5 Amazing Essential Oil Blends for A Positive Experience with Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy Kit

Aromatherapy - Does it Really Have Any Benefits?

Firstly, let's go back to the basics and briefly discuss what aromatherapy is, in a nutshell. 

Aroma-therapy:  where pleasant aromas become therapists. 

Aromatherapy is the therapeutic use of fragrances (that come from plants and essential oils) for their cognitive benefits, to improve mood, or promote psychological and physical well-being.

Does it Really "Work?"

Research actually has suggested that aromatherapy has many beneficial effects. For example, peppermint oil is shown to improve brain and cognitive function and even headaches while lavender is commonly known for its calming and sedative effects.

Back in November, one of my favorite organic skincare companies, Annmarie Gianni, released their line of Pure Essential Oil Blends. So now that I've had the pleasure of sampling all 5 blends over the course of 3 months now, I've decided it was time to discuss aromatherapy and its benefits (as well as how these essential oils worked out for me) here at Healthy, Happy, Whole.

Annmarie Gianni's line of Pure Essential Oil Blends are designed to promote harmony and well-being using pure, high-grade essential oils. 

 The 5 blends are: Love, Passion, Calm, Vibrance, and Grounded. I just want to take a moment now to say how perfect these blends are. Annmarie Gianni really thought of it all when designing an essential oil line for various... ailments? No, that's definitely not the word I'm looking for. Perhaps "needs" is more suitable. Anyways, what I'm trying to say is that it's great they thought to create these various blends that will balance each other out.

Each of the 5 include a combination of essential oils designed to promote a particular environment or energy. The blend called Love, for example, contains essential oils that carry certain aroma-therapeutic benefits, giving it the ability to invoke a loving energy within the space its used.

Close-up of the little oils

Vibrance - This is our first essential oil blend, which we have already launched in full size.

Essential oils: Ruby grapefruit, lemon, lemon verbena, bergamot, lavender, jasmine sambac  absolute, clementine, rose-geranium

Vibrance is our most uplifting blend. The refreshing notes of citrus bring energy and act as natural antidepressants. Classic florals serve to lift your mood while easing tension. We love wearing this blend at parties and social gatherings, and diffusing through our homes in morning.

Passion
"Indulge, electrify, and be sensual"

Essential oils: Sandalwood, vetiver, frankincense, rose moroc absolute, sweet myrrh, amyris, Buddha wood.

This warm and sweet essential oil blend is designed to help you relax and awaken your sensuality. Earth, grounding notes of vetiver and Buddha wood provide a base for the passion-igniting aromas of rose and sandalwood. This is perfect for a romantic evening, whether you dab a bit on your wrists as a perfume, diffuse through your room, or mix with water and spray on your linens.

Love
"Adore, embrace, and be tender"
 Essential oils: Sandalwood, rose moroc absolute, jasmine sambac absolute, frankincense.

A heart-opening blend of natural aphrodisiac oils to inspire you to be your most loving self. Sweet jasmine and classic rose are balanced with sandalwood and frankincense, for a scent that’s nothing short of irresistible. This blend serves you well when you want to exude love, compassion, and acceptance.

Calm
"Relax, meditate, and be peaceful"
 Essential oils: Spruce, frankincense, rosewood, lavender.

Create a sacred space for yourself where you can breathe deeply and release negativity. Spruce oil lends freshness to this blend of florals, tied together with comforting frankincense for a clean and crisp scent. We love using this blend at the end of the day to help wind down.

Grounded
"Secure, strengthen, and be centered"
 Essential oils: Sandalwood, amyris, ​​Peru balsam, ​cedarwood, ​v​etiver, ​a​mber (fossilized), ​c​opaiba balsam, ​g​alangal root, ​​patchouli, ​g​inger root, ​Buddha wood, ​​turmeric root.

Grounded is an incredibly balanced blend that helps bring you to a place of peace and clarity. Wood and earthy base notes with a touch of sweetness give you a beautifully understated, quietly confident scent. This blend is amazing for diffusing through the room before you do yoga, and is a great blend for those who appreciate a subtle and well-rounded scent.

Uses

As is the case with most essential oils, the Pure Essential Oil Blends from Annmarie Gianni can be used in a diffuser to scent the room and even as a body fragrance.

