What To Do With A Box of 'Essential Oils'?

[Ignitia]

My friend gave me a box of essential oils. It seems pretty wasteful to throw them out (and it's a gift), but I have no idea what to do with them. Scented soaps or perfumes would be a fun project, but I don't have the other ingredients to do that. So, I'm taking suggestions.

(And what do I do with the book of 'Alternative Natural Healing' that came with it?)

List of Oils:
1. French Lavender
2. Lime (Citrus Aurantifolia)
3. Essential Oil Blend: one bottle composed of Coconut, Bergamont Orange, Coriander Seed, Marjoram, Peppermint, Geramium, Basil, Rose, and Jasmine
4. One unmarked bottle (has oil in it)
None of the bottles list concentrations.

 

[Wrichik Basu]

(And what do I do with the book of 'Alternative Natural Healing' that came with it?)

I myself don't throw away books, even if they are not worth reading. But it's up to you whether you want to read it, store it in your bookshelf, or throw it away. A quick look through the pages should tell you whether you what you want to do with it.

 

[Borek]

For me collection of three words: alternative, natural and healing in a title starts a Red Alert.

Don't even open the book, run for your life.

 

[dlgoff]

For me collection of three words: alternative, natural and healing in a title starts a Red Alert.

Don't even open the book, run for your life.

Yep. But the OP should keep the oils just to smell once in a while.

 

[Ignitia]

For me collection of three words: alternative, natural and healing in a title starts a Red Alert.

Don't even open the book, run for your life.

Haha. I'd donate it, but I fear the next owner will actually use it to heal their ailments. I don't want that on my conscience.

Still need ideas for the oils.

 

[bobob]

I'd suggest getting a partner and finding out how useful those things could be for intimate massages. It could be a good way to break the ice with respect to removing clothing.

 

[sysprog]

Haha. I'd donate it, but I fear the next owner will actually use it to heal their ailments. I don't want that on my conscience.

Still need ideas for the oils.

Please list which oils they are.

Some (e.g geranium oil) can kill pyrethrin-resistant invertebrates while being almost completely harmless to vertebrates; others (e.g. tea tree oil) can kill bacteria while being only mildly toxic to humans. Oil of peppermint (high menthol content) can be a good pest repellent.

As for the book, I would regard it with a level of suspicion in the neighborhood of that expressed by @Borek; for my part, I would look at the table of contents, and the index, and maybe a few random paragraphs; if it was, in my view, after that cursory review, in the vicinity of as nonsensical as its title suggests, I would consign it to its possible future use as polluted but still recyclable paper.

 

[Ignitia]

Please list which oils they are.

Some (e.g geranium oil) can kill pyrethrin-resistant invertebrates while being almost completely harmless to vertebrates; others (e.g. tea tree oil) can kill bacteria while being only mildly toxic to humans. Oil of peppermint (high menthol content) can be a good pest repellent.

As for the book, I would regard it with a level of suspicion in the neighborhood of that expressed by @Borek; for my part, I would look at the table of contents, and the index, and maybe a few random paragraphs; if it was, in my view, after that cursory review, in the vicinity of as nonsensical as its title suggests, I would consign it to its possible future use as polluted but still recyclable paper.

The book claims it can cure autism (No joke). I think that speaks volumes.

I've edited the oils in the first post.

 

[sysprog]

The book claims it can cure autism (No joke). I think that speaks volumes.

We've seen lots of outlandish and apparently ridiculous claims; not all of them have turned out to have been false (e.g. germ theory of disease); we should check how well or how poorly a claim is justified, on a case-by-case basis, before accepting or rejecting it.

Even so, a claim to have found a previously undiscovered 'cure' for autism, unless the claim is extremely well supported, is at best something that has at its origin an irresponsible and disrespectful claim, and more likely is something that originated from deliberate flimflam.

The claim implicitly suggests that the diligent work of thousands of competent scientists and other professionals who have worked themselves to exhaustion day in and day out for decades trying to to find anything that might help people suffering from that set of maladies, have failed in their efforts to leave no stone unturned that might possibly conceal a worthwhile insight, while the claimant has found the cure by sniffing around at essential oils that the scientists have pre-dismissed as being not worth investigating.

In fact, real researchers investigating autism and treatment options for it will readily acknowledge that some essential oils can have a beneficial effect; however, no responsible researcher at present claims to have discovered a cure for autism.

I've edited the oils in the first post.

Thanks for doing that. The unmarked bottle, if you and a dog can't by the odor tell enough about what it might contain, should be discarded. The other ones, if it were my choice, I would give to a nice girlfriend.

