Make your own DIY essential oil rollerballs for spring and summer to soothe all sorts of ouchies and ailments, including bug bites, sunburns and more.

* * *

Rollerballs, roller bottles… I’m never quite sure what to call ’em, but what I do know is that they are one of my favourite ways to blend and use essential oils in our daily lives.

So, in case you don’t know, an essential oil rollerball (or roller bottle) is a small 10ml rollerball tube that contains essential oils diluted with a carrier oil so it’s ready to be applied directly to your skin when you need it. I call it a rollerball because of the rollerball top, others call it a roller bottle because of the bottle itself. As far as I know, both are technically correct. Potayto, potahto, amiright?

I wrote a post about my favourite rollerball recipes for fall and winter a few months ago where I go into a lot of detail about creating and using rollerballs, as well as how much to dilute oils for everyone in your family, including kids and babies. I won’t go into as much detail here because you can check out that original post here. But I will touch on the important points again.

The recipes I had in the fall and winter post were specifically formulated to assist with standard illnesses and ailments that tend to strike in the cold-weather months, however I do tend to use most of mine year-round, so don’t be turned off by the title of the post! 

All of the rollerball recipes in both posts can be used all year long, however I’ve separated them into “fall/winter” and “spring/summer” simply because there are certain ones that are better suited for warm weather seasons vs. cold weather seasons.

This post focuses on essential oil blends to support health and wellness throughout the spring and summer, when we tend to deal with specific warm-weather issues like bug bites, sunburns and spring allergies. But again, some of them, like the relaxation and mood boosting blends, can most definitely be used all year long.

Okay, now that I’ve told you what you probably already knew, let’s dive into the really important bits…

Diluting Essential Oils

I’ve said it before, but I must say it again, it’s super important to DILUTE ESSENTIAL OILS in a carrier oil before applying them to your skin.

While there are a few essential oils that are gentler and may, in certain circumstances, be applied neat (aka. undiluted), the general rule is that you must dilute essential oils in a carrier oil (ie. olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, etc…) before applying them to skin. Failing to do so can result (and has resulted) in some pretty nasty burns and skin irritations. 

Even some of the gentler oils like tea tree and lavender can irritate skin when applied neat. I speak from personal experience as I was using a neat blend of both these oils on my face when I was dealing with a particularly bad breakout. After a few days my skin was so dry it felt painfully tight and was starting to flake off. Not pretty. To be fair, my breakout had completely cleared up. But I think the dry skin was worse. So, moral of the story: Don’t be a hero. Dilute your essential oils. Get it? Got it? Good.

Okay, so how do you dilute essential oils, exactly?

According to Plant Therapy’s dilution guidelines, for adults you should be aiming for a 5% dilution. This is suitable for occasional or short-term use.

For kids ages 2 to 15, the safest dilution is around 1%. Babies under 2 need even more dilution at just 0.1% – 0.5% max, and essential oils are not recommended for use on premature babies.

Now, full disclosure: personally, I don’t dilute mine quite so much. I do about a 10% dilution for my adult blends, and about a 2% or 3% dilution for my kid blends, which I make with all KidSafe oils, so they’re already naturally gentler than some of the ones I use for myself and my husband.

BUT, that’s what works for our family, and I came to that conclusion after a lot of patch testing and use of different oils. If you’ve been using oils for a while and feel confident in your dilution ratios, you are, of course, welcome to increase the amount of essential oils recommended in the recipes below. But I wouldn’t increase them any more than double what the recipe says, and I always recommend doing a small patch test on your wrist and waiting half an hour or so to see if you have a bad reaction before applying any more to your body.

All of that said, the recipes in this post are based on the standard 5% dilution for adults and 1% dilution for children ages 2-15. If you’d like a more detailed look at dilution recommendations you can check out the chart below.

Source: Plant Therapy

How to Dilute Essential Oils

To dilute essential oils, you must mix them with a carrier oil (not water!). 

Essential oils are soluble in oil, meaning they’ll disperse easily and dilute effectively. They don’t mix well with water, so it’s always recommended that you dilute them in oil first for all topical applications.

When it comes to rollerballs, all you need to do is add the recommended amount of essential oils to your bottle and then top with a carrier oil of your choice. Then shake it up and it’s ready to use!

Choosing your carrier oil

Carrier oils are just fatty oils that you can use to dilute your essential oils. Pretty much any fatty oil can be used as a carrier oil, so think coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, hempseed oil, etc.

If you’re not sure which carrier oil to choose, check out the chart below to get an overview of some of the most popular carrier oils.

Source: Plant Therapy

KidSafe essential oils

Not all essential oils are safe for use on children, so you should be careful about which essential oils you blend together in rollerballs intended for use on kids.

Luckily, Plant Therapy (the brand of oils that I use daily and recommend highly) has an entire line of KidSafe essential oils that are clearly labelled, so it’s easy to know which ones are safe for kids and which are not.

But don’t worry, if you use a different brand of essential oils or you’re not sure which oils are “KidSafe,” I’ve done the work for you here and have crafted KidSafe versions of most of the adult blends and included all of the recipes below (and I’ve diluted them to 1% already:)

How To Make Essential Oil Rollerballs

Rollerballs are incredibly easy to make with a few “essential” supplies;)

You’ll need:

• Essential oils (see recipes below for specifics)
• 10ml roller bottles 
• Carrier oil of your choice

Directions:

1. Add the essential oils listed in the recipe you’ve chosen from the list below to your roller bottle 
2. Top with carrier oil and place rollerball cap back on the bottle. 
3. Shake well to blend before applying

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy, right?

