Today I wanted to share every possible use (that I can think of anyway) for essential oils that may come in handy during the cold months! This post includes information from me as well as links to other posts which include awesome diy recipes for a natural, healthy and cost-effective winter!
Please note that this post includes affiliate links which means I make a small commission (at no additional cost to you) if you purchase through the links in this post.
How to Use Essential Oils in the Winter
Immune System Support with Essential Oils
There are a number of essential oils which have antibacterial properties which you are going to want to have around the house this winter! Essential oils with strong antibacterial properties include:
Clove
Oregano
Lemon
Lavender
Geranium
Lemongrass
Peppermint
Tea Tree
Thyme
These would all be excellent essential oils to have on hand this winter!
Natural Antibacterial Cleaners:
Lemon, Tea Tree/Melaleuca, and lavender are all wonderful antibacterial scents to have in homemade cleaners! Check out this post about cleaning with essential oils. You can also get some awesome recipes for cleaning and disinfecting your kitchen here.
One of my favourite ways to clean the bathroom is using my all-natural bathroom cleaner which uses lemon, tea tree and white fir essential oils. You can get the recipe here!
DIY Antibacterial Hand Sanitizer:
Sarah Titus has so many wonderful DIY essential oil recipes on her blog! One of the many awesome recipes is this DIY essential oil hand sanitizer! All you need is water, Vitamin E oil, Aloe Vera Gel and an essential oil. Get this awesome hand sanitizer recipe here!
Foaming Essential Oil Hand Soap:
This is the essential oil soap recipe that we use in our bathroom year round! Since it uses essential oils you can easily change the scent to one that fits your mood/season. Get the recipe here!
Essential Oil Throat Drops:
Getting a pesky tickle or scratchy feeling in your throat seems to happen regularly during the winter months! I don’t know about you but I HATE this feeling! That being said, I also don’t like the strong taste of Halls or Fisherman’s friend throat lozenges. Luckily for me, my sister-in-law made an awesome (& easy) recipe for soothing essential oil throat drops/lozenges! Here’s the recipe for these easy throat drops!
Respiratory Support with Essential Oils
Respiratory support is something many people benefit from during the winter months as the cold winter air can feel quite harsh on the lungs (for me anyway)!
Here are some essential oils which are great for respiratory support!
Peppermint
Eucalyptus
Wintergreen
Lemon
Rosemary
Tea Tree/ Melaueca
Thyme
Lavender
Clove
How do you use essential oils for respiratory support?
Topically:
You can apply any one of these oils to your chest, neck, and back. If using Thyme or Clove please make sure to dilute the essential oil in a carrier oil first! Since these are considered ‘warm/hot’ oils, they could irritate or burn your skin if they are not properly diluted.
You could also make a DIY Vapor Rub using coconut oil, essential oils, and beeswax. Get the full recipe here.
Aromatically:
You can add these essential oils to your diffuser, this can be a very effective technique especially if the diffuser is in your bedroom while sleeping. Select nighttime diffuser essential oils carefully! While peppermint is a great oil for respiratory support, it can also help increase your energy which is not something you need while you are trying to sleep! Lavender on the other hand would help to promote a restful sleep while also providing respiratory support!
My favourite diffuser blend for sleep is my Sleep Like a Log blend which uses lavender and cedarwood essential oils. You can get the recipe here!
Essential Oil Shower Bombs/Pucks
Something many people make for respiratory support are essential oil shower bombs/pucks. These are a natural and effective way to use essential oils aromatically for respiratory support, especially if you don’t have a diffuser! Amy from The Idea Room has an awesome recipe for shower bombs here.
Essential Oil Nasal Inhaler
You can also make your own essential oil nasal inhaler! Life with Lisa & James has an awesome tutorial for making your own ‘breathe blend’ for your nasal inhaler. Here’s the recipe!
Staying Warm this Winter with Essential Oils!
Did you know there are essential oils that can help keep you warm? There are a number of essential oils that are considered to be ‘warm/hot’ oils and can help to warm you up! When using these oils it is EXREMELY important that you dilute the oils a lot! I made a 10ml roller bottle with 20 drops of cinnamon essential oil and I filled the rest of the bottle with carrier oil. Even though it was diluted that much, I still had big red blotches on my skin caused by irritation by the cinnamon. In the future I would probably use 6-8 drops of cinnamon in the roller bottle.
