To keep her babies soothed and calm, Coeur d'Alene mom Allie Stinson has an aromatic item in her parenting toolbox: lavender oil.

"I will stick it on the bottom of their feet with a carrier oil, like coconut oil, to relax them," Stinson said. "Sometimes I do baths with it. Lavender is also one of those oils that’s really good for skin, for scrapes, burns, bruises. It aids in the healing of it."

She was quite pleased to be awarded a bottle of the pleasant-smelling substance in a raffle during an essential oils rally Saturday morning at Grabbagreen in Coeur d'Alene.

To her, lavender is indeed essential.

"This is the one I go through quite frequently," she said.

Essential oils are natural, concentrated oils that have the characteristics of the plants from which they are extracted. Ranging from the robust spice of clove to the bright notes of citrus, these oils come in a variety that is as broad as their uses and applications.

Stinson has been using them for about seven months. She turned to essential oils after suffering from health issues and realizing she needed to make a change in her life. She said she loves the idea that they're a healthy alternative to products that contain risky chemicals. With essential oils, she said, "I know what I'm putting on my skin."

"They're not cancer-causing," she said. "I saw some sort of study on how women, before they even walk out the door, they put hundreds of chemicals on their face between cleaning and make-up and brushing their teeth. Even in the cleaners and things we use in our house, the things that even say they’re organic, they’ll have perfumes in them and things that are not good for your skin."

Essential oils have been climbing in popularity over the past few years. People have do-it-yourself parties where they distill their own ingredients or use already concocted oils and make their own blends.

Jenny Fagan, who co-hosted the essential oils rally and is a silver leader for the Utah-based Young Living Essential Oils company, said consumers are demanding essential oils more than ever as they become more informed.

"People are becoming increasingly aware that there are products in their home that are harmful to their health," she said. "Most people are not looking at the ingredients or the ingredients are not being listed because they’re protected under trade secret laws. Consumers are demanding quality and they’re demanding safety. The more and more they research and find out, especially in our Internet-based society, information spreads very quickly."

The most common ways to use the oils include aromatic diffusion, topical application and dietary consumption.

"I've been using natural medicine in my home for about eight years and essential oils the last two years," Fagan said. "That's something that really matters to me as a parent. I have four kids and I take that responsibility very seriously of what I put on my children's bodies. They don't get to make that decision, I make that decision. That's what motivates me the most, protecting them and using things that are not going to have long-term side effects."