Pure Benzoin Essential Oil (Styrax Benzoin) Steam Distilled Natural Therapeutic Grade 30ml (1 oz)

I've started getting a skin problem round my finger tips from my UV nail stuff and regular nail polish remover but I don't want to stop using it because I don't want bare nails, they break too easily. The skin at the base of my nails, just below my cuticles gets all red, swollen and itchy whenever I do my nails. Frankincense cream helps so I was on the lookout for some oil as well when I came across this Benzoin oil on Vine. I'd never heard of it before so I Googled it and found out that it was good for skin irritations and was an anti-inflammatory so I thought I'd give it a go. The bottle comes with a top that keeps it sealed and another one that you can pop in with a hole in it for when you want to use it. So as I was taking the top off I ended up with a little bit of the oil on my fingers so I thought I'd just rub it into my cuticle area and below so as not to waste the precious oil and the itching stopped almost instantly. I then read that you weren't supposed to put undiluted oil on your skin, oops, so I put some of my argan oil that I've been using on my cuticles over the top and rubbed it in. This worked really well so I wanted to pop a few drops into my bottle and mix it but unfortunately the benzoin oil is so thick that it won't actually pour out of the stopper with the hole in, so I had to remove that and get it all over my hands again (exaggerated for effect, lol) so I put it on my cuticles again and popped my argan oil over the top. You can mix this with any carrier oil, sweet almond oil would probably be ideal, but I like argan oil for my hair and nails anyway so that's what I will use. I think jojoba would also be a good choice if, like me, you want this specifically for your cuticles and nails. I've heard good things about jojoba for the nails and I was intending getting some when my current oil runs out. Whatever oil you decide to mix this benzoin oil with I'm sure you won't be disappointed. This is my new favourite thing, anything that stops that awful itching on my fingers is a winner in my book, it even wakes me up at night sometimes, so I'll be applying more last thing at night, mixed with my brush on cuticle oil that I always apply at night just because I have it. I don't think I would ever want to be without this benzoin oil now, love it.

Botanical name: Styrax Benzoin. Family: Styracaceae. Common names: Gum Benzoin, Gum Benjamin Origin: Sumatra, Java and Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, China, and Thailand. There are many different varieties within the Styrax family which produce Benzoin resin. The natural gum is collected from the tree by making deep incisions in the tree trunk. The sap dribbles slowly out and hardens on exposure to the air. Benzoin is a resinoid solid and cannot be obtained as a pure essential oil from the tree, but has to undergo distillation of the resin to obtain the essential oil.Benzoin has been used in religious ceremonies and medicines in some of the world's oldest civilizations for thousands of years. Benzoin has been used for millennia in the East as a medicine and incense; the fumigations were believed to drive away evil spirits. It was used by the Chinese herbalists for its heating and drying qualities, as a good urinary antiseptic and as an aid in digestion. In the West, it is best known in the form of a compound tincture of Benzoin called: Friars Balsam, which has been used for respiratory problems.Benzoin is a common ingredient in incense-making and perfumery because of its sweet vanilla-like aroma and fixative properties. Gum Benzoin is a major component of the type of church incense used in Russia and some other Eastern Orthodox Christian sects, as well as Western Catholic Churches. Benzoin is used in the Arab states of the Persian Gulf and India, where it is burned on charcoal as an incense. It is also used in the production of Bakhoor scented wood chips, as well as in various mixed resin incenses in the Arab countries and the Horn of Africa. Benzoin is also used in blended types of Japanese incense, Indian incense, Chinese incense, where it is known as Anxi xiang and Papier d'Arménie, as well as other types of incense sticks.Benzoin smells lovely, with a sweet, warm, rich, vanilla-like aroma, but can be challenging to work with, because it can become very thick and even solidify !Chemical AnalysisThe two types of Benzoin have slightly different chemical compositions: (1) Sumatra Benzoin: consists mainly of coniferyl cinnamate and suma-resinolic acid, with benzoic acid 18%, cinnamic acid 20%, and traces of styrene, vanillin 1 %, and benzaldehyde. (2) Siam Benzoin: consists mainly of coniferyl benzoate (65-75 %), with benzoic acid 32%, vanillin 2 %, siaresinolic acid and cinnamyl benzoate. Because Siam Benzoin contains no cinnamic acid this makes it considered to be superior by perfumers.Is Benzoin good for skin? Yes. Some people apply it directly to the skin to kill germs, reduce swelling, and to stop the bleeding from small cuts. Benzoin is also used topically for skin ulcers, bedsores, and cracked skin.What is Benzoin essential oil good for? The therapeutic properties of Benzoin oil include: Anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, antiseptic and astringent. It is soothing, warming and stimulating. It possesses the antidepressant property which helps to relieve tension, anxiety, stress and nervousness. It uplifts the mood and particularly eliminates anxiety as well as stress. Its warming properties make it a valuable oil for use to help fend off winter ailments. It is also useful for helping people get through various life crises.It is therapeutic for the respiratory system: Benzoin works as a mild expectorant and is useful with conditions such as bronchitis, cold & flu symptoms, and sore throats. It also helps with asthma in conjunction with Frankincense and Bergamot.

I'm always on the look out for essential oils that I can use because most contain linalool to which I am allergic. From my brief research it appears that Benzoin Essential Oil does not contain linalool so I jumped at the chance to try it. I miss having lovely scents in my products.I wasn't sure what scent to expect but this is lovely. Very sweet smelling with a woody tone. I can smell vanilla and honey and something I can't quite my finger on. I like it very much. It's not too feminine but it is sweet. My husband doesn't find it too much.I tried a teeny amount mixed with some moisturiser and must say it did have a burning sensation for an hour or two. Now I just have a very subtle scent. I will be cautious using it on my skin I think but I will be able to use it for air freshening and will enjoy doing so.The quality of the oil seems excellent. It has to consistency of runny honey. I don't imagine the supplied plastic euro dropper working for a second as it's so thick. I'd urge you to try the glass dropper instead. I can't say if the dropper works. I just used a clean cotton bud to dip into the oil and get some that way.That's my only criticism and I was forewarned how thick it is from other reviews. It's a resin rather than a natural oil so it makes sense it's thick if it's as pure as they say. I'm glad to have it.