probably never own any fatal or dangerous EOs, you still don’t want to take any chances. If necessary, you can keep your oils in a metal lock box, but be mindful that the metal will act as an oven if the box is left in direct light.

You can purchase wooden boxes that have neat little dividers to keep your oils organized, like this one from Quinessence Aromatherapy. The benefit to this type of box is that it will keep all your oils upright and in order. The drawback is that it will only hold 5mL or 10mL bottles. And if you are keeping your oils in alphabetical order, you will have to move them all one by one to a new cubicle whenever you get a new oil. With a non-divided box, you can just shove everyone over to make room for the new guy!

These types of boxes also tend to be more expensive that just a plain wooden box. Perhaps you know someone handy (or you are handy yourself!) who can build a special box for you. Keep your eyes peeled at yard sales – you never know when might come across something unique that you can repurpose for storing EOs.

Look at these beautiful handmade wooden boxes you can find on Etsy. They would work wonderfully as EO storage. I love AllenbriteBath’s shop. I think the Owl is my favourite.