To use on the body, you can mix a drop of oil with your moisturizer or with a carrier oil like olive oil before applying. Same with a perfume -- just add a tiny drop to your perfume and use a dropper to apply. Or simply dab some onto your wrists, neck, etc.

Warning: Don't apply to your face or mix with your facial moisturizer. While many of the essential oils have great benefits for your skin, it could be risky since they're strong. My biggest concern has been with migraines as the smells tend to trigger migraines for me pretty badly, so having it on my face would be disastrous.

Personally, I've enjoyed using these essential oils to incorporate pleasant, fresh, and beneficial scents into my room. I've even put a few drops in a spritz bottle with water and spritzed my bedding several times. I did this hoping it would give promote calmness while in my bed and maybe even better sleep.

Bonus: Pet odors have nothin' on these essential oils! I noticed my bed sheets were smelling particular clean even though my dog had slept on them (and he was due for a bath, if that tells you anything.) It seems these act as a natural deodorizer, which was a totally appreciated bonus.

Warning: Never apply the oils directly onto your pet! There are too many possible health risks as some essential oils are believed to be toxic to certain pets.

I've also placed a few drops of the oils onto a small drawstring satchel bag and hung it up in my closet.

 For a week or two my clothes smelled better, especially the ones that had been hanging up for months and were smelling "stale" and musky.

Another option is to use the oils as "dryer sheets" to lightly scent your clothes and keep the mood with you wherever you go. Drop some oil onto a scrap of fabric that you don't mind if it leaves a stain (it hasn't in my experience so far.) Or apply it to an old sock or wash cloth, then toss the aromatic fabric into the dryer with your clothes. Vibrance and Love are great for this. Calm may be helpful if you're prone to anxiety or have an outing that you know puts you in an anxious state. Can you say public speaking?

As a body fragrance, I have to be careful using these as I said, I am very migraine prone. However, I've been able to add a tee-tiny drop to special areas of my body that are not close to my face with success. I love the way these smell; if only my head would tolerate scents better!

Overall, using these oil blends has been a very beneficial addition to my everyday routine. I love opening the little vial of "Vibrance" when I'm waking up and getting ready or doing late-night work or just feeling extremely fatigued. 

Calm is the oil I prefer when I'm trying to quieten down to meditate or relax from a stressful day before bed. Passion and Love are absolute God-sends since they're so fun and gentle. Anything that's supposed to add more love is a good thing, right? I like using these in a diffuser in the evenings when I'm spending time with my significant other, or just if I'm in a negative mind-space. You can find the sample kit here.



Disclaimer: I am not a specialist, expert, professional or doctor of any kind. Content on this blog is not intended to be taken as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment or advice of any sort. I'm simply sharing information about my own experiences and results from use of a product or activity in hopes of providing useful information to readers, not to be taken as a patient/medical adviser relationship. I am not responsible for what readers choose to do after viewing the content here. Furthermore, I do not hold an "exceptional" or other special relationship with any company mentioned on this site. I'm simply a consumer who worked with the company on a review that is in compliance with FTC's guidelines. That means, everything you read here is my own words, not anything of the company's. I was not provided with monetary compensation for my review. All information posted has been done so with complete honesty. No action should be taken based solely on the content of this publication ( I'm not responsible.) Readers who rely on the information in this blog to replace the advice of an appropriate health care provider assume all risks of such behavior.

Amazingly Beautiful Moisturizer and Revitalizer (Review)

Amazingly Beautiful is a body moisturizer and revitalizer made with 100% pure botanical oils -- from Trusted Health Products -- that provides a super safe, effective way to moisturize skin deep within.

I just received a bottle of 'Amazingly Beautiful' body moisturizer and revitalizer and boy am I in complete bliss. I just took a shower and slathered myself from head to toe in this divine-smelling oil. And then I came straight here to share about it because I couldn't wait to talk about this stuff.

This Amazingly Beautiful moisturizer comes from the same company as the OraMD products that I've rave-reviewed here, and Beautiful AM and Beautiful PM oils that I've also reviewed here at Ribbons and Pearls in the past. 

Those are for your face, and if you haven't adopted the "oil cleansing method" into your skincare routine yet, then I highly suggest you take a few minutes to read up on why everybody and their dogs are replacing their soaps with oil.

