Dilution and Carrier Oils

[Morrighana]

I realize I'm replying to an old thread, but this is driving me nuts.

 

I've just started looking into the idea of creating rollerballs/atomizers/etc of some of my imps, and from what I understand, I need to dilute or use a carrier oil (which makes sense). I know that there USED to be carrier oils on the BPAL site, but I can not for the life of me find them. Are they still available? Can somene tell me where to find them? I looked at the menu on the side of the page, and didn't see anything that seemed to fit, I did a search for "jojoba", and got 0 results... I tried randomly clicking through the different categories and scanning the lists, and didn't see anything... I tried doing a search on the forums, and couldn't find a link. I'm ready to pull out my hair here!

 

Help?

 

Thanks, all!

 

--M

 

BPAL stopped selling carrier oils a looong time ago, around the same time they stopped selling bath stuff on the main site.

[erina74]

I use sweet almond oil as a carrier a lot for my oil burner. Its always worked well for me.

[Niksia]

Hi peeps,

 

I just got my first order and I'm already experimenting. I bought grapeseed oil and wheatgerm to try and dilute some of my yummier imps. Anyone with an opinion on which is better? I'll test them on my arms shortly to check for smell.

 

Oh, and are plastic bottles bad? I wasn't sure and managed to find some almost small enough but I'm a little worried they might taint the scent.

 

And last bit, I swear, is 4 to 1 a good starting dilution? One imp to 4ml of carrier seemed ok to me but a little advice would help.

 

Thanks!

[seethroughstars]

I've used jojoba oil as a carrier oil to extend the life of my imps . . . it's too light. The version I used is very good scent-wise (as in there's no scent to speak of) but it didn't mix well with any of my scents. And when I would shake it up I could see the little bits of the BPAL oil.

 

It could be the imp containers are not conducive to mixing. But that was my impression of it.

[tartchef]

I can see where you might have blending problems with jojoba, Seethroughstars - I just made some jojoba & BPAL rollers for my dad, and some of the scents took a good bit of jostling to mix in properly. I'd try decanting your BPAL into a larger bottle than an imp, so you have a bit of room to swirl things around. I'm using appx 4ml rollers, and that seems to work well.

 

From a strict carrier perspective, I can't recommend jojoba enough - it absorbs really quickly, isn't greasy to the touch, and really opens up the scents I've tried so far.

[celestemcc]

Newbie here... LOVE BPAL. Just got introduced and already head-over-heels for "Nocturne"... ordered a full size and extra imps... also loving Black Rose.

 

I love perfume oils. But I adore solid perfumes. And didn't want to buy the beeswax & jojoba oil to make one using an imp... so I tried this.

 

I bought some stick-type lipbalms made with beeswax and jojoba (I used Aromaleigh's plain balm.) Twisted it all the way up and removed the stick of balm, then pushed/twisted the little mechanism back into the bottom of the tube. I put the balm stick into a Chinese-type spoon, made of porcelain or plastic, that has an indented/concave handle (great for pouring!) Melted the balm stick in the spoon, carefully, in the microwave at 30% power, took about one minute. Immediately poured in one imp of Black Rose. Stirred it quickly (wooden skewer) and poured the mixture, through the spoon handle, back in the tube. Let it set in the fridge for ca. 15 minutes, then removed it.

 

So: quickie solid perfume. It doesn't seem to have affected the fragrance at all. time will tell if this works out, and if BPAL does eventually make solids, I'd rather buy those! But in the meantime, I'm hoping this will be a solution to traveling with favorite perfume oils.

[LaurieB]

Wow--that sounds easy and it would be handy to have solid BPALS!

[terrenity]

Just wanted to put my two cents in...

 

I went to Whole Foods today and picked up a bottle of Jojoba oil as well as some little vials (including some appx 4ml rollerballs). Just attempted my first dilution, and am extremely pleased with the results. I also have no trouble getting the rollerball to roll with the jojoba oil! I used the following proportions:

 

2 ml Jojoba Oil

.5 ml Mata Hari (a stronger scent, IMO)

 

The throw seems somewhat less, but the scent is otherwise unaltered. The rollerballs cost me $1.19 at Whole Foods, and 4 oz of pure jojoba was $10. I was able to pick up plastic pipettes at Sally's Beauty Supply for 69 cents each.

 

 

I will edit this post if I have any problems with the rollerball leaking, since the jojoba + Mata Hari combo is pretty thin.

 

-goes to make labels-

 

ETA: Also made a rollerball of Sundew, but that one isn't as strong as Mata Hari... I'd estimate I used about a 2:1 carrier-to-bpal ratio on that one.

 

Update: I haven't had problems with the rollerballs leaking in my purse, although I have noticed that I get a LOT more oil with one swipe if the vial has been upside down. Additionally, although the oils mixed well at first, Mata Hari seems to have separated out and I'm getting the 'lava lamp' effect. Rolling and upending and righting the bottle has had little effect. Strangely, this is happening only with Mata Hari.

Edited January 26, 2008 by terrenity

[HyderTyter]

For those looking for a thicker oil for roller vials, might try Castor oil (Castor seed oil)... its typically used in commercial products that come in the roller ball form like lip gloss... might not leak as much...

[Dracoo9]

Where does one find the little vials? The little plastic vials the imps come in, I mean. I checked Michaels and it wasnt there

[fireflower]

Where does one find the little vials? The little plastic vials the imps come in, I mean. I checked Michaels and it wasnt there

 

Yeah, none of the craft stores seem to carry them. I get mine at sunburstbottle.com. I'm not sure where to get them other than that site.

