500 Formulas for Aromatherapy
Mixing Essential Oils for Every Use
Carol Schiller & David Schiller
Sterling Publishing Co., Inc 1994
I honestly can’t remember where I acquired this book from. I think it may have been selecting several books when I joined a book buying club a long time ago.
I attempted a search on the authors and was unable to find anything beyond what is shared in the back of the book. “…have been working with formulating aromatherapy blends since 1986.” They have published multiple books.
This book is only 121 pages and is full of the authors formula ideas. The beginning does have a few short chapters on the history of aromatic plants. I did appreciate the information regarding massage. They provided some different techniques on how to provide an effective massage. It is important to remember massage is a licensed practice throughout the United States.
Regarding the safety guidelines I did see one piece of advice that was alarming. They advised using lavender oil “neat” on an area where you may experience irritation from other essential oils. Due to the publication date of this book some of the information is out of date. We have learned much more about how to handle oils safely in the last 20 years.
The bulk of the book is an A to Z list of different aromatherapy formulas. Over the years we have learned that using essential oils in candles is not the best practice. So that section could be ignored. I also felt that many of the formulas were a higher dilution then we may generally use.
The final section is a breakdown of essential oils. This section only shares the Latin binomial, occasionally the scent to expect and a list of the uses. The information is extremely basic.
This book would be a good companion book. If you are new to essential oils this is a good book for helping know what oils may combine well together. Possibly consider purchasing The Complete Aromatherapy & Essential Oils Handbook for Everyday Wellness by Nerys Purchon and Lora Cantele or The Complete Book or Essential oils and Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood so you will gain a better understanding of the oils.
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