The Amazingly Beautiful moisturizer, on the other hand, is for your body, but I couldn't resist and had to try it on the dry areas of my face as well, and I was equally as fond of using it on my face as I was using it on my body.

Benefits:
- Decreases the appearance of spider veins and blemishes
- Smooths appearance of rough and scaly areas
- Reduces appearance of age spots, discoloration, and sun spots
- Firms and tones appearance of skin
- Completely gets rid of dry skin
-Pores are minimized and overall complexion appears improved and smooth

- Leaves behind a subtle, healthy glow and no gross greasy residue
- Fully absorbs into the skin, providing real nourishment and true moisturization

- Contains no dead or processed chemicals. Only healthy, natural botanical oils

Instructions say to lightly and gently spread over skin, avoiding rubbing it in.

I became incredibly fond of this stuff pretty much instantly. From the second I inhaled the squeaky clean and fresh, natural aromas of citrus, I couldn't wait to shower and basically roll myself in it.

Citrus tends to be among my favorites scents for everything from soaps, perfumes and lotions to cleaning products. In fact, my everyday perfume-of-choice that I've stuck with as my "signature perfume" for nearly a decade now has citrus-y notes. Same goes for my all-time-favorite body wash.

The scent of Amazingly Beautiful is refreshing, clean, and pleasantly long-lasting. It's the only scented product I can use that everyone in the house is pleased to smell lingering.

There are so many awesome qualities about this Amazingly Beautiful moisturizer (including some pretty odd ones), so I don't know where to even start, but I'm determined to pack every ounce of information about it in this very post, so just bear with me please.

I've discussed how pleasant the aroma of this stuff is, but an even more important aspect is how it feels on your skin.
 

Oil as Skincare

A lot of folks are funny about using oil on their skin. There's of course the myth that oil on your skin will cause breakouts by clogging pores. You can go ahead and forget about that possibility because it doesn't. Perhaps vegetable oil (that you cook with) would, but not pure oils like this.

Secondly, some people are put off by using oil on their skin because of how oil typically feels -- greasy, uncomfortable, and weird!

If you've ever gotten oil on your hands while cooking or something and tried to wash it off.. It wasn't pleasant, right? I've always had an issue with odd residue being on my skin. I hate the feeling of sticky, or slimy skin. 

Yet I'm a pretty hardcore oil user when it comes to my skin. I lather my face with it, I wash my face with it, I moisturize my entire body from head to toe with it (I even use an oil-based foundation on my face! It's a natural, herbal oil of course.)

You're probably thinking I must have very greasy skin, and run around looking like a total grease ball, right?

 I actually happened to have oily skin on my face in some areas. I'm one of those combination-skin types where the forehead area, nose, and chin are typically a bit oily while the rest is so dry it could crack like porcelain.

And I still use oil all over.

That's because it has so many awesome skin benefits, and it helps balance the crazy combination skin. 

Instead of the oil causing your skin to look oily, it just balances it out.

It's false that using oil on your skin will cause it to be more oily. It will only help balance it out, keeping it from being over-dry or over-oily, and even promote healing of any spots, scars, acne, etc. Don't forget it's probably the best anti-aging remedy out there, too. 

In fact, I once read, years ago that a queen (who I cannot recall, apologies for that) used to bathe in olive oil daily because it was her ultimate "beauty secret."

As the story goes, the queen had the most beautiful, healthy skin thanks to her oil baths.

Amazingly Beautiful Moisturizer and Revitalizer naturally nourishes skin, and almost instantly provided my skin with visible results. You can tell the oils are being truly absorbed by the skin and leaving mine looking better than it has in years.

I normally have extremely dry skin that sometimes even looks like it has cracks throughout it! I have struggled trying to improve my skins appearance for years, but lotions only make it appear smooth and moisturized for a few hours at best.

I've noticed that even after a total 24 hours later, my skin looks fantastic, moisturized, and so healthy. The oil seems to absorb fully, leaving no residue behind and no bizarre layers of residue on my skin. 

My skin doesn't look greasy or oily after the product has absorbed, but only healthy and nice. I'm 100% pleased and thrilled with this.

Ingredients:

Trusted Health Products uses truly pure, healthy, and effective ingredients in every one of their products. You guys may recall me sharing about that in my other reviews. Amazingly Beautiful is no exception -- it reeks of high quality.

