Organic Lavender Essential Oil

Fragrance: Sweet, floral, and herbal scent with notes of evergreen wood

Botanical Name: Lavandula angustifolia

Emotional Effect: Calming and supportive

Method of Extraction: Steam Distillation of the Flowers

Country of Origin: France

I think of Lavender essential oil when blending as the butter of blends; it goes with almost everything and enhances the tastes of everything around it. Like Tea Tree, it is one of only two oils that the IFA (International Federation of Aromatherapists) to be safe to apply directly to your skin. As they put it, 

Although Tea Tree and Lavender may be applied neat to very small areas of skin as first aid remedies for insect bites, minor burns, spots etc, repeated long term application is not recommended; these oils are the exception but have equal propensity to cause skin irritation if overused. 

Fine to dab on burns or your temples for a bit of calm, but not daily in vast quantities.

Like many essential oils, studies have been done (referenced in this review article) showing it has antifungal, antibacterial, neurologic, antimicrobial, anti-parasitic, anti-diabetic, and analgesic effects. As this study shows, applying Lavender Essential Oil is effective at accelerating wound healing and this study found it to be effective in treating infections during wound healing. 

However, I think the quality most people associated with Lavender is its ability to reduce anxiety and promote sleep. This review of eleven studies with 972 participants found in ten of the studies, anxiety was significantly reduced. Three of these studies look at whether there were physiological signs of reduced anxiety levels by measuring things like blood pressure. Again, the studies showed breathing in Lavender vapours reduced anxiety.

As a result of its wide range of uses, from calming down after a stressful day to helping to heal a cut or burn, Lavender is an excellent addition to any budding aromatherapist's toolkit to support mind and body with a myriad of minor ailments.