To extract the essential oil, the plant material is placed into a still (very similar to a pressure cooker) where pressurized steam passes through the plant material.

The heat from the steam causes globules of oil in the plant to burst and the oil then evaporates. The essential oil vapor and the steam then pass out the top of the still into a water cooled pipe where the vapors are condensed back to liquids. At this point, the essential oil separates from the water and floats to the top.

Now, this doesn't sound like a particularly complicated process but did you know that it takes more than 8 million Jasmine flowers to produce just 2 pounds of jasmine oil? No wonder pure essential oils are expensive!

Maceration actually creates more of an "infused oil" rather than an "essential oil". The plant matter is soaked in vegetable oil, heated and strained at which point it can be used for massage.

Cold pressing is used to extract the essential oils from citrus rinds such as orange, lemon, grapefruit and bergamot. The rinds are separated from the fruit, are ground or chopped and are then pressed. The result is a watery mixture of essential oil and liquid which will separate given time.

It is important to note that oils extracted using this method have a relatively short shelf life, so make or purchase only what you will be using within the next six months.

A hydrocarbon solvent is added to the plant material to help dissolve the essential oil. When the solution is filtered and concentrated by distillation, a substance containing resin (resinoid), or a combination of wax and essential oil (known as concrete) remains.

From the concentrate, pure alcohol is used to extract the oil. When the alcohol evaporates, the oil is left behind.

This is not considered the best method for extraction as the solvents can leave a small amount of residue behind which could cause allergies and effect the immune system.