The best part is that they don't use fillers or any of the harmful chemicals and other junk that's often in skincare products.

That's something that has irked me for years -- harmful chemicals in my daily beauty/hygiene products. There are a few lotions from the stupidly famous (and even more stupidly over-priced) Bath and Body Works that I absolutely adore, but I hate the feeling I have when I slather it onto my skin because I know that it's 1. not completely safe ingredients and 2. not actually effective at doing anything for my skin aside from providing a sticky moisturized illusion. It doesn't have healing properties, it doesn't truly moisturize skin. It doesn't feel good (it's sticky and not pleasant on) and it does absolutely nothing for your skin. It has no anti-aging properties, no health benefits for skin. 

That has always bugged me! 

If I'm going to take the time to rub something all over my entire body, then it better actually do something good for my skin besides just make it smell pretty. After all, that's what perfume is for and perfume doesn't require all that rubbing. It also doesn't leave my entire body a sticky mess.

There I go again, finding a window to rant. Enough complaining. 

My point is, I prefer using a moisturizer that's going to benefit my skin in the long run (and make all that time spent rubbing it on worth it.) 

The 3 Qualities Every Moisturizer Should Have 

Oh, and the money. It's not worth it to me to purchase a moisturizer if it doesn't actually benefit my skin. I like anti-aging, healing, and moisturizing properties -- 3 things that every "moisturizer" should have.

There are only 6 ingredients in the Amazingly Beautiful moisturizer, and they're all healthy and beneficial, and truly moisturizing: 100% pure botanical oils of orange, lime, lemon, avacado, olive, and almond.

If a moisturizer doesn't have ingredients that have at least the moisturizing and some healthy benefits for my skin in the long run, then I won't waste my money on it.

Uses:

This is a pretty exciting product. While its main use is for your skin, it actually has quite a few other nifty uses as well. 

- A skin moisturizer

-Makeup Remover

- Deodorant! 

You read that correctly. As per the information within the paper insert, this stuff can be an effective deodorant, and it's natural! I've wanted to start using only natural deo for years, and have tried (and reviewed) many natural deos, but haven't ever been able to stick with them as the odor would always come through.

However, the citrus scent in this oil could be a much better alternative to others I've used since it is quite powerful, and could likely work better at keeping odor at bay.

I did use some on my pits after my shower tonight, but since tomorrow is going to be a long day outdoors in the heat, I went ahead and swiped some actual deodorant on too since I don't want to risk the possibility of getting really sweaty and stinking around the people I'll be with tomorrow.

I will, however, apply it alone the next day and report back here how that goes. 

Update:
I liked using this as added protection against odor, especially during these warmer months. I haven't had the opportunity to use it by itself, but I've been swiping some of the oil on my pits before applying deo and it does help keep odor away, even when I spend a day outside in the smothering heat -- no odor at all.

- Fragrance (for your body or as a room fragrance)

When Amazingly Beautiful first arrived to me, I was just about to leave the house, so the first thing I did after smelling of it was dab some onto my neck and wrists because it has such a divine, clean aroma, and works beautifully (or should I say "amazingly beautifully?") as a light body fragrance.

Secondly, after reading the paper insert it came with, I added a few drops to a tiny container and let it sit in my bedroom as a room fragrance! I have to say, it's the best room-fragrance I've ever used, especially since the pure botanical oils are natural and safe to smell (and don't cause me a migraine like most smells), and will freshen the air pretty well. 

A bonus is that the citrus oils are useful at keeping pesky insects away! Sometimes, these are even added to bug-sprays to keep you from being bitten while outdoors. I wipe my arms and legs down with this before going outside and it prevents me from being eaten alive by mosquitos.

 I leave my window open (for my darn pets who can't seem to decide whether they want in or out) so maybe the scent will also help keep away those nasty insects. 

I've read that spiders taste with the hairs on their nasty little legs, and they are supposed to hate citrus. Many people use citrus oil to wipe down their window sill and stuff. I've used it around windows and on the legs of my bed. Yes, I'm extremely paranoid and phobic when it comes to those nasty creatures. I absolutely loathe them with every speck of my being. 

Moving on...