Here are some essential oils to warm you up this winter!
Oregano
Thyme
Marjoram
Rosemary
Black Pepper
Juniper Berry
Ginger
Check out my post called How to Stay Warm with Essential Oils to learn more about how to use these warming oils and to learn some very important safety precautions for using them!
Essential Oil Warming Salve
For an easier way to apply these warming oils, check out this DIY recipe for a warming salve from One Good Thing by Jillee.
Essential Oil Skin Care for the Winter Months
During the cold months, many people find that their skin is dry, cracked and sore. That’s just not fun! Essential oils can help to moisturize and soothe sore and irritated skin!
Here are some awesome diy recipes for your skin this winter:
Essential Oils for Dry Skin
The Wise Wife is definitely living up to her name, especially when it comes to essential oils! Katie has an awesome list of essential oils which are perfect for soothing dry skin! She also shares the best carrier oils to mix with these soothing oils! Find the full list of essential oils for dry skin here!
Cuticle Cream
Are your cuticles sore and bothering you? Check out this awesome and easy diy recipe for homemade cuticle cream from Thirty Handmade Days!
Essential Oil Lip Scrub
I don’t know about you, but when the cold months come, my lips become sore and cracked! I love my essential oil lip scrub! Julie from Lemon Peony has an awesome peppermint lip scrub which you are going to love! Here’s the recipe!
Winter Essential Oil Diffuser Blends
There are many diffuser blends that can help you to bring the wonderful smells of Christmas and winter indoors! Check out my post with 10 diy winter essential oil recipes here!
With the cold temperatures we are matched with less daylight which can be very challenging both physically and mentally! This post from Eden’s Garden gives you diy diffuser blends to help lift your spirits during the cold and dark months!
Essential Oil Air Freshener
If you do not have a diffuser or if you prefer not to use a diffuser, you can also make this awesome essential oil air freshener using Rosemary and Spearmint! Keri from Shaken Together has the full recipe for you here!
And there you have it! My complete Guide to Using Essential Oils in the winter! Am I missing something? Please comment below and share it with me!
Which recipe/essential oil do you think you will use most this winter?
THanks for sharing such useful tips on using essential oils during the Winter. I keep hearing so many good things about essential oils. I have to pick some up and try them out!
I had no idea you could use essential oils for so much. Thanks!
These are some great ideas.I can see some of those oils being really soothing when the cold air is taking a toll on your skin.
What awesome ideas of using essential oils in winter, my friend recommend i try some peppermint for my check so will give that a try.
I love to use essential oils in my home cleaning. Tea tree oil has worked miracles for me in that regard.
I wish I could purchase them individually. I only hear about the whole kit. I do have a lavender oil that I use to sleep. I love that smell.
I have used Tea Tree before, thanks for giving me a list of even more essential oils that I can use!
So awesome these benefits of essential oils. I use tea tree oil organic shampoo so I love essential oil just haven’t been able to try them.
I use essential oils in cleaning and an immune boost for the girls when they get sick. Love this post!
I’ve been educated. Thanks for explaining all their uses. My only problem right now is how expensive they are. But if they help its a good thing.
Essential oils are amazing!! What a great breakdown of what one is good at doing.
I’ve been using essential oils for many years now. You taught me new things about how to use it during winter.
These are good tips. I use essentials oils year round especially peppermint and lemon.
Can you believe I still havent gotten on the essential oil trip? I do like what you share about basically survivingthe winter healthily with them. I need to finally get some
Wow this is such a thorough list of uses! I had no idea essential oils could do so much for a family during winter time
These are all such great DIY ideas. I think I have most of the supplies for the hand sanitizer, and I like to keep some in my purse for the kids.
I have several favorites that I love to use. Some of my favorite essential oils include rosemary, frankincense, winter green, lemon, and clove.
Shower bombs?! Lip scrub and throat drops?! OMG I love this! These are such perfect ideas for winter!! EO’s never fail to amaze me!!!
I am not currently using essential oils. However, I know many friends who do and they love them. Thanks for sharing these oils. I may try some.
What a great list of resources for oils! I just started using EO’s this year so this is the first full winter we will have them in our arsenal. Definitely keeping some of these ideas in mind!
You are going to LOVE all the opportunities to use them this winter!