 

[Nik_2213]

Long, long ago, I used to extract such 'Essential Oils' from our Pharma 'Purchasing Samples' to establish their 'active' content before the approved bulk went into what we'd now call 'trad' cough mixtures, syrups etc...

Hey, their BP/BPC formulations really were better than placebos !

Now, the smell of most such essences, along with the soaps, candles, pot-pouri petals etc they often 'enhance' generally set off my hay-fever at proverbial twenty paces, must be avoided...

So, give the gift-box of 'smellies' to an appropriately ditzy member of your extended family, or put it on the 'Charity' table.

As for the book, well, I've found each such may spawn several short fantasy stories, set in that alt-reality...

 

[Rive]

The book claims it can cure autism (No joke). I think that speaks volumes.

I would just recycle the book and check the smell of the oils. The ones with nice smell can be used to cover everyday smells in the kitchen, for example: the levander is traditionally used in long term storage of clothes.

For the less nice smells - well, I tend to use those as a counter-statement of ownership for 'cat-spray' in the garden.

 

[Bandersnatch]

Don't even open the book, run for your life.

No no no. These books are very useful. Just check if the print quality is good - otherwise the pages might leave marks on the skin. You probably don't want your posterior to end up with a bunch of backwards Deepak Chopra quotes on it.

There are also alternative uses. The clue is in the OP's name and avatar.
Overall, great for camping.

 

[sysprog]

No no no. These books are very useful. Just check if the print quality is good - otherwise the pages might leave marks on the skin. You probably don't want your posterior to end up with a bunch of backwards Deepak Chopra quotes on it.

There are also alternative uses. The clue is in the OP's name and avatar.
Overall, great for camping.

Yeah, when you're out camping, readily burnable stuff can come in handy ...

 

[pinball1970]

My friend gave me a box of essential oils. It seems pretty wasteful to throw them out (and it's a gift), but I have no idea what to do with them. Scented soaps or perfumes would be a fun project, but I don't have the other ingredients to do that. So, I'm taking suggestions.

(And what do I do with the book of 'Alternative Natural Healing' that came with it?)

List of Oils:
1. French Lavender
2. Lime (Citrus Aurantifolia)
3. Essential Oil Blend: one bottle composed of Coconut, Bergamont Orange, Coriander Seed, Marjoram, Peppermint, Geramium, Basil, Rose, and Jasmine
4. One unmarked bottle (has oil in it)
None of the bottles list concentrations.

Some funny replies from @sysprog @Borek k @Rive @Bandersnatch. I would tell your friend (after thanking them for the thought) that the science behind this sort of thing is either hippy nonsense or nonexistent just like homeopathy. A good mate will understand. They may choose to take it back and give it someone else.

 

[DennisN]

You probably don't want your posterior to end up with a bunch of backwards Deepak Chopra quotes on it.

Do you know there's a hilarious Deepak Chopra quote generator on the net? Here it is: http://wisdomofchopra.com/
It makes me smile every time I use it.

 

[DennisN]

And what do I do with the book of 'Alternative Natural Healing' that came with it?

You could also use it for classic "Hippocratic" healing by disassembling the book. The papers can be used as bandages, the covers can be used as splints and the threads can be used to fasten the bandages and splints. Results may vary, though.

 

[pinball1970]

Do you know there's a hilarious Deepak Chopra quote generator on the net? Here it is: http://wisdomofchopra.com/
It makes me smile every time I use it.

If I could give two likes to this I would.
I have just read some of these to a colleague out loud to see what he would make of them.
'What does that even mean?' Was the main comment. I laughed quite a lot.

 

[Bandersnatch]

Do you know there's a hilarious Deepak Chopra quote generator on the net? Here it is: http://wisdomofchopra.com/
It makes me smile every time I use it.

Oh, I've received The Wisdom many a time. It never disappoints.

 

[pinball1970]

Oh, I've received The Wisdom many a time. It never disappoints.

'Transcendence is the path to intricate images.'

Awesome. I think a thread is required to explore the physics/other sciences and vocabulary of his statements.

 

[sysprog]

We wrote sentence segment concatenator programs like that for fun and exercise in the '70s -- I think the one that @DennisN pointed out, (repeating here the link that he posted:) http://wisdomofchopra.com/, is an especially good example of the genre.

