Over the centuries, essential oils have been prescribed by natural practitioners to treat various skin conditions and health ailments. Natural oils, in other words, essential oils, are botanical extracts derived from various plants and trees. Keep in mind, many of these oils are very concentrated in their pure from so they often require a few drops of carrier oil (i.e., almond oil) or moisturizer (i.e., shea butter) to diluted an otherwise powerfully harsh essence on the skin.

Read on for the most beneficial essential oils for your skin and beauty routine:

1. Tea tree oil
Many folks who are acne prone already have a bottle of this essential oil in their medicine cabinet. Tea tree oil, also known as melaleuca oil, has a strong, fresh camphoraceous odor. However, tea tree oil also works as a potent antibacterial and astringent oil that is linked to the cleaning and healing of skin wounds, as well as to banishing the early signs of a acne breakout. Bonus points for tea tree oil as it also helps to fight cold sores and viral, fungal, and bacterial skin infections (i.e., impetigo).

2. Lavender oil
We sip lavender tea, light lavender candles, and soak in lavender-scented baths to calm, soothe, and hydrate our bodies. So why not use lavender oil on the face for its renowned hydrating and healing properties (i.e., scar healing and banishing sun spots)? The lavender plant is gentle on sensitive skin, calming redness, inflammation, and irritation. Plus, it smells divine so a little lavender oil applied to the pressure points (at each temple) can melt away stress and headache.

3. Carrot seed oil
If you’re looking for an oil rich in antioxidants, carrot seed oil should be in your makeup bag or medicine cabinet. Carrot sends oil is a winter skin ally, meaning it’s wealth of antioxidants (i.e., vitamins A, E, beta carotene) reduce redness due to wind burn, quenches chapped skin, heals cracked winter skin, and prevents chronically dry skin from causing fine lines and wrinkles. Better yet, carrot oil balances the moisture in both hair and skin, providing conditioning and much needed moisture for irritating flyaway hair.

4. Geranium oil
Another essential oil derived straight from your garden bed, geranium oil may not be a commonly used oil. However, it’s potent for promoting skin elasticity as well as for banishing breakouts. That’s because geranium oil is linked to increasing blood circulation, which makes it an oil that increases bruise healing, broken capillaries, and skin damage, banishing fine lines and wrinkles, and triggering cell renewal a boon to patients with contact dermatitis, ringworm, and eczema.