HOW TO SELECT AN ESSENTIAL OIL.

Foreword
a lot of interesting points in how to select a good essential oil, trying to recognize quality with a whiff of a sample. Most companies will sell you a sample. In the case of Helichrysum Italicum which is a rare and a sought after essential oil, most people buy year after year with the same supplier therefore ensuring their supply for the following year. There is never enough Helichrysum Italicum to go around,
I feel that if you are too fussy some people will refuse the sale, especially with the Helichrysum as there is always someone who wants it more.

Have a good read:

Introduction
Even if you go straight to the grower / distiller they may not be testing their oils. Those that do test most certainly aren't looking for unwanted phthalates, very few look for pesticides or herbicides. So it would be good to buy in essential oil that is “organic” “bio”.
Most distillers in Europe know what the chemical composition should look like and have their oils tested by laboratories for its chemical analysis. Concerning the Helichrysum Italicum this is compulsory in order to see the level of Neryl Acetates. I would suggest that you be more careful out side Europe, but most do now supply relevant data on their oils.
The oil we supply is only Helichrysum Italicum; we chose not to stray from the oil we know best.

Summary

1.) Best if I buy straight from the grower and/or distiller or like us a Corsican specialist.
2.) Have a great nose for the oils you purchase.
3.) Do a Gc-Ms (gas chromatography mass spectrum) cross referenced with your own retention library, with other chemical libraries, with published data on the specific oil on a period of years from various sources, chemo types and origins.
4.) Look for the ratio % of a number of chemicals within the oil, including very small peak chemicals and look for the chemicals that shouldn't be there and should be there.
5) Be prepared to buy a sample, especially the Helichrysum Italicum, or ask for a client referral, someone who has already bought from the company.
If you try to follow the above steps you should be ok, always go with your “gut” instinct even if you can’t explain why.
1.) You can’t always visit distillers or growers; in fact it would be hectic and costly globe trotting constantly. You can establish a relationship by email, and phone not forgetting Skype. So you can get some in sight on who you’re dealing with.
2.) A great nose for oil, well hope nobody gets a cold? Be open, we had an incident on our Helichrysum last year as it was sent very fresh from harvest and my client Eric, a well known aroma therapist, didn’t recognize the usual smell, even thought it was petroly!! In fact in need to be aired because it was fresh, which Eric did and in fact the Helichrysum know smell came and all was well, in fact it was Eric’s best lot of Helichrysum and he asked for more but it had all sold. So for those of you, who are thinking of Helichrysum, don’t wait until the last minute.
3.) This comes automatically with most oils and in particular the Helichrysum as the cost is based on the Neryl Acetate level which is formalised in the chromatography.
4.) This again refers to the chemical composition of the oil, and the chromatography.
5.) If you feel they meet your standards, then ask for a sample and price. The more you buy the better the price per kilo, that’s how we do it anyway.
Prices will be put on line around May 2010, if you want me to email you send me your email and name.