Best Places to Buy Frankincense Resins and the Best Frankicense Essential Oils of 2024

This is long post.  If you don't have time to read my musings about frankincense, but just want some recommendations on where to buy it, skip to the end.  You're busy, I get it.  But if you have time to read some of what I have learned about frankincense over the years, please enjoy this post and read it all! It might make you think more about who you buy from and how much you buy. 

Where does Frankincense Come From?

• Boswellia trees have a wound defense mechanism that produces a sap that turns into resin.  This resin is Frankincense, and is further turned into other prized products.

 Where do Boswellia Trees Grow?

• Over a dozen Boswellia tree species grow naturally along these third-world areas (see Figure 1, image D for a super cool map) of Africa and Asia.  In Africa, these trees are family-owned, family-operated, and family-harvested. As a result of some things going wrong (see below), some people believe that many of the Boswellia species are in danger.
• Did you know that a few Boswellia trees are growing successfully in Arizona and Florida by individuals who love the species and are trying to preserve them?
• Perhaps they could also be grown in the deserts of California, Texas, Mexico, Brazil, Corsica, and South America!

How is Frankincense harvested?

• Hardworking, third-world persons face the harsh elements (including hiking and climbing long distances) to travel to the places where the Boswellia trees grow, and then strategically cut the trees to trigger the Boswellia trees to send their sap to fix their wounds.  
• Then they wait (often camping nearby) for the frankincense resin to be hard enough to collect.
• Then the collection begins.  
• With their precious resin collected, these persons sell it individually or combine their harvest with others sell it as a community, co-op, ect. to big suppliers (or sometimes direct buyers).
• Then the resins often go through many sorting and trading hands before they end up on your doorstep.   

What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

• Fair trade practices are ignored or implemented improperly.
• Exploitation of women sorters.
• Tree mismanagement (either improper tree care or overharvesting)
• Thieves (harms both people and trees)
• Drought
• Animal foraging and trampling
• Pest infestation (burrowing beetles)
• Deforestation
• War
• Can you think of anything else that might go wrong? Comment below.

doTERRA; An Example of Fair Trade Gone Wrong!

So, doTERRA is a mega-producer of essential oils.  They do try to care about fair-trade and sustainability.  But frankincense is one oil that they just plain messed up in, and they messed up so bad, for so many years, that I predict they will forever rue the day they partnered with a crook.  I'm not going to go into all the details (maybe I will in later post).  You can read more about it here.

Basically, doTERRA handed over a huge sum of money to Asli Maydi company with the charge to fairly pay all those involved in the harvest and sorting of the frankincense resins of Somaliland, build and maintain a hospital, and some schools.  Then they posted all sorts of claims about fairness and sustainability and traceability on their website. 

What really happened is that the Asli Maydi owner (Barkhad Hassan) was actually a crook who mishandled the money, the trees, the people, and the charity builds.

And while the sadder-but-wiser doTERRA is trying rectify the situation, how can you fix YEARS worth of mismanagement, poor trade, and exploitation of people and trees?  doTERRA is in over their heads and not truly repairing or back-paying any of the harvesters or sorters.  Why?  Because surprise, surprise, that information wasn't properly documented in the first place because they put their trust in corrupt people to do it for them!

Trade Smaller and Better

While I wish I could say that this doTERRA fiasco is the exception rather than the norm, how are we to really know.  The most important parts (harvesting and sorting) of the trade are basically untraceable and unregulatable IF your are buying mass quantities of resin.  Truly, the only way to trace better is to trade on a smaller, more personal scale.  And that drives up the price.  But if the price isn't driven up, then who is really paying for the true price of frankincense?  It's the caretakers, harvesters, and sorters who truly pay the most!  They truly have earned a fair wage.  It is time to start paying it.

So as we forward into my recommendations of where to buy frankincense, I plead with you to:

• Buy with awareness of the trade and the species and a purpose.
• Use your purchase of frankincense sparingly.

Now getting back to what brought you here is the first place, buying frankincense.

The Best Frankincense Resin Sellers of 2024:

Boswellness:  My number one recommendation to buy the frankincense resins of Carterii and Frereana is Boswellness.  Boswellness is actually making a difference in Somaliland, and has been even before doTerra dominated the Somaliland market.  That is something that Somaliland desperately needs after doTerra's corrupt EX-supplier Barkhad Hassan massively ripped off any tribe of Somaliland that he traded with, and then fled the country.

Apothecary’s Garden: Dan Riegler is a thousand times more knowledgeable and in love with frankincense than I will ever be!  He sells 17 different types of frankincense resins.  If your looking to expand your resin collection past the typical Carterii, Frereana, and Sacra, then Dan's the man!  He also is one that freely shares his knowledge of how to use these resins.

Mountain Rose Herbs: For frankincense resins of Sacra.

The Best Frankincense Essential Oils of 2024:

I need to preface this by letting you know that if you are buying frankincense for any illness related to inflammation, you would be better served to utitlize the whole resin, as the essential oil does not retain any boswellic acids.

