2022 is the year of getting my butt up and doing something a little different.  As they say, nothing’s gonna change if nothing’s gonna change.  Now that I’m getting old (yes, I’m inching closer to becoming a granny), I’m a lot more conscious about my wellness.  One of those wellness moves I’ve always wanted to do was get into aromatherapy.  I spent so much time researching all the different essential oils, what is the difference between essential oils and fragrance oils, and if essential oils are safe for pets or not.  Organic Aromas is a brand from Korea that just so happen to sell their devices on both Canada and USA’s Amazon!  So if you want to check these sleek and very interesting diffusers, make sure to click the link here.

Organic aromas have a lot of different designs when it comes to nebulizing diffusers.  Heck, they even have a Christmas tree one which is super cool!  The one I picked is the most simple one and kind of has a design that reminds me of Muji.  This is also one of the designs that I felt won’t break as easily with my butterfingers.  What is cool about this diffuser is that it doesn’t use any heat or doesn’t need water to dilute the essential oils for it to operate.  It simply nebulizes the oils into a fine mist.

I really love the Aurora model (bottom right).  The shape and design would go so well with my room that I’m planning to remodel hehe.

They also have hand-carved ones where the wooden base is a unicorn, dragon, sea creatures, etc.  The dragon one is absolutely stunning!!  There’s even an option to get fully customizable diffusers with your own picture or message printed onto the base.

Funny story with mine, when the delivery driver from Amazon dropped off my package, they decided not to walk the extra 10 steps to my front door and ended up leaving my package in front of my garage door.  My dad in the morning goes to work hears this crushing noise and gets off the car to see what it is.  Sure enough, it is my package with this diffuser that is GLASS!!  Luckily, the inside is packaged super well with tons of foam, so nothing broke.  But damn it Amazon… why you got to do me dirty like that.

Here is the manual that many will just take a quick glance at.  Remember, when you get your device, don’t screw the glass part into the base since it could break from the motion.  You are to add 20-25 drops of essential oil into the glass compartment and I’d highly recommend you use the dropper to do that.  It makes your life much easier and won’t cause a spill. 

Here are all the components inside the box:
-base
-glass reservoir
-glass cap
-power socket
-cleaning pipette x 2
-glass eye dropper
-pump test device

And here is the device itself.  In the picture, I kept thinking this view of the device was the front but it actually isn’t!  The top dial is to turn on and off the device and once it is turned on, the light will also automatically turn on.  To turn off the light, just tap the nub right under the dial and it will turn on. Of course, the black cord is where the diffuser gets the power.

This is the front and when you place it on your tabletop, it looks so sleek and clean.  Of course, you can tuck the cord away.

To operate the device, you need approximately 20-25 drops of essential oil and you shouldn’t overfill it.  Keep the oil level at least 0.6 cm below the top since that is where the oil needs to get sucked in and for the air to spit out on the other side.  With experience, this device does need a lot of oil for it to cycle through smoothly.  If you don’t have enough oil, it will make this spat spat noise and the fine mist stops producing.  I also found the oil seemed to gather around the base of the glass cap and it never seems to drop back down.

Once the diffuser is turned on, one side of the glass tube sucks it up and the other one blows air through it.  The oil gets blown to the side of the glass (look closely to the right side of the device) and through this motion of the oil, it gets spewed to the side.  How do you clean this you ask?  It is recommended to clean the glass reservoir once a week by removing the glass reservoir, squirting some rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol), and gently swirling the alcohol around to remove leftover essential oils.  Remove the alcohol by sucking up the alcohol with the provided pipette.

What are essential oils?

Essential oils are a concentrated hydrophobic liquid that is created through the distillation of either fruits or herbs.  There are many uses of essential oils, but they are mainly used as aromatherapy, home fragrances or to deter unwanted plant pests by making a homemade spray with essential oils.  I would highly recommend not to use a pure essential oil on the skin directly if you do want to make your own aromatherapy since essential oils need a carrier oil for it to be safe to use directly on the skin, and most definitely not the skin on your face.

Are essential oils safe for pets?

Because dogs, cats, and many other pets have different receptors than humans, some essential oils can potentially be harmful to your beloved pets.  Research show essential oils can be toxic to cats either being taken internally, applied to the skin, or even just inhaling it.  It can cause serious liver damage, liver failer, respiratory failure, seizures, or death. Felines have a specific enzyme that is missing which gives them the inability to process various compounds called gluconuridation found in essential oils.

Here are the oils that are poisonous to cats:
Bergamot (Citrus bergamia; Citrus Aurantium), Bitter almond (Peumus boldus), Calamus essential oil (Acorus calamus), Cinnamon, Clary sage, Clove (Syzgium aromaticum), Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus spp.), European Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium), Geranium oil (Pelargonium sp.), Horseradish (Amoracia rusticana), Japanese yew (Taxus spp.), Lavender (Lavendula angustifolia), Lemon oil (Citrus Lemonia) citronella, Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus), Lime oils (Citrus aurantifolia), Mustard, Orange oils (Citrus sinensis), Oregano (Origanum vulgare hirtum), Pennyroyal; American false pennyroyal (Haedeoma pulegioides), Pine, spruce, juniper oils, Rose, Rosemary, Sandalwood, Sassafras, Tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia), Thyme, Wintergreen, peppermint, spearmint, mint (Mentha sp.), Wormseed, Ylang Ylang

If you want to read more on what the symptoms are for cats that are in distress due to essential oils or even liquid potpourri, click here.  The list up above might not be the only essential oils poisonous to cats, so definitely do your own research.

I think cats have it the hardest when it comes to essential oils, but dogs also have quite a sensitivity to essential oils and liquid potpourri.  At low exposures, it only results in gastrointestinal upset but at certain concentrated levels, it can have effects on the liver (pennyroyal oil) and nervous system (tea tree oil).  Here are some of the symptoms you might see if your dog has been exposed.

Essential oils that are poisonous to dogs:
Anise, cinnamon, citrus, clove, garlic, juniper, pennyroyal, peppermint, pine, sweet birch, tea tree, thyme, yarrow, ylang ylang

I was honestly kind of scared to try using diffusers with essential oils, especially with a device that shoots out pure essential oils.  Nevertheless, I made sure to only use it when my dog is upstairs and sleeping for a long period of time.  During the beginning of the year when there was still end of holiday sales, I picked up this “best of Saje” set which has 6 different blends.

My favorite has to be liquid sunshine (grapefruit, bergamot, orange, line, tangerine oil) and elevate (orange, lemon, tangerine, yuzu, lemongrass), both citrus blends.

Deep breath (eucalyptus, lemon, peppermint, marjoram, lavender) would not be a blend I’d recommend using in this diffuser since it has three oils not recommended for pets, so I’ll just sniff at it in the bottle when my nose is plugged.  

When I first got the device and had no essential oils to test out the device with, I made the mistake of trying it out with the only essential oil I had laying around…. peppermint oil.  Now this was before I found out it could be toxic to my dog but even if it wasn’t toxic for dogs, it is DEFINITELY TOXIC FOR HUMANS.  I almost died!!  It is just as bad as being in the kitchen when hot peppers are being sauteed.  No wonder it is toxic for dogs. DO NOT USE PEPPERMINT OIL (unless you have a death wish).

It is also not recommended for you to be using fragrance oil in this device.  Unlike essential oils, fragrance oils are lab manufactured and are not derived from natural distilled materials.

Overall I did really enjoy this device but had to use it sparingly due to my fear of harming my senior doggo.  The design is really nice and cleaning isn’t too much of a hassle.  Check them out on Amazon if you are interested in aromatherapy!