Specs:

As shown in the photo, the oil comes with a spray top so that you can simply spray it on yourself, but I have not yet switched to the spray top since I was so afraid of it getting knocked over and ending up leaking (I have cat. Enough said, huh?) 

However, I do love the ease of being able to just spray it right on! 

The top it comes with is a typical one for oils of this nature -- it has a stopper in it, so that it won't come running out all over the place when you tilt the bottle. 

The largest size bottle comes with 3.4 oz of product (I believe), which is the size I have right now. 
Trusted Health Products carries it in several different sized bottles, including a travel-like size. I like having a variety of options to choose from, but personally, I can already tell that the large size will be necessary for me. 

I say that because I've had the bottle for 3 days and noticed a significant decrease in the amount of product when I went to use it tonight.

It's possible that I'm over-using a little bit since I like to sure that all of my skin is completely covered and it can be hard to tell because this stuff isn't greasy, but somewhat like a dry oil. 

Being that I have quite the severe case of dry skin, especially during the warmer months which we're starting to experience here already, I have to use a lot more than someone who has relatively normal skin.

Plus, I use this from neck down, only skipping the most sensitive body parts. 

P.S.
For a limited time, the manufacturer is willing to offer my readers one free bottle (free aside from shipping and handling). They said they would love to have our readers try out Botanical Splash and agreed to send one bottle free, provided you pay the shipping and handling charge. Click here to get that offer.

If you'd like to visit Trusted Health Products on social media, you can find them on Facebook and here at their website.

Disclaimer: I am not a specialist, expert, professional or doctor of any kind. Content on this blog is not intended to be taken as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment or advice of any sort. I'm simply sharing information about my own experiences and results from use of a product or activity in hopes of providing useful information to readers, not to be taken as a patient/medical adviser relationship. I am not responsible for what readers choose to do after viewing the content here. Furthermore, I do not hold an "exceptional" or other special relationship with any company mentioned on this site. I'm simply a consumer who worked with the company on a review that is in compliance with FTC's guidelines. That means, everything you read here is my own words, not anything of the company's. I was not provided with monetary compensation for my review. All information posted has been done so with complete honesty. No action should be taken based solely on the content of this publication ( I'm not responsible.) Readers who rely on the information in this blog to replace the advice of an appropriate health care provider assume all risks of such behavior.

Stunning Serum from Green Street Lux!

Stunning Serum

• Improves, and can even diminish scars.
• Contains natural ingredients

• Repairs daily damage done to skin by UV rays, dust, pollution and others.

• Reduces lines and wrinkles.

• Brightens skin's complexion completely.

• Softens and even minimizes enlarged pores.

• Contains Borage oil, by supplying it with gamma lineolenic acid, which is an important linolenic acid that helps maintain radiant skin. 

• Contains Carrot Seed Oil, which rejuvenates tired, aged, damaged and dehydrated skin.

• Gives skin a youthful appearance that can be noticed within a week.

• Contains  French Maritime Pine Bark Extract, an antioxidant extracted from the French -Maritime Pine. It has been shown to be 50 times more powerful than Vitamin E and 20 times more effective than Vitamin C in neutralizing free-radicals. It helps fight visible signs of aging and stabilizes the capillary system, increasing skin's resistance to irritation.

• The Maritime French Pine Bark Extract ingredient is wonderful for inflamed skin and skin conditions such as rosacea. It can also reduce puffiness and swelling (especially so under my eyes!)

Below is some more amazing information about the even more amazing benefits of the ingredients in the Stunning Serum -- taken from Green Street Lux's product page, which can be viewed here. 

"Palmaroa stimulates regeneration of the skin cells, Panthenol is absorbed deeply into the skin, it adds essential moisture and has a desirable plumping effect, Silk Amino Acid has excellent moisture binding qualities to condition the skin, Vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) is a Potent anti-oxidant (protects skin from oxidative damages e.g. by sun rays), anti-aging effects (improves skin elasticity by enhanced collagen production, avoids hyperpigmentation including age spots, anti-inflammatory & soothing effects, Soy Protein helps bring back a youthful radiance in skin care, Tripeptide-5 increase production of collagen and elastin, Repair scars and wrinkles, Increase circulation, resulting in breathtaking radiance and glow, Experience rapid wound repair, Develop a dewy, supple appearance to skin, Decreased inflammation, Increased efficiency of metabolism, resulting in cellular repair, Repair of the skin, Vitamin E as a topical treatment has been clinically proven to dramatically reduce the appearance of deep wrinkles, smooth rough patches of skin and improve overall."

