Organic Atlas Cedarwood Essential Oil

Yes. It is 100% pure Cedrus atlantica, steam distilled from the wood in Morocco and bottled here in the UK, with nothing added and nothing diluted.

Our gas chromatography backs it up. The batch we hold reads beta-himachalene 39.76%, alpha-himachalene 15.09% and gamma-himachalene 9.71%, roughly 65% himachalenes in total, alongside the atlantones at about 4%. Those atlantones are the giveaway: they appear in true Atlas cedar and not in the cheaper cedarwoods sold under the same name.

“Cedarwood” covers four quite different oils, and only two of them come from a real cedar tree:

• Atlas cedarwood, which is this: Cedrus atlantica, from the Atlas mountains of Morocco. A true cedar. Soft, dry and balsamic, led by himachalenes, and the one aromatherapy generally means.
• Himalayan cedarwood: Cedrus deodara. Also a true cedar, close in character to Atlas and often used interchangeably.
• Virginian cedarwood: Juniperus virginiana. Not a cedar at all but a juniper. Drier and sharper, the pencil-shavings smell, led by cedrol and thujopsene rather than himachalenes.
• Texas cedarwood: Juniperus mexicana. Also a juniper, harsher again and usually the cheapest of the four.

So if you are shopping for an essential oil of cedarwood and the label says only “cedarwood” with no botanical name, it is most often Virginian, because it costs less. Ours is Atlas and the GC in the Specification tab shows it.

It is one of the most popular oils for the evening, and the reason is its character rather than any strong effect: cedarwood is low, dry and quiet, so it settles a room instead of adding to it.

The classic pairing is 2 drops cedarwood with 3 drops lavender, diffused about half an hour before bed. Cedarwood is a base note and lavender a middle one, so the lavender arrives first and the cedarwood holds underneath it as the room settles. If you prefer something warmer, swap the lavender for sweet orange.

Yes, and it is the traditional choice for exactly this. Use 2 to 3 drops in 30ml of jojoba for a beard oil, which lands around 0.5%. Cedarwood gives a warm woody scent without the sweetness of sandalwood or the sharpness of a citrus, and it is gentle enough for the skin underneath.

For a scalp or hair oil, 1% in a light carrier such as jojoba or sweet almond is plenty. Patch test first as you would with anything new. Our IFRA certificate permits cedarwood at up to 38% in leave-on creams, so a beard oil at well under 1% sits comfortably inside that.

Cedar is the original pest-repellent wood, and it is the reason cedar chests, wardrobe blocks and shingles exist at all. The smell that we find warm and comforting is the one a great many insects avoid, and the oil is simply that smell in concentrated form. It is also the use our own customers mention most often in their reviews.

What cedarwood is traditionally used against

• Clothes moths: the classic one. Cedarwood is what wardrobe blocks and moth sachets are scented with, and it targets the larvae that actually eat wool rather than the adult moth you see flying.
• Termites and woodworm: cedar heartwood resists them naturally, which is why it has always been the timber of choice for chests, linings and outbuildings. Cedarwood oil is the extract of exactly that heartwood.
• Carpet beetles and silverfish: the other two pests of stored fabric, books and paper. Same treatment as moths.
• Mosquitoes, midges and flies: cedarwood is a standard ingredient in homemade repellent blends, usually alongside citronella, lemongrass or eucalyptus.
• Fleas and ants: widely used around skirting boards, pet bedding and doorways where ants come in.
• Bed bugs: a common addition to homemade mattress and bed-frame sprays.

Three things to make with it

• Wardrobe sachets: 8 to 10 drops onto a cotton wool pad or an unfinished wooden block, tucked among stored knitwear. Refresh every month or two. Do not drip it onto the fabric itself, where oil can mark.
• Refresh tired cedar blocks: the ones you buy lose their scent after a year or two. A few drops sanded lightly into the surface brings them straight back, which is cheaper than replacing them.
• Outdoor repellent spray: 20 drops cedarwood, 15 citronella and 10 lemongrass in 100ml of water with a teaspoon of witch hazel or vodka to disperse it. Shake before every use and keep it off the eyes.

One honest note: this is a traditional deterrent, not a treatment. It discourages insects from settling, and it will not clear an established termite, woodworm or bed bug infestation. For that you need a professional.

Cedarwood is a base note, which means its job is to hold other oils up rather than lead. It sits well under lavender, bergamot, sweet orange, frankincense, sandalwood, vetiver, rosemary and clary sage.

Three cedarwood blends

• The sleep blend: 2 cedarwood, 3 lavender. The one most people come for.
• Quiet evening: 2 cedarwood, 2 frankincense, 2 sweet orange.
• Beard oil, 30ml of jojoba: 2 cedarwood, 1 bergamot, 1 vetiver.

Because it is a base note, cedarwood can take a larger share of a blend than a top note without dominating it. It is forgiving to work with.

Dry, warm and softly woody, with a balsamic sweetness underneath. It is the smell of a cedar chest or a wood-panelled room: steady and a little old-fashioned, in a way most people find reassuring rather than dated.

It is noticeably softer than Virginian cedarwood, which reads sharper and more like pencil shavings. Atlas is rounder and slightly sweeter, which is why perfumers reach for it as a base note and why it works in a bedroom where a sharper wood would not.

Cedarwood is one of the gentler oils we sell. Our allergen declaration shows none of the 26 declarable EU cosmetic allergens, and the safety data sheet carries no classification beyond a general note that it may produce an allergic reaction in sensitive people. Dilute it, patch test, keep it out of eyes, and check with a professional in pregnancy.

For formulators, our current IFRA 51 certificate sets the maximum at 38% in body and face creams, a category that IFRA defines to include insect repellent, plus 16% in category 8 and 8% in deodorants. It places no limit at all on fine fragrance, rinse-off products, household and laundry products, spray insecticides and animal sprays (category 10B), and candles, mosquito coils, fragrancing sachets and air fresheners (category 12). It is not approved for lip products or oral care. Longifolene is the only IFRA-limited material present, at 1%.