The only companies I am including in this showdown are Plant Therapy, Revive, and Edens Garden (they offer free shipping and can compete with Amazon).  These calculations are based on the gc/ms reports of what they currently have in stock.  For a time, I was wary of Revive, but they are now being tested by Robert Pappas once again, so are back on my good side.  Other companies that I would trust include Nature's Gift, Eden Botanicals, Kokokahn, Desrosiers International, and Rocky Mountain Oils.

Frankincense Serrata Winner: Tie between Edens Garden and the organic version Plant Therapy.

Frankincense Carterii Winner: Tie between Revive (not the certified one) and Edens Garden.

Frankincense Sacra Winner: Revive

Frankincense C02 is another realm entirely, and I don't know how to effectively judge those.  But the one from Edens Garden had 20.38% Serratol, which is jaw-dropping and almost scary medically.

Best Tea Tree Oil brand 2024

 As of September 2024, the best brand of tea tree oil is Plant Therapy Tea Tree Oil (the non-organic actually has better numbers than their organic one).  

The batch was tested 2024-03-18:

Terpinen-4-ol is 43.74%

1,8-Cineole is 2.86%

To put those numbers in perspective, the Melaleuca Wellness Company (claims it was the first company to bring Tea Tree oil to the US) has a super high priced Tea Tree oil (as in an insane $24 for 5.8mL) that is guaranteed to have greater than 40% terpinen-4-ol and no more than 3% cineole.

Plant Therapy Prices:

• 10ml=$8.49
• 30mL=$15.99
• 100mL=$27.99

What brands did it beat?

• Edens Garden
• Revive
• Simply Earth

PS:  This post was written hastily, mostly for me to remember the research that I did before purchasing a bottle today.  I don't know much else about what to look for on a gcms report except for what I discussed above.  If you know what else makes for a great tea tree oil gcms report, please chime in below.  I'd love to learn more!

Women's Western Shirts Brand Guide

 This post is mostly for me to remember when I buy used Western shirts online.

Roper: Classic western look, high quality, excellent fit, no stretch, sturdy buttons, with long torso.

Wrangler Retro: Very high quality with super strong buttons, forming fitting, with a tiny bit of stretch, long torso.  Retro line has more of a flair than the classic Western.

Ariat:  High quality stitch and fabric, with a tiny bit of stretch, but buttons not as strong as Roper.  Their fitted line is quite tight in the shoulders, long torso like Roper and Wrangler. Bit of showy flair, like a Western you would wear to the fair.

Old Navy Perfect Fit: Thinner fabric with good stretch, long torso but not as long as Roper or Ariat.  A great summer western shirt. Strurdy buttons (like Roper) but not as strong as Wrangler.  I love this line.

Lucky: Smaller fit, average length torso, shorter sleeves, weaker buttons, no stretch.  Not my favorite. Consider going up a size.

Panhandle: Fun designs, little bit of stretch, fit is a little tight in the shoulders (but not as tight as Ariat), short torso, like a citified Western. 

Tommy:  A short torso Western shirt fit for the city.  The snap button (strong buttons) I got was flannel and thick (good for fall) and the button up floral was thin cotton (good for summer).

Cumberland Outfitters: Strong construction, no stretch, good fit, long torso, no top button, sturdy buttons.

Izod: Fun designs, thin fabric, weak buttons.  Good for summer but constantly tucking in while working.

the best lavender essential oils of 2023

I use lavender essential oil quite a bit and although it's not my favorite scent or oil, I believe from reading journal articles that lavender is one of the most tested and proven therapeutic essential oils.  It's also a great base for many blends.  When I ran out of my doTERRA lavender oil (I don't purchase from doTERRA anymore for ethical reasons), I became obsessed with finding THE best lavender essential oil.  Oh, how many articles and GCMS reports I poured over!  I don't want to be the only one to benefit from all that research, so this post was born.  Enjoy!

I would trust ALL of the following lavender essential oils to be pure, unadulterated, undiluted, and high quality.  Seriously!  I combed through their description and GCMS reports, compared prices, and production dates.  No, I have not tried all of these, but I would be happy to have any of them.

best lavender essential oils budget picks ($1.00 or less per ml as of July 2023)

• Plant Therapy Organic Lavender from Greece/Bulgaria (May 2022)
• Simply Earth Bulgaria Lavender (March 2023)
• Revive French Lavender  (March 2020)
• Davina Wellness Bulgaria Lavender (October 2020)

very best lavender essential oils overall

• Edens Garden Bulgarian Lavender
• Revive Organic Greek Certified Lavender

noteworthy picks

• Rocky Mountain Lavender from Greece/France (Mar 2023)
• Kokokahn high altitude French Lavender from Provence, France
• Nature's Gift High Altitude Wild from Provence, France (Feb 2023)

fun lavender sets

• Edens Garden lavender 3 set or go crazy with the lavender 6 set
• Revive lavender trio

Ever wondered how to make sense of those big words on GCMS reports?  Hopefully, the following guide will help you.  I'm not an expert chemist, but I am an expert consumer and I don't click "buy"  on essential oils without feeling good about it.  The following are key things to look for in lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) GCMS compound percentages:

• Linalool:  Normal range is 25-40%.
• Linalyl acetate: Normal range is 25-45%.
• Lavandulyl acetate:  Normal range is 2-4%.   Super low percentages of lavandulyl acetate could be a red flag for adulteration. Super high quality, unique lavenders have higher than 4%, but this is not typical.
• Terpinen-4-ol:  Normal range is 2-6%.  Terpinen-4-ol supposedly provided immune support.
• Beta carophyllene: Look for 2% or more to benefit skin
• Camphor: 1% or less
• 1,8-Cineole: 1% or less
• Borneol: 1% or less

Lavender is often adulterated with the cheaper and lower quality lavadin which is usually higher in camphor, or with synthetic linalool or synthetic linalyl acetate.