[Dracoo9]

Where does one find the little vials? The little plastic vials the imps come in, I mean. I checked Michaels and it wasnt there

 

Yeah, none of the craft stores seem to carry them. I get mine at sunburstbottle.com. I'm not sure where to get them other than that site.

 

Thank you

 

I searched around a bit and couldn't find any container around 1 ml in size/capacity. Is there a specific url?

Edited April 13, 2008 by Dracoo9

[likie]

I used to get mine at Nature's Gift, because I could go pick them up and not have to pay the usually very high shipping charges for those things. People sell 1 ml or 1/32 oz. sample vials semi-frequently on ebay too, that's where I got my current lot (about 1800 vials!)

 

There's also a thread in the BPAL FAQ's on this general topic that I'm probably going to be too lazy to go look up and then edit this post about.

[Dracoo9]

I used to get mine at Nature's Gift, because I could go pick them up and not have to pay the usually very high shipping charges for those things. People sell 1 ml or 1/32 oz. sample vials semi-frequently on ebay too, that's where I got my current lot (about 1800 vials!)

 

There's also a thread in the BPAL FAQ's on this general topic that I'm probably going to be too lazy to go look up and then edit this post about.

 

Thank you, I'll go look there.

[Moryssa]

Where does one find the little vials? The little plastic vials the imps come in, I mean. I checked Michaels and it wasnt there

 

You are referring to the actual containers that hold the oil, yes? They're not plastic-- they're glass.

 

However, here is a list of perfume paraphernalia suppliers... and here is a discussion topic about all things bottles/containers/supplies.

 

I think that most people either get the 1/32 oz vials from Sunburst Bottle Company or from Pilot Vials, but I'm not sure. (both companies are in the list of suppliers linked above). I just placed an order with PV myself at the end of last week, so I'm still waiting for it to arrive.

 

--M

[theauth]

I'm having a problem. I would like to try and find (if possible) a carrier oil that is reasonably unscented but THICK.

 

I love using the 1ml rollerballs so I can keep them in my purse but there are just a handful of scents that the oils are thin enough that they tend to seep out around the caps. I would like to find something that is either unscented or has very little scent so I could add 1 or 2 drops to those imps that needed it to keep them from leaking....that's the idea anyway.

 

Does anyone know enough about carrier oils to have an idea? Most of the ones I've been able to find are either unscented but too thin or heavy and stinky

 

I would love any ideas that people might have that have more experiance in carrier oils and the likes.

 

Thanks!

Laura

 

I don't know if castor oil has a strong smell but if I recall correctly it sure is thick!

[DARKBEAUTY28]

I mixed Wrath 2ml with about 2ml of jojoba oil in a glass roller ball bottle and it mixed great. So if you are having mixing problems with the jojoba oil that you are using you might want to try The Vitamin Shoppe brand.

[terrenity]

Since I discovered diluting into rollerballs, I've been diluting every BPAL that comes my way, and so far it was worked great.

 

But the other day I tried making a rollerball of Boomslang, and I can't get the Boomslang to come out of the roller! I had a lot of trouble getting them to mix, so I performed the great BPAL sin and shook it. It looked like the oils mixed, but all I could get out of the rollerball was lightly-scented jojoba. Has anyone else had trouble with Boomslang or other very very thick BPAL's in rollerballs?

[rymorg2]

Has anyone tried using camellia oil or argan oil to dilute with? I have jojoba but my camellia and argan are my faves.

[katee]

You really have to use an oil with NO fragrance as a carrier and neither of those would work. Argan oil, in particular, has quite a fragrance. I adore the stuff, as does my skin and hair, but would never alter my BPALs with it. When you purchase a fragrance from an etailer in a roller bottle, what THEY use is jojoba. I adore it and high quality jojoba is readily availably. jmho

[Mousesong]

BRILLIANT

 

THIS IS GENIUS. I am gonna try this.

[Medievalmaniac]

Has anyone tried mixing BPAL in a scentless lotion, rather than an oil? Did that work for you? I would LOVE to have a lotion that smells like some of mine!

[ivyandpeony]

medievalmaniac - there's an thread here about scenting lotion, body oils & such with your BPAL. Lots of comments & advice.

[cgleichman]

Since I discovered diluting into rollerballs, I've been diluting every BPAL that comes my way, and so far it was worked great.

 

But the other day I tried making a rollerball of Boomslang, and I can't get the Boomslang to come out of the roller! I had a lot of trouble getting them to mix, so I performed the great BPAL sin and shook it. It looked like the oils mixed, but all I could get out of the rollerball was lightly-scented jojoba. Has anyone else had trouble with Boomslang or other very very thick BPAL's in rollerballs?

 

I never tried it, but I am not surprised! Boomslang has those solid-looking particles mixed in; probably clogged the roller!

[The Planet Queen]

I've never had any trouble with grapeseed oil. I've used it as a carrier oil since 1998. I've never had a problem with it separating or going rancid. That is if you use dark bottles, tight caps, and keep them in a cool place. I've also used sesame oil. Be careful because some is scented. In the winter I use Netrogena sesame oil that has a very light scent mixed with usually single scents. One is lavender which is safe to put as much as you want without a carrier for instance. However bergamot is stronger so I cut it with a carrier. Some oils I've come across can cause skin irritation especially if used in a large quantity like for a massage.