Essential Oils vs Fragrance Oils
If you've ever looked at the ingredients on one of my products, you'll notice something they all have in common.
Every product I make is scented exclusively with pure essential oils. You'll never find fragrance oils in any of my recipes.
It's something that has been important to me from the very beginning and one of the questions I'm often asked at markets is:
"Why don't you use fragrance oils? They smell stronger and there are so many more scents available."
It's a great question, and one I'd love to answer.
What Are Essential Oils?
Essential oils are highly concentrated aromatic extracts obtained directly from plants. Depending on the plant, they're produced using different extraction methods.
- Steam distillation – Lavender, Rosemary, Peppermint
- Cold pressing – Sweet Orange, Lemon, Grapefruit and Lime
- Steam distillation of wood, bark or resin – Frankincense, Cedarwood and Cinnamon Bark
Inside every bottle are dozens and sometimes hundreds, of naturally occurring aromatic compounds produced by the plant itself. These compounds play important roles in the plant's growth, defence and interaction with its environment.
For example:
- Lavender contains naturally occurring linalool and linalyl acetate, giving it its beautifully soft floral aroma.
- Sweet Orange is rich in limonene, creating its bright, fresh citrus scent.
- Rosemary contains compounds such as 1,8-cineole and camphor, which give it its distinctive herbal fragrance.
One of the things I love most about essential oils is that no two harvests are ever exactly the same. Just like wine, coffee or honey, the weather, soil and growing conditions all influence the final aroma.
Every bottle is unique, and that's part of the beauty of working with nature.
What Are Fragrance Oils?
Fragrance oils are specially created to produce a particular scent.
Some are entirely synthetic, while others combine naturally derived ingredients with carefully developed aroma molecules created in a laboratory.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with fragrance oils. They allow makers to create fragrances that simply don't exist naturally, such as:
- Fresh Linen
- Vanilla Cupcake
- Baby Powder
- Sea Breeze
- Birthday Cake
They're also incredibly consistent, meaning every batch smells virtually identical.
Many cosmetic companies use fragrance oils successfully and when used correctly within cosmetic regulations, they are perfectly safe.
Creating fragrance oils is a highly skilled craft, with professional perfumers blending individual aroma ingredients to recreate familiar scents or invent entirely new ones.
So Why Do I Choose Essential Oils?
For me, it comes down to staying as close to nature as possible.
When I started The Stable Soap Company, I wanted to make products inspired by the countryside, horses, gardens and the outdoors.
Using essential oils allows me to capture those natural aromas without trying to imitate them.
When you smell one of my lavender soaps, you're smelling real lavender.
When you enjoy one of my citrus blends, the fresh aroma comes from carefully selected essential oils such as Sweet Orange, Bergamot, Grapefruit or Lime.
When you discover the earthy warmth of Rosemary, Cedarwood or Frankincense, those beautiful scents come directly from the plants themselves.
I love knowing that every bar of soap, shampoo bar, body balm or bath oil carries a genuine piece of nature with it.
The Science Behind the Scent
One of the most fascinating things about essential oils is their complexity.
A single essential oil may contain anywhere from several dozen to well over one hundred naturally occurring aromatic compounds, depending on the plant.
These compounds work together to create the scent we recognise.
Fragrance oils, on the other hand, are carefully formulated by perfumers using selected aroma ingredients to recreate or invent a particular scent profile.
Both essential oils and fragrance oils require expert formulation and both must comply with strict UK and European cosmetic safety regulations.
Because essential oils are derived directly from plants, they naturally contain fragrance allergens such as Linalool, Limonene, Citral, Geraniol and others.
These are not added ingredients; they occur naturally within many plants. Cosmetic regulations require them to be listed on product labels above specified concentrations, which is why you'll often see them included in the ingredients list.
Using Essential Oils Safely
Although essential oils come directly from plants, "natural" doesn't automatically mean they're suitable to use without care.
Essential oils are incredibly concentrated and each one has its own safety profile. Some can irritate the skin if they're used at too high a concentration.
That's why I never recommend applying neat essential oils directly to the skin. They should always be diluted in a suitable carrier oil and used at safe levels.
As a cosmetic maker, every essential oil blend I make is carefully calculated to comply with UK cosmetic safety regulations. The permitted usage levels vary depending on both the individual essential oil and the type of product being made. For example, rinse-off products such as soaps and shampoo bars have different maximum usage levels from leave-on products such as body balms and bath oils.
Working within these guidelines ensures every product is formulated responsibly, while allowing the beautiful aromas of nature to shine through safely.
Why My Products Have a Gentler Aroma
One thing you may notice is that my soaps don't fill the whole room with a scent
That's completely intentional.
Essential oils create a softer, more natural aroma than many fragrance oils. During the soap-making process, some of the more delicate aromatic compounds naturally mellow, leaving behind a gentle scent rather than an overpowering one.
For me, that's part of the beauty of working with nature.
I want my products to smell fresh, authentic and true to the plants they come from, rather than overwhelming the senses.
Why This Matters to Me
Before starting The Stable Soap Company, I spent many years working with children and adults with learning difficulties.
One approach we often used was multi-sensory learning, encouraging people to engage through sight, sound, touch, taste and smell.
During that time, I saw how familiar natural aromas could help create welcoming and comforting environments. Many people associate lavender with relaxation and citrus scents with freshness and energy, although everyone's experience of essential oils is unique.
Those experiences inspired the business I wanted to create.
While I don't make therapeutic or medical claims about my products, they reinforced my appreciation for the beauty of natural botanicals and the powerful connection many of us have with the scents found in nature.
That philosophy continues to guide every recipe I make today.
Behind the Soap Cellar Door
One thing I've learned since I started making soap is that creating a new product rarely happens perfectly the first time.
At the moment I'm developing a new Sea Salt Soap inspired by our beautiful coastline. It has already taught me plenty! One test batch contained a little too much kelp powder, giving it more of a seaweed aroma than I was hoping for. Another had an essential oil blend that I loved, but the scent didn't last as well as I wanted once the soap had cured.
So, it's back to the drawing board.
For me, that's all part of the creative process.
I keep detailed notebooks of every recipe I make, recording exactly what worked, what didn't and what I'd like to improve next time. Every new batch teaches me something and I genuinely enjoy that continual learning.
At the moment I'm also experimenting with infusing natural botanicals, herbs and clays into oils to create beautiful colours using ingredients from nature rather than synthetic colourants. It takes patience, testing and plenty of tweaking, but that's one of the things I love most about formulating my own recipes.
I'm hoping my Sea Salt Soap will be ready very soon and I can't wait to share the finished result with you.
Thank you for supporting a small business that believes nature has always provided some of the most beautiful scents imaginable.
I hope every product I make brings a little piece of the Dorset countryside into your home.
If you've never experienced the difference that pure essential oils can make, why not explore my collection of handmade soaps, shampoo bars and body care? Every product is lovingly made in Dorset using carefully selected botanical ingredients, inspired by the countryside I call home.