I would love to hear about your experiences with lavender oil and specific brands!

Best Sock Brands? Ultimate Sock Brand Review

 

With 11 in our household, our sock pile is impressive.  When our family was smaller, I bought my kids whatever socks were on sale and looked cool...mostly Fruit of the Loom or Hanes.  But as our family size increased, matching and folding socks like this became a real chore!  My solution?  Each child gets a different brand, which also has the requirement of being all the same color.  For example:

• Papa: white Puma, dark dress socks
• Child 1: white Hanes
• Child 2: white Dickies
• and so forth...

The system works pretty well. Every now and then we try out new brands.  Over the years, we’ve tried many brands over the years.  It’s been pretty interesting to find out which socks wear out the best.  I won’t talk about them all, but I thought I would talk about 12 of them.  I’ve divided them into the following categories; top quality, noteworthy, and just okay.  Within each category is a list of brands arranged alphabetically.

Top Quality

• Adidas:  The cushioned ones with arch support are the best.  We ordered these over three years ago for my daughter before switching over to white Dickies.  She has continued to wear the Adidas alongside the white Dickies, and the old Adidas just started getting holes.  Three years before getting holes is super impressive!!!
• Dickies:  My favorite series is their Dritech Advanced and I got them in black.  My daughter started borrowing them from me and we decided to get her a white set to replace the aging Adidas.  Our local store sells Dickies and so it was an easy switch.  Dickies have arch support and are sturdy, cushioned, reinforced, and even have a "reciprocated heel and toe for superior fit".  I've had mine for almost three years and just spied my very first hole.  My daughter's had hers two years and counting with no holes!
• Gold Toe:  Seek out their hard-to-find athletic Ultra Tec ones which are super soft and super sturdy.  What tickles me about this brand is that it ages really well.  The little bits of gold lines on it (indicating its size) are still clear and the whiteness of the rest of the sock is still pretty bright.  I actually can't think of a different brand that compares to how well these socks age.  They are over a year old and look to be just a couple months old.  I plan to stick with this brand for my son, but it is becoming increasingly hard for me to find the specific series and/or size and/or color.

Noteworthy

• Carhartt:  I got the cozy low-cut socks to wear when it is so cold that I wear thermals under my jeans.  There are excellent deals for Carhartt socks on Amazon.
• Hanes:  This company is best-selling for a reason.  Seek out cushioned, tough, premium ones.  My oldest son loves the Max Cushion Crew series.  I’d say they last about 6-9 months before starting to get holes.  Pretty good for such an inexpensive brand.
• Jefferies:  A leader for baby, toddler, kids, and dress socks.  Over a year ago, I bought the School Uniform Seamless Half Cushion Quarter Sport Socks in pink for my toddler girl.  Although the pink color has faded away, there are no holes.  They are more pricey than your average brand.
• Puma:  Their Repreve series is good…save money and buy in bulk from Costco.  Puma is the brand of choice for my husband and second son.
• REI:  Longlasting!  I was given a hand-me-down pair for my son and it is still going strong.  It doesn't have any holes and it retains its shape well.  I think this current style is comparable.

Just Okay

Wear-Out Pattern of Children's Place Socks

• And1:  The lightweight summer sport ones get holes fast.  If I wanted to give the brand another try, I would get their Arch Compression Cushion Comfort series.
• Champion:  I’ve given up on their C9 series because although they are cushioned with arch support, they don’t last and get holes fast.  You'll be replacing these about twice a year.  They have a wear-out pattern very similar to Children's Place crew socks.
• Children’s Place:  Their toddler crew socks are better than their regular crew socks but I’ve almost given up on them.  They don't age well.  They become almost crispy.  And when they do decide to get a hole, it transforms into huge holes faster than other brands.  For the price, I'd look elsewhere.  I keep buying because the black and gray ones are easy for my toddler son to find and I’m too lazy to train him to find other ones right now. But I'm working up to a brand switch!
• Fruit of the Loom:  They have been making socks for years and they feel great but they also don’t last long.  They are also cheap enough that if you don’t mind replacing them a couple times a year, they would be a good brand.  Look for cushioned, reinforced ones.

I hope that this short and blunt Ultimate Sock Review has given you an idea of how to organize that beastly sock pile to make it more manageable.  I also hope that I have given you some ideas of what brands to pursue.

Got a favorite sock brand or series?  Please comment below!