eo-savvy mamas: lemon balm?

[girlndocs]

nak

i'm going to get me some lemon balm (melissa officinalis) eo to scent my vinegar hair rinse with just 'cause i've always loved the smell of lemon balm. i was wondering what effects it might be likely to have besides smelling all pretty. i *know* i read something about cosmetic uses a while back (oily skin?) but now i can't find that book for the life of me.

maybe this would even be a good spot to list up different hair & skin herbs & eo's. right now i use rosemary on my scalp 'cause it's supposed to encourage circulation, thus hair growth, and virginia cedar in my rinse 'cause it's astringent & smells nice. then i love a leave-in chamomile tea rinse.

tia!

[amcal]

I couldn't find a whole lot of info on lemon balm in cosmetics but this is what I found:

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), organic, c/s, leaf/flower, Argentina. Calming, antiviral and antiseptic this beautiful and fragrant member of the mint family is one of nature’s best nervine herbs. Both its leaves and flowers contain volatile oils, tannins and bitters that have a definite relaxing, antispasmodic effect on the stomach and nervous system. It is excellent for stomach distress and general exhaustion and can be used as a mild sedative and for insomnia. Applied topically, lemon balm has been found to be helpful for herpes. (Above is from Rosemary Gladstar’s Family Herbal book.)

[girlndocs]

huh.

thank you!

does anyone have any info on its cosmetic applications? i forgot to mention that sometimes it's known commonly as melissa.