 

[Rive]

Some funny replies from ...@Rive

Man, I was completely serious
We started with a deodorant, and one dose kept the neighboring cats away for ~ a week: it had just a mildly terrible stink by our standards. We switched to some 'aromatherapy oil' (we too got it as a gift) and now the garden is ours, finally ✌

 

[sysprog]

@Rive In my opinion, the best essential oil for keeping unwanted animals out of your yard is OC (oleoresin capsicum/capsaicin (pepper)) gel spray.

 

[Rive]

@sysprog Well, we still want this garden being human-habitable, though... But we are using some chili 'tea' against aphids, if that counts

 

[sysprog]

@sysprog Well, we still want this garden being human-habitable, though... But we are using some chili 'tea' against aphids, if that counts

Chili powder is a good repellent, and lasts longer than pepper gel, but it's not as strong. Pepper gel won't bother humans if you wait a half hour or so and then don't get too close, but it will still repel other other animals for a week or so unless there's a pretty strong rain.

 

[Klystron]

Chili powder is a good repellent, and lasts longer than pepper gel, but it's not as strong. Pepper gel won't bother humans if you wait a half hour or so and then don't get too close, but it will still repel other other animals for a week or so unless there's a pretty strong rain.

with the added benefit that birds like it or, at least, are not bothered.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Put them in a diffuser and relax :)

 

[sysprog]

with the added benefit that birds like it or, at least, are not bothered.

Aves have short alimentary canals, which enables them to without thereby hurting themselves ingest things that would be poisonous to mammals. We were told as children that seeing birds eat berries from a bush does not mean that we can safely those berries.

 

[DennisN]

We wrote sentence segment concatenator programs like that for fun and exercise in the '70s

This is not quite the same, but here's a good and incredibly fun generator which a friend sent me the link to some time ago. You enter two words and it generates punchy portmanteaus and rhymes. My friends and I have exhanged several hilarious examples via the mail.

Here it is: http://www.punchlinedesign.net/pun_generator

I tried "flat" and "earth" just now, and it generated "flatmosphere", haha. That must be the atmosphere on all flat Earth models. I tried "alternative" and "healing" from this thread but the results were not that fun.

Edit:
I tried to generate punchlines from the words "Physics Forums". Some fun results:

• onleinstein (online/einstein)
• discustronomy (discus/astronomy)
• solid-state debate

 

[Tom.G]

Just tried that one with "computer", "rhinoceros".

What stood out in the 18 responses was "hornbillelectron."

Would REALLY like to collide some of those and see what the constituent particles are.

 

[sysprog]

Just tried that one with "computer", "rhinoceros".

What stood out in the 18 responses was "hornbillelectron."

Would REALLY like to collide some of those and see what the constituent particles are.

Do that enough times and you might be able to see what happens when the probability spikes intersect.

Could this be something like what happens when 2 leptoprotuberances meet in combat?

Bullets recovered from the site of the Battle of Gallipoli 1914-1915

 

[sysprog]

This is not quite the same, but here's a good and incredibly fun generator which a friend sent me the link to some time ago. You enter two words and it generates punchy portmanteaus and rhymes. My friends and I have exhanged several hilarious examples via the mail.

Here it is: http://www.punchlinedesign.net/pun_generator

I tried "flat" and "earth" just now, and it generated "flatmosphere", haha. That must be the atmosphere on all flat Earth models. I tried "alternative" and "healing" from this thread but the results were not that fun.

Edit:
I tried to generate punchlines from the words "Physics Forums". Some fun results:

• onleinstein (online/einstein)
• discustronomy (discus/astronomy)
• solid-state debate

@onleinstein isn't already a username here?

 

[Ignitia]

Thanks for all the replies. @Nik_2213 You've given me the idea for the book. Maybe I can incorporate it for my D&D campaign...

I forgot to mention I'm an undergrad Chem, so I could extract the oils for something (except the blend; that looks too time consuming).

 

[Tom.G]

Do that enough times and you might be able to see what happens when the probability spikes intersect.

Could this be something like what happens when 2 leptoprotuberances meet in combat?

View attachment 245652

Bullets recovered from the site of the Battle of Gallipoli 1914-1915

Ahh, a probablity proof that infinitesimal ≠ Zero!

 

[sysprog]

Thanks for all the replies. @Nik_2213 You've given me the idea for the book. Maybe I can incorporate it for my D&D campaign...

I forgot to mention I'm an undergrad Chem, so I could extract the oils for something (except the blend; that looks too time consuming).

If I were your academic advisor, I would have to apprise of you of the fact that claiming presented polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ('tars') to be your own extractions, without proper acknowledgment of the fact that your source materials were already 'extracts', and without due and proper credit being accorded to the prior extractors thereof, might be a violation of the contra-plagiarism policies of the venerable academic instititution.

