How to Extract Essential Oils from Honeysuckle Flowers

Essential oils have been extracted from flowers for use in cosmetic and medicinal applications for thousands of years. One of the essential fragrance oils with the loveliest scent is honeysuckle, which also happens to be one of the costliest. So it only makes good sense to make your own. You can easily extract essential oils from honeysuckle flowers without the use of a still. It will take you a little more than a week to complete this project.

Things You'll Need

• 4 cups of honeysuckle flowers, tightly packed Olive oil Wide-mouthed quart jar Plastic zipper bag

Instructions

1. Pick the honeysuckle flowers. If you aren't able to gather enough at one time, it's fine to collect them over a 4 to 5 day period. Store them the way florists store cut flowers. Put the stems in a glass or jar of water and refrigerate until you're ready to use them. Give them a daily spritz of cool water. If you're having difficulty finding enough honeysuckle flowers to make your essential oil, consider supplementing them with jasmine blooms. The aroma of jasmine blends beautifully with that of honeysuckle, serving to accent and enhance it.

2. Remove all of the greenery from the honeysuckle flowers. Pack them tightly into a measuring cup until you have 1 cupful. Pour them into a plastic bag, squeeze out as much air as you can and seal the bag. Use a wooden mallet to bruise the flowers by gently striking them 10 to 20 times. Don't squash them into a pulp. Empty the flowers into a wide-mouthed quart jar.

3. Add 1 cup of olive oil to the jar of honeysuckle flowers. Cap it tightly and set it on a sunny windowsill or other warm spot for 48 hours.

4. Strain the mixture through cheesecloth or a coffee filter. Discard the solid material and put the oil back into the jar.

5. Repeat Steps 2 and 3, using the oil in the jar. Repeat Step 4.

6. Repeat the process two more times with the remaining 2 cups of honeysuckle flowers.

7. Pour your finished honeysuckle essential oil into dark-colored glass bottles or jars. Seal them tightly and store in a dark, cool place for up to a year.

Tips & Warnings

• Cut the honeysuckle flowers as soon as they have fully opened. The blossoms will be viable for using to extract essential oils for as long as 4 to 5 days.