The Stunning Serum's name is completely suitable -- it is definitely stunning. It's the most amazing serum I have ever put on my face. The very first time I used it, and woke up the next morning, I could not even believe how soft, smooth and beautiful my skin looked. I am completely and totally amazed by this serum! It is a God-send, no doubt.

How to Use the Stunning Serum

As I have said several times now,  was told by Candy from Green Street Luxuries that your skin does the most repairing during the first 3 hours of sleep -- this has been a really helpful tip that I love to continue sharing. Anyways, so it's best to use the Stunning Serum right before bed time for maximum results.

Here is some of what the Green Street Luxuries website has to say about sleep and skin repair "Sleep is when the body produces more proteins, which are the cell’s building blocks. Enhanced protein production ensures proper rejuvenation and revamping of the tissues and cells, which in turn provides vital regeneration and repair to the skin."

So I have been applying the Stunning Serum every night before bed. The first night, I went overboard and applied too much, but found you can dab the excess off after waiting a minute for most of it to absorb, then using a tissue to dab. 

I notice there's a sutble aroma to the serum. Nothing that bugs me and it's only noticeable for the first few minutes. It just smells like skincare product. Nothing to worry with. It is somewhat thick, not runny, which is something I appreciate because I like to keep the product out of my hair and off my pillow while sleeping. Since the Stunning Serum is absorbed by skin quickly, it never rubs off onto my pillow or gets in my hair. It dries kind of like a lotion.

The Stunning Serum is kind of creamy. It has a nice consistency so that it doesn't come running off the dropper when you're trying to apply. It's white in color and has tiny little colored flecks of super beneficial ingredients. I wanted to take a photo of the serum in case anybody cared to see it, but I took 13 pictures before giving up! They weren't turning out right -- too much light or something. So I included the Stunning Serum in my video and you may be able to better see it there, if you really care to.

Stunning Serum comes in a nice, dark brown tinted glass bottle with a dropper lid, which is very convenient! You only need a dropper full or less of product to cover your entire face. I don't even need to use the full dropper full. Also, I wanted to note the dark colored bottle because that's definitely a sign that the company cares about the quality of their products. Since a lot of nice, natural ingredients like herbs and such need to be in dark places to prevent them from losing their potency, I suppose this is why it comes in the dark bottle. I like that because it shows the company does care about quality, so I just thought I'd throw that in there too.

I've been taking extra care to make sure I apply a decent amount of the Stunning Serum to the scars I have on my right cheek. I've also been taking care to get the Acne Toner (you'll hear about it in my video and also in a post on its own) on those areas too. Now that I've used the Green Street Luxuries skincare items for over a week, those scars are less visible.

What I actually noticed was at first, there was a tiny bit of peeling (a small flake) on the little cluster of scars I had on my cheek. I didn't even consider that this was a result of the Stunning Serum (and other skincare products from Green Street Lux that I've been using together with this). But after a few more days, I got to looking and seen that the size of the largest, round scar was smaller! Seeing that confirmed that the Stunning Serum was helping to remove the scars! I've had them appear less deep before (randomly too. Like one day I might notice the scars looking less deep and the next, they were clearly visible even when I didn't change my old skincare routine), but they never actually got smaller!

Since my scars are getting smaller in diameter, I'm absolutely sure that one of these days, I am going to wake up and they won't even be there. It's so neat to watch. I haven't ever had success in getting rid of scars, so it's interesting to see how the "hole" just gets smaller and then will eventually not be there.

I also see less pink skin on the cluster of scars I have on my cheek. They used to stay pink, which is one thing that drew attention to them. Now, when I run my finger across that spot, I hardly feel them. It's so much smoother than what it was 9 days ago! This is some very powerful stuff!

Due to my own results, I'd recommend the Stunning Serum to anybody with scars, even the deepest acne scars could benefit from this. Of course the anti-aging and wrinkle/line reducing and skin, complexion smoothening and evening out are all equally wonderful results too, but the acne scars was something I was excited about and wanted to focus on in this post.