I've been on a bit of a Googling frenzy after reading somewhere on the internet that you can use a few drops of lemon oil in your morning water, instead of lemon juice (spoiler alert - you can't).

I pondered it for a while and, having purchased a little bottle of said oil, I returned to the internet to seek more info.

Basically, as is always the way, what I found was a myriad of conflicting info. Among them too many people saying that ingesting any essential oil was a huge no-no. This is the post that convinced me it was a bad idea and had me feeling relieved I'd researched it further.

So, back to plain old lemon juice in my morning drink it is (when I remember to buy lemons). The benefits are wildly documented and now that I'm used to the slightly strange taste I enjoy it as my first drink of the day.

But I was left with a little bottle of lemon oil, which the internet tells me has many amazing and beneficial uses, and I wanted to use it. I read loads of websites telling me that it's great for x, y and z. But few that told me exactly how to use the oil to reap the benefits. I must've read ten posts on the benefits for every post I found that told me how.

For example here is a statement from the Experience Essential Oils website:

Lemon oil benefits skin and hair; and may reduce the appearance of blemishes if added to moisturizer. Add it your shampoo to promote cleaning or add to conditioner to support healthy hair and bring on the shine!

OK, great!

But, do I add a few drops to my bottle of moisturiser or a few drops to the amount I apply daily? And what about a carrier oil? (one thing I did learn on this search was never to use undiluted essential oil directly on skin). How much do I add to shampoo? to conditioner? Do I add to both or just one?

This was just the tip of the mildly irritating iceberg.

Anyway I'm sure you get my point, so here's what I did find:

This link on beautymunsta.com has a good tip for using lemon oil to fight acne:

Lemon essential oil is one of the most powerful anti-acne essential oils. It contains powerful ingredients like antioxidants, vitamin C, citric acid, etc, which fight off acne causing germs and boost collagen production, thereby reducing scarring. Mix a drop of lemon essential oil in 1/4 cup of coconut oil. Store this in a small jar and massage it onto your face to gradually remove acne completely with no side effects like scarring.

Backdoor Survival make some suggestions I'm skeptical about (due to adding undiluted oil to water and / or applying directly to the skin) but no.14. seems like a good one to remember:

Relieve Cold Sores & Fever Blisters: Dab a drop of lemon oil on the cold sore 2 to 3 times daily. If the lemon oil stings, dilute first with a bit of coconut oil or olive oil.

And I like no.18: Improve Mental Clarity: Diffuse lemon in your work or study space to improve mental accuracy and concentration.

I've got the oil burner going as I type. It smells delicious!

And no.28: Mosquito Repellent: Mix lemon oil with a carrier oil (such as coconut oil) and run over your skin to repel mosquitos who hate the smell.

Better than the smell of Jungle Gel, right?

Thanks to Holland & Barrett I now know this - Never pour essential oils direct and undiluted in water: mix a few drops of essential oil in a base oil, whole milk or cream, and add it to bath water, or a shower gel. 5 to 10 drops of essential oil are sufficient per 10ml of base oil.

I read somewhere (I can't find it now) that adding it to your bath water can really lift your mood, so I'll be adding some to mine when the need arises - mixed with a carrier oil of course.

It goes without saying that this only touches on a few uses but it's a good start for me and my little bottle of oil. There are loads of ways to use it around the house, including removing the sticky residue left by stickers e.g. on the soles of your shoes, on the pretty vase you were given as a wedding present, on the bottom of your brand new cat mug :)

I'm determined to find more info on using it with shampoo and / or conditioner - I'll keep you posted.

Do you use essential oils for anything? I'd love to hear about it if you have, I'm interested to know more.