 

[sysprog]

Ahh, a probablity proof that infinitesimal ≠ Zero!

Neato, @Tom.G

 

[Tom.G]

Tnx. @sysprog

 

[Ignitia]

If I were your academic advisor, I would have to apprise of you of the fact that claiming presented polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ('tars') to be your own extractions, without proper acknowledgment of the fact that your source materials were already 'extracts', and without due and proper credit being accorded to the prior extractors thereof, might be a violation of the contra-plagiarism policies of the venerable academic instititution.

...I was just thinking about separating the solutions, trying an experiment, or testing it with a chemistry kit, not stick a patent on it.

 

[sysprog]

...I was just thinking about separating the solutions, trying an experiment, or testing it with a chemistry kit, not stick a patent on it.

I didn't mean to be reproachful -- I was partly just poking fun on account of your being a student -- in truth, I admire the intrepidity of you young folks who are willing to work so strongly to learn, and perhaps to find something new to us all -- and if you do think that you've perhaps found something potentially profitable, please don't be too shy to run a few questions past a patent attorney in exploring your possible claims; it's recently become easier and less expensive to get some important preliminary steps done in the process.

 

[f95toli]

I would start by listening to the recent "Behind the Bastards" (the podcast) episode about Gary Young who was the con-artist (and baby murderer) who popularised essential oils (and became very, very rich in the process).

 

[BWV]

There is this updated version of the classic children's game:

 

[WWGD]

Use the book for heating. Burn it while playing music by Enya.

 

[WWGD]

Do you know there's a hilarious Deepak Chopra quote generator on the net? Here it is: http://wisdomofchopra.com/
It makes me smile every time I use it.

Chopra = Ch(opra). Coincidence?

 

[celvet]

@Rive: I know it is late in the day for this, but do you happen to remember which ones kept the cats out? I happen to like cats, but keep mine in and prefer birds in the garden. Even more important have you found any that keep rabbits out?

As far as the rest goes. I've never heard that aromatherapy really does anything good, but have limited evidence (n=1) that it can cause problems: 1) One can have an allergy to any of the substances used. 2) I personally have gotten migraines from some the scents in the past (and I don't get migraines easily).

 

[Rive]

I have no experience with rabbits. I know (?) that male rabbits also using urine as personal marking, but I have no idea how would they react.

Also, I don't think this method would work on your cats: most likely it would just make them proud that their humin is so strong and handsome that the garden is kept clean of competitors.

I don't think that the smell itself really matters (apart from chili, of course: but that's already warfare and not just ownership declaration).

 

[celvet]

Well, I wasn't asking about my cats (although it might be interesting to see if one could keep them within one's own garden as opposed to running loose, terrorizing the birds and neighbors), since whenever I have cats, they are kept indoors or on a leash.

I'll have to try with rabbits, but I suspect that with the excess rain we tend to get, any oils will get washed off the plants. . .

 

[Tom.G]

For rabbits try Coyote urine. Available at both Home Depot in the US and Amazon and Walmart where ever they will ship. A Google search finds 3,000,000 more hits.

Cheers,
Tom

p.s. Please let us know how it works.

 

[celvet]

Thank you Tom.G, but I probably won't. I don't feel that game and fur farms are humane. I was interested in whether essential oils (the topic of the post). I can tell you that planting spring garlic around my peas seemed to work last year (I had plenty of rabbits, but the peas were not touched), so if there was an essential "garlic" oil, that might work. . .

So far I have never seen a "garlic" essential oil among essential oils despite its many touted beneficial qualities. Maybe the new agers are missing an opportunity?

 

[Rive]

So far I have never seen a "garlic" essential oil among essential oils...

'Essential oils' is a category in itself, with a background and tradition. Maybe you can look for garlic essence instead. It is sold as cosmetic, seasoning, medicine and pesticide (business as usual: snake oil for everything!)

You can look for 'garlic spray' too, as (weak) pesticide: I doubt it would harm rabbits.
Since there are also DIY recipes you might try to mix it with some chili too
If the eye of the rabbits starts to glow red in the dark then tune down the chili

 

[celvet]

How funny! I suppose that then, if like Elmer Fudd, you decided to eat the pesky wabbits, they would already be seasoned. . .

As a gardener, I can say that none of the spray-on things work well. They get washed off or the pests (whether vertebrate or invertebrate) adapt. So I think I'll continue growing garlic next to my peas (about the only vegetable item which I am concerned about). Luckily no one has tried to gift me with essential oils so no disposal problems.