Enjoyed for its heavenly fragrance and stress-reducing power, the sensory experience of lavender is unforgettable.
If you’ve ever smelled fresh lavender flowers, lavender oil or even dried lavender, you probably don’t need science to convince you about how remarkable its properties are. However, science actually supports everything your body tells while you’re using it!
Here are 5 interesting and empowering ways you can use lavender to enrich your life. Please feel free to let us know in the comments which of these you like best!
1. Sleep Better
Probably best known for relaxation benefits, researchers believe the smell of lavender has the potential to help people sleep better at night, enjoy better quality of sleep and (potentially) feel more wakeful during the day.
How to use lavender to combat insomnia:
- Keep some lavender oil beside your bed
- Rub a few drops of essential oil on your templates and wrists before sleeping*
- Spray your pillow with lavender spray (see below for a simple method to make your own)
- Take a relaxing bath before bed, sprinkling your bathwater with a few drops of lavender oil
- Use culinary lavender to make a relaxing cup of lavender tea
2. Repel Bugs
Why put toxic insecticides on your skin when you can use lavender instead?
Lavender contains a naturally-occurring substance called linalool, which repels mosquitos, flies, moths, gnats, and ticks. This makes lavender essential oil an effective bug repellant.
Easy Method: when you’re outdoors, simply apply the oil to your skin in order to keep the bugs away (lavender is usually safe to apply directly to your skin).*
Advanced Method: make your own lavender bug spray by mixing together:
- ¼ c of distilled water
- ¼ c witch hazel
- 10–20 drops of lavender oil
For convenience, keep your bug spray in a spray bottle. This can also be used as a pillow spray to sleep better (see above)!
3. Stimulate Hair Growth
According to a 2016 study on the hair growth promoting effects of lavender oil, lavender oil has a significant hair growth-promoting effect on female mice. The study found that lavender oil applied once a day, 5 times a week for 4 weeks “significantly increased the number of hair follicles, deepened hair follicle depth and thickened dermal layer.”
For those wishing to prevent or reverse hair loss, this is definitely worth trying as a potential solution, in particular because it’s gentle and soothing.
Even if you don’t suffer from hair loss, using a few drops of lavender in your shampoo can potentially prevent dandruff and make your hair more healthy and full.
Read more about how lavender can help with hair loss in The Remarkable Power of Lavender for Combatting Hair Loss [add link to Blog Post #3].
4. Make Medicine
Obviously, a DIY lavender tincture is no substitute for professional medical advice. However, making your own lavender tincture is a great way to empower yourself! Despite their worldwide popularity, always use caution when making a tincture since they are often untested by science.
“The tincture form is considered a good way to deliver the potential benefits of herbal remedies.” –What is a Herbal Tincture?
A tincture is a concentrated extract made by soaking herbs in alcohol to preserve their special properties.
Use this lavender tincture for multiple purposes: soothe bug bites, apply to minor wounds, spray on your linens, and even cook with it (if you use just the lavender buds of a culinary lavender).
To create your own lavender tincture:
- Fresh or dried organic lavender (just the buds, or stems and flowers)
- Vodka – a good base for the tincture since it has the most neutral flavour. Use at least 80 proof vodka of higher
- A jar (ideally a dark jar but a mason jar is fine)
Instructions:
- Chop either just the lavender buds (or lavender stems and buds) roughly
- Put chopped up lavender into your jar
- Pour vodka over top until the plant material is completely cover and there’s an extra inch
- Cover the jar and store it for a month or more, shaking every few days!
- Once you feel like your magic potion is ready (approximately 4 weeks), strain it with cheesecloth or a sieve, put the lid on it and label your jar
- Store in a cool dark place for as long as 5 years
5. Have Better Sex
One of the most popular fragrances ever used in the bedroom, Cleopatra is rumoured to have seduced both Julius Caesar and Marc Antony with lavender.
Add some drops of lavender essential oil to a carrier oil (e.g., sweet almond oil) and use it to massage yourself/your partner.
For women going through menopause, a study showed that lavender oil aromatherapy can improve sexual function. Although the findings are presented cautiously, the researchers found improvement in sexual desire, arousal, and ability to experience orgasm.
Conclusion
The natural wellness and relaxing power of lavender can be used to make your life better in some very unique and surprising ways. Once you experience the calming beauty of lavender, you may never go back!
Here is a recap of 5 interesting ways to make your life better with lavender:
- If (you or a loved one) need to sleep better consider incorporating lavender into your bedtime routine
- When it’s time to protect your skin from pests, use lavender oil for a natural way to repel bugs
- Encourage your hair to grow thicker and shinier
- Make a simple multi-use lavender tincture using 2 simple ingredients
- Use lavender as an aphrodisiac
* Lavender is usually gentle enough to apply directly to your skin. Before using, test a tiny amount on your skin to make sure it agrees with you!
Grow Your Own! Order lavender seedlings – email us to find out how!
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