Oh, and speaking of lemon squeezy, here’s my quick disclaimer (it has a little bit to do with lemon essential oil, so hear me out)…

Disclaimer and safety notes:

Please note that all of these recipes are intended for standard 10ml rollerballs.

Also note that any rollerballs that contain citrus like lemon or lime  should not be applied to skin that will be exposed to direct sunlight as this can cause a phytotoxic reaction that can result in something similar to a sunburn. Steam distilled lemon and lime oils are safe for use in the sun.

Pregnant women should not use essential oils without first checking with their midwife or physician.

* All KidSafe blends listed below are intended for use on children over 2 years old. All essential oils listed in the KidSafe blends below are labelled KidSafe by Plant Therapy and diluted to 1%. *

As always, it is my legal responsibility to remind you that I am not a doctor and am simply sharing the essential oil blends that we use in our house and that I have researched thoroughly and understand to be safe. It is always recommended to consult your doctor, naturopath or certified health care practitioner before incorporating essential oils into your regular healthcare routine.

Essential oil rollerballs for spring and summer

Rollerballs for the great outdoors

Spring and summer are meant to be lived outdoors! But bug bites, boo boos and too much sun can irritate skin and make you and your family miserable. These rollerballs for the outdoors will help ward off unwanted critters, soothe sunburns and take the ouch out of summer duchies!

(Apply directly to affected area)

Buzz Off Bug Repellent

• 5 drops citronella
• 5 drops lemongrass
• 5 drops tea tree

* KidSafe “Buzz Off” Bug Repellent *

• 1 drop citronella
• 1 drop lavender
• 1 drop geranium

After Bite

• 5 drops peppermint
• 5 drops tea tree
• 5 drops lavender

* KidSafe After Bite *

• 1 drop chamomile
• 1 drops lavender
• 1 drop tea tree

Sun Soother After Sun Blend

• 5 drops lavender
• 5 drops peppermint
• 5 drops frankincense

* KidSafe Sun Soother After Sun Blend *

• 1 drop lavender
• 1 drop spearmint
• 1 drop frankincense

Boo Boo Blend

• 5 drops frankincense
• 5 drops tea tree
• 5 drops lavender

* KidSafe Boo Boo Blend *

• 1 drop frankincense
• 1 drops tea tree
• 1 drop lavender

Rollerballs for allergies and illnesses

Spring allergies can make you want to lock your doors and windows and never come close to another flower again. And warmer weather unfortunately isn’t enough to stop a cold. These rollerball blends will help to keep you healthy and breathing clearly all spring and summer.

(Apply to neck and behind the ears + temples & forehead for headache blends)

Spring Allergy Blend

• 5 drops peppermint
• 5 drops lemon*
• 5 drops lavender

* KidSafe Allergy Blend *

• 1 drop lavender
• 1 drop lemon*
• 1 drop fir needle

Headaches & Hangovers Blend

• 5 drops peppermint
• 5 drops lavender
• 5 drops sweet orange

* KidSafe Headache Blend *

• 1 drop lavender
• 1 drop sweet orange
• 1 drop spearmint

Summertime Cough & Cold Blend

• 5 drops chamomile
• 5 drops lemon*
• 5 drops eucalyptus

* Kidsafe Summertime Cough & Cold Blend *

• 1 drop chamomile
• 1 drop lemon*
• 1 drop eucalyptus

Rollerballs for Banishing Stress & Boosting Mood

Stress and anxiety can strike even during the bright and sunny spring and summer seasons. Keep calm and carry on with these stress-busting, mood-boosting rollerball blends.

(Apply to wrists, neck and behind the ears)

Stress-Free Summer Blend

• 5 drops lavender
• 5 drops sweet orange
• 5 drops ylang ylang

* KidSafe Stress-Free Blend *

• 1 drop lavender
• 1 drop sweet orange
• 1 drop chamomile

Anxious Traveller Blend

• 5 drops lavender
• 5 drops sandalwood
• 5 drops ylang ylang

* KidSafe Anxious Traveller Blend *

• 1 drop lavender
• 1 drop vetiver
• 1 drop chamomile

“Sunny Disposition” Mood Boosting Blend

• 5 drops pink grapefruit*
• 5 drops peru balsam
• 5 drops lime*

* KidSafe Mood Boosting Blend *

• 1 drop sweet orange
• 1 drop pink grapefruit*
• 1 drop steam distilled lime

Happy Gardener Blend

• 5 drops basil
• 5 drops lemon* 
• 5 drops lemongrass

* Some citrus oils (lemon, lime, pink grapefruit) are phototoxic, which means they can irritate and even burn skin when applied and exposed to sunlight. If you’re using any of these essential oils in your rollerball blends, please be sure to only apply them to areas of skin that will be covered and not exposed to sunlight, OR use steam-distilled versions of the suggested oils. Plant Therapy carries steam distilled lemon and lime oils, which are safe to use in the sun. 

If you’re looking to build your oil collection, you can check out Plant Therapy’s full (and extensive) list of essential oils here.

Or click here for KidSafe oils.

Labelling Your Rollerballs

You’ll want to label each rollerball you make as you go so you don’t get them mixed up.

DON’T UNDERESTIMATE THE IMPORTANCE OF LABELLING!

Trust me, it’s really, really easy to get your rollerballs mixed up if you don’t label them right away, so put a label on it!

To help you out, I’ve created a free printable guide to creating your own Essential Oil Rollerballs, complete with printable labels. You can grab it from the “Home Pharmacy” section of my Free Resource library!

For more in-depth general info. about using essential oils, check out this post on Everything You Need to Know to Get Started With Essential Oils.

Wishing you homemade, homegrown, homestead happiness 🙂