Essential Oils Vs Fragrances - The Key differences Explained - Absolute Aromas

Essential Oils Vs Fragrances – The Key differences Explained

When considering ways to add fragrance and ambience to your home during the colder months, fragrance oils and Essential Oils serve different purposes and have distinct characteristics. Their sources and compositions are very different as fragrance oils are synthetic or a combination of synthetic and natural ingredients. They are designed to mimic natural scents or create complex, unique fragrances that don’t exist in nature. Fragrance oils may include a mix of aroma compounds, preservatives, and sometimes a carrier oil, where Essential Oils are natural oils extracted from plants, typically through steam distillation, cold pressing, or solvent extraction. Essential oils come directly from the plant’s natural fragrance and contain the plant’s beneficial properties.  Absolute Aromas Essential Oils are all tested for their purity and quality so you can trust they are excellent quality and always 100% natural.   

Fragrance oils offer a broad range of scents as they do not come from nature itself  – because they’re synthetically produced they may have names that might represent how they smell such as Ocean Breeze, Fresh Linen, Tropical Sands… etc or they may be named after the plant they are trying to replicate.  Essential Oils are named after the plant (or part of the plant) they are extracted from such as Lavender, Eucalyptus or Peppermint and they typically offer more subtle and earthy fragrances, closer to the original plant matter compared to fragrance oils. Some synthetic fragrance oils may contain allergens or irritants, and certain people might have sensitivities to them.  We would always suggest following the packaging instructions for use and never allow contact undiluted on skin, whether you’re using fragrance or Essential Oils. 

Many home fragrance oils whether they are synthetic or natural, are not suitable for use on skin as they are quite concentrated, but are fabulous when added to potpourri, oil burners or used in diffusers.  As they are pure plant extracts, Essential Oils don’t contain the synthetic chemicals, additives, or preservatives often found in commercial air fresheners or fragrance products and therefore provide a non-toxic way to scent your home, which can be especially beneficial if you have sensitivities to synthetic chemicals.  Essential oils are widely used in aromatherapy for their ability to influence mood, health, and well-being so you can select the oils of your choice, depending on your individual needs…. 

  • Lavender: Calming, helps reduce stress and anxiety. 
  • Eucalyptus: Refreshing, clears the mind and respiratory system. 
  • Citrus Oils (Lemon, Sweet Orange): Energising and uplifting. 
  • Peppermint: Invigorating and helps improve focus. 

With Essential Oils, you can blend different oils to create custom, unique scents that match your personal preferences or mood. For example, mixing Lavender and Eucalyptus for a soothing spa-like atmosphere, or Peppermint and Lemon for an energising scent.  Our brand new Spiced Citrus Scent is a professionally blended Essential Oil and combines the zestiness of Sweet Orange, with warming notes of Ginger, Cinnamon and Black Pepper.  It’s the perfect Oil to diffuse during the colder months for a lovely hint of warmth. 

Different ways to add Fragrance to your Home this Autumn… 

A Diffuser is water-based, which disperses fragrance or Essential Oil (when added in drops to the water) into the air as a fine mist, providing a continuous and gentle fragrance.  You can add one oil or a blend of your own when using Essential Oils.  Make sure you don’t exceed the total amount of drops recommended by the diffuser manufacturer. 

Candles and Crafting: Add Essential Oils into candle wax blends for a more natural scent.  When making candles, Essential Oils can add a touch of natural luxury to your wax mix and will offer a subtle natural scent to your candles.  Always follow your candle making recipe when adding oils to your wax to ensure you have the correct ratios.  If you use Essential Oils rather than fragrance oils, make sure your wax has cooled a little before adding them to the mix as high temperatures can alter or damage the delicate scents.  Some seasonal Essential Oils are not recommended for use on skin so make sure you follow guidance on packaging if you’re using Essential oils in balms or lotions.  Essential Oils are commonly used in both cold-process and melt-and-pour soap making to add natural fragrance and skin benefits; some oils, like Lavender or Tea Tree, also have antibacterial and soothing properties, making them great for skincare products, where synthetic fragrance oils won’t offer these benefits.  When soap-making, be mindful of skin sensitivities; use safe dilution ratios which are generally 1–3% of the total soap weight. 

Room Sprays: Create a DIY room spray by mixing Essential Oils with water and a small amount of alcohol or Witch Hazel (to help disperse the oils evenly). 

Potpourri and Sachets: Add Essential Oils to dried flowers, herbs, or cotton sachets to scent small spaces like cupboards, ironing piles or drawers.  We love an aesthetically pleasing bowl of cones and dried citrus fruits in the colder months, sprinkled with Spiced Citrus Essential Blend. 

Getting Creative 

When you’re blending synthetic fragrance oils or Essential Oils, it’s always advisable to stick to one brand so you can follow the guidelines and ratios accurately.  Fragrance oils will be a mixture of different chemical components and so we wouldn’t recommend mixing them yourself – they are simple to use straight from the bottle when making candles for example, and they often come in pre-designed fragrance mixes like ‘Pear and Freesia’ so you won’t have to add anything else, just stick to the ratios suggested.  You can be creative with Essential Oils – follow the guidance on how many drops to add to a mixture, and don’t exceed this, but within these guidelines you can experiment!  For example, you may want to create a Room Spray with up to 10-20 drops of Essential Oil with 30ml of alcohol and top up with distilled water in a 500ml spray bottle.  Within this, you can either use 20 drops of a single oil, or enjoy mixing some bespoke blends within the 20 drops.  Peppermint in a room spray at this time of year can be a good insect deterrent, you could combine it with Eucalyptus, Tea Tree and Ravintsara to create a spray that is naturally clearing and antibacterial to help beat those Winter chills, just spritz it around the bedroom or anyone under the weather and they can benefit from those natural cleansing properties! 

As Essential Oils are derived from plants, they are biodegradable and environmentally friendly, especially when compared to synthetic air fresheners and fragrances that may contain chemicals harmful to the environment.  For those who prioritise natural living or follow a holistic lifestyle, Essential Oils align with values of using natural, plant-based products. Incorporating Essential Oils into home fragrance routines can extend the focus on health and well-being into your living space.  We always have lots of usage ideas for our Essential Oils on our social media pages and love hearing about your favourite blend combinations too, so why not follow us if you don’t already and share your ideas and tips and gain some new ones too!