The Art of Aromatherapy: A Guide to Using Essential Oils for Health and Relaxation [Hardcover]

Pamela Allardice (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Books on aromatherapy are plentiful, but finding the right one for your needs is not necessarily simple. Consider The Art of Aromatherapy an introduction into the world of essential oils. This attractive, easy-to-read reference contains many of the basics you'll need to start incorporating aromatherapy into your daily routine. After a brief but informative introduction to the medicinal and therapeutic uses of plant essences, this little book gets down to business. Thirty of the most popular essential oils are presented, first with a brief description and place in history, then moving into the practical and medicinal realm. Although most of the names will probably be familiar (basil, clove, cinnamon, lavender) many of their therapeutic uses might offer some surprises. Lavender oil, for example, is not only a calming sleep aid (just leave a drop on your pillow), but it can also be a soothing rub for patients suffering from arthritis. The fact-packed text, complemented by colorful illustrations, offers straightforward, useful information for aromatherapy beginners. --Sara Nickerson

Product Details

• Hardcover: 80 pages
• Publisher: Crescent Books; 1 edition (December 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517120674
• ISBN-13: 978-0517120675
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,917,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #22 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Health, Mind & Body > Alternative Medicine > Aromatherapy

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A comprehensive, quick reference, April 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Art of Aromatherapy: A Guide to Using Essential Oils for Health and Relaxation (Hardcover)

If you have been wondering what Aromatherapy & essentialoils are all about this is a good book to start you off. This booklists the most common & some not so common essential oils &their uses. It also gives a brief history of each particular essential oil & what plant it comes from. Also, how to mix with a carrier oil as essential oils must be diluted. It provides a good all-around quick reference to understanding & using essential oils.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Art of Aromatherapy, April 28, 2003

By 

smartnurse123 (Slidell, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Art of Aromatherapy: A Guide to Using Essential Oils for Health and Relaxation (Hardcover)

An attractive and informative small book that gives basic information about essential oils used in aromatherapy for over 25 different oils such as Chamomile, Eucalyptus, Jasmine and Lavender--to name a few. The pictures are just beautiful and the write-up is done in fancy lettering. It makes a wonderful gift.

In each section, there is a description and history, a medicinal section and properties for each oil. My favorite is LAVENDER: Did you know that Lavender Oil is used as the basic ingredient of many fragrances? Lavender has a calming effect and this book recommends a drop of lavender oil on your pillow or in your bath to promote a restful sleep. Properties of lavender include a muscle relaxant, sedative, antidepressant and others....

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty pictures, some useful information., December 29, 2010

By 

Merriwether the Adventurer (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Art of Aromatherapy: A Guide to Using Essential Oils for Health and Relaxation (Hardcover)

My scores are based on the usefulness of this book for foraging medicinal plants.
Overall rating: 3 stars
Number of plants: 2 stars
Treatment lists: 3 stars
Treatment details: 3 stars
Picture types: color paintings
Plant identification: 1 stars
Who will find it useful: novice to experienced herbalists, people who like long baths, chemists, people who like to smell stuff

Notes: The object of this book is to introduce beginners to using essential oils of assorted flowers, fruits, bark, and leaves. Each plant is given a historical background, medicinal properties of it's oil, any important warnings, and a beautiful painting. Treatment techniques are limited to different ways of smelling the oil such as adding it to a bath, vaporizing it into the air, or in rare instances direct application to the flesh. The book does not teach how to extract these oils but assumes you will purchase them. There is no glossary of terms or a way of looking up which oil(s) are appropriate for a particular condition.