Essential oils have magickal properties all their own. How we use them in combination with other tools of magick can enhance or even detract from the spell or ritual being performed. I have included a guide on how to make your own essential oils as well as a list of the magickal properties of herbs and oils below:

  Essential Oils:
What you need and how to do it:

A "carrier" oil.
The intended use decides which one. Edible oils are sold in super-markets everywhere, and can often be used for other purposes than just eating. In herbal cosmetic shops like the Body Shop you can buy pure or blended oils for special purposes like bathing and massage. You can experiment with different oils for different purposes, but never ingest any oil that wasn't specifically made for the purpose. It's important that you use new oil with the best before date well ahead, as fragrant oils don't keep as well as essential oils. Wheatgerm oil can be used as a preservative if you find that your oils don't keep well.

The herb.
For this purpose it doesn't matter if it's fresh, dried or even frozen. Herbs are sold in many places. Occult shops often have quite an assortment, but the super-market in your area may sell some of these much cheaper. Super-markets often have herbs in either the spice department (notably fennel and cardamon), the health food department (notably rosehips and buckwheat) or even the hot drinks department (notably chamomille and cocoa). Specialized health food stores and natural cosmetics boutiques often have herbs too. Or, you can opt to grow your own.

If you will use the oil on your skin, make sure that it won't irritate or cause allergic reactions. You may want to consult a book on aromatherapy if you are using fragrant oils for healing. Some oils are considered aphrodisiacs, and can be quite fun to use for massage. A practical consideration is the availability of a given herb. Herbs may be unavailable for many different reasons. Maybe it isn't traditionally used in your part of the world, it may be illegal for a number of reasons, it could be surrounded with superstition or it can simply be out of season.

A bottle.
Fragrant oils are sensitive to light so try avoiding crystal clear bottles. You will often want to use just a spoonful of the oil, so a squirt cap is useful. Shampoo bottles can often be used, as they are generally about the right size and have caps which are made so you can easily take a small amount without having oil run down the outside of the bottle. Plastic bottles will often be found to take on some of the aroma of the contents, so you may want to throw them away after one use, or always keep the same oil in the same bottle.  Label all your bottles carefully with the name of the herb, carrier oil and date of manufacture!

This is how to do it:
The basic principle is easy: Put the herb in the oil, and wait. If you are bothered by herb particles in the finished product, you can use a tea egg or a small bag of muslin or nylon suspended by string in the bottle, and remove them when you find the fragrance strong enough. This requires a bottle with a wide opening. If you don't have such a bottle, you can strain the oil in a wire-mesh tea sieve instead. If you aren't bothered by herb particles, you can often leave the herb in the oil until you've used it all up. This works particularly well with antiseptic herbs like peppermint, but can in other cases make the oil go stale.

The time it takes for an oil to become pleasantly fragrant depends on the herb and the oil, what you consider pleasant and the conditions you keep them under. You will have to experiment with concentration, stirring, and time to find out which works best under your circumstances. With some herbs crushing can speed up the process. Seeds like fennel are among those. Many herbs vary quite a lot in strength depending on a range of factors, so sometimes you will have to adapt your recipes. The best thing is probably to develop your intuition with regards to herbs. As a rule of thumb, two weeks to three months should be adequate.

After the wait, you will have your very own homemade essential oils prepared for whatever use you see fit! Essential oils are better than synthetic oils because you can use them without worrying about getting a plastique smell when burning them, or having an allergic reaction to strange chemicals.

Magickal Properties of Oils

Courage~ Cedar, Musk, Rose Geranium
Fertility~ Musk, Vervain
Friendships~ Sweetpea
Happiness~ Sweetpea
Harmony~ Basil, Gardenia, Lilac, Narcissus
Healing~ Carnation, Eucalyptus, Gardenia, Myrrh, Narcissus, Rosemary, Sandalwood, Violet
Love~ Clove, Gardenia, Jasmine, Orris, Rose, Sweetpea
Luck~ Cinnamon, Cypress, Lotus
Lust~ Cinnamon, Clove, Musk, Vanilla
Magnetic~ to attract men~ Gardenia, Ginger, Jasmine, Lavender, Musk, Neroli
Magnetic~ to attract women~ Bay, Musk, Patchouli, Violet
Meditation~ Acacia, Jasmine, Magnolia, Myrrh, Nutmeg
Mental Powers~ Lilac, Rosemary
Money~ Almond, Bayberry, Bergamot, Honeysuckle, Mint, Patchouli, Pine, Vervain
Peace~ Cumin, Gardenia, Magnolia, Rose
Power~ Carnation, Rosemary, Vanilla
Protection~ Cypress, Myrrh, Patchouli, Rose Geranium, Rosemary, Violet, Wisteria
Psychic Powers~ Acacia, Lilac, Mimosa, Nutmeg, Sandalwood
Purification~ Acacia, Cinnamon, Clove, Frankincense, Jasmine, Lavender, Myrrh, Sandalwood
Sleep~ Lavender, Narcissus
Spirituality~ Heliotrope, Lotus, Magnolia, Sandalwood
Vitality~ Allspice, Carnation, Rosemary, Vanilla