How Essential Oils Are Made

Steam Distillation
The most popular extraction method is steam distillation. The desired plant source of the oil is placed in a container above water, and the water is heated from below.

The steam from the water rises (1) and as it passes the plant, the heat makes the tiny pockets of oil open. The droplets of oil then quickly evaporate and become "stuck" to the rising steam.

The steam then continues (2) its trip upwards, carrying the oil with it. The steam then enters a long tube (3) that is cooled, at which point the steam goes from being a gas and condenses into liquid form. If you've ever seen oil mixed with water, you'll recall that they don't mix well and oil will rise to the top of the water. The essential oil does exactly this - it forms a thin film around the water droplets.

That oil is then delicately "scraped" off and led (4) into one container, and the water goes into a separate pot, and a small amount of raw essential oil has been harvested.

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