A Detailed Guide to Using Evening Primrose Essential Oil
Evening primrose essential oil is a volatile aromatic substance extracted from the flowers, leaves, stems, roots or fruits of the evening primrose (Oenothera) through steam distillation, pressing, cold maceration or solvent extraction. Undiluted essential oil should generally not be used directly. Essential oils are highly volatile and evaporate quickly once exposed to air; for this reason, they must be stored in sealable bottles, and once a bottle is opened for use, the cap should be replaced as soon as possible.
How is evening primrose essential oil used?
Evening primrose essential oil is deep yellow with a slightly herbal scent, obtained by pressing evening primrose seeds. Besides enjoying its scent through aromatherapy, what other ways are there to use evening primrose?
Through foot soaking: add 1-2 drops of evening primrose essential oil to the foot-soaking water to strengthen cell function, help retain skin moisture and boost skin vitality. It nourishes the skin and leaves it soft and supple. It helps prevent skin aging and effectively improves the dryness, fine lines and wrinkles that trouble the skin in autumn and winter. Suitable for dry, normal-to-dry and mature skin.
Every morning when washing your face, add one drop of evening primrose essential oil to warm water, then press a towel soaked in it onto the facial skin to moisturize and brighten the complexion, maintain the skin's proper moisture level, and keep continuously binding moisture so the skin stays fresh, soft and non-greasy; it smooths fine lines, protects the skin, helps delay aging and keeps the skin healthy and radiant.
Evening primrose essential oil has a clear skincare effect. Skin tends to be drier in autumn and winter, especially the knuckles, ankle joints and elbows, which are prone to dryness and wrinkles. A carrier oil has moisturizing and conditioning effects and can help the skin regain its natural elasticity. When dryness is ordinary, it can be applied three times a week; on particularly dry days it can be applied daily. Alternatively, use it after each bath for full-body skin care. Evening primrose essential oil contains a large amount of linoleic acid and can be applied directly to the skin to treat skin allergy problems. Note, however, that evening primrose essential oil is not used at 100%; blended with other carrier oils, a concentration of 10% is sufficient.