The Castor Oil And Frankincense Recipe For Anti Aging I’m Sharing with You

If you’ve spent any time on skincare Pinterest lately, you’ve probably noticed castor oil and frankincense turning up together in the same breath, usually next to a photo of someone’s suspiciously glowy jawline.

It’s not a random pairing. There’s genuine chemistry, and genuine science, behind why these two show up side by side so often.

I want to walk you through what’s actually happening when you combine them, how to do it properly, and where the claims floating around online start to stretch further than the evidence can hold.

I’m Patri Hernández, a certified organic skincare formulator and dermocosmetic technician with a background in health coaching. I specialise in natural skincare, botanical ingredients, essential oil safety, and building simple formulations that hold up to scrutiny, not just Pinterest captions.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you buy through one, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products and ingredients I genuinely think are worth your money.

What castor oil and frankincense actually bring to the table

Let’s separate fact from wishful thinking before we get to the recipe, because this blend gets oversold constantly online.

Castor oil is roughly 90% ricinoleic acid, an unusual fatty acid you won’t find in most other carrier oils. It’s a humectant, meaning it draws moisture to the skin, and it forms a thick, occlusive film that slows water loss.

That’s genuinely useful for mature or dehydrated skin, which tends to lose moisture faster as oil production naturally declines with age.

Why this pairing is actually magic: Castor oil isn’t just a thick base. Its star compound, ricinoleic acid, is a known “penetration enhancer.” This means the castor oil actively pulls the lighter frankincense compounds deeper into your skin where they can actually work, instead of just sitting on the surface.

Interesting bit most people miss: ricinoleic acid is technically a hydroxy fatty acid, meaning it carries an extra hydroxyl group most fatty acids don’t have. This is the actual reason castor oil is so much thicker and stickier than every other oil in your cabinet, and it’s also why it’s more resistant to going rancid than many lighter, more delicate oils, since that structure makes it less prone to oxidation.

There’s also decent pharmacological research behind ricinoleic acid specifically. A study published in Mediators of Inflammation found that topical ricinoleic acid produced measurable anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects in animal models, working through mechanisms similar to capsaicin. This doesn’t mean castor oil will erase wrinkles, but it does support why it’s traditionally used to calm irritated or inflamed skin.

Want those famous anti-inflammatory benefits? Swap standard frankincense essential oil for a Frankincense CO2 extract. Standard steam distillation leaves the heavy boswellic acids behind, but CO2 extraction captures them. It’s a bit thicker and earthier, but it’s the real deal for mature skin.

Fun fact: that same fatty acid is exactly what makes castor oil an effective laxative when taken orally. Researchers found it activates a specific gut receptor (called EP3) that stimulates contractions. It’s a nice reminder that one compound can have wildly different effects depending on whether it’s applied to your face or swallowed. DO NOT USE ORALLY UNLESS CONSULTING YOUR DOCTOR!!

And a common worry worth addressing directly: yes, castor beans naturally contain ricin, a genuinely toxic compound. The good news is that ricin is a protein, and proteins don’t transfer into the pressed oil during extraction. Properly processed castor oil, including everything sold for skincare, does not contain ricin.

Frankincense essential oil is where things get more interesting, and where I want you to hold your expectations in check. It’s rich in compounds like alpha-pinene and boswellic acid derivatives, and it has a long traditional history in skin remedies dating back to ancient Egypt, where it was so valuable it was traded along dedicated incense routes worth comparing to gold in that era’s economy.

Here’s the clarification almost nobody makes, and it genuinely changes how you should think about this ingredient: boswellic acids, the compounds most associated with frankincense’s anti-inflammatory reputation, are heavy molecules that don’t survive steam distillation well. That means they largely stay behind in the resin and in CO2 or alcohol extracts, not in the essential oil you’re buying in that little amber bottle.

The essential oil’s benefits come mainly from lighter compounds like alpha-pinene instead. If a product claims your frankincense essential oil is delivering strong boswellic acid benefits, take that with a pinch of salt.

Don’t buy cheap frankincense: Wild frankincense trees are severely overharvested right now. Because this precious resin takes years to grow, skip the cheap, untraceable oils. Look for brands with transparent, sustainable sourcing (like FairWild certification) to make sure your glowing skin doesn’t cost the earth.

As a formulator, I pay close attention to the difference between traditional use and clinical evidence, and frankincense actually has more recent research behind it than most essential oils marketed for anti-ageing.

A 2023 study on frankincense essential oil found it reduced UVB-induced photodamage markers in an animal model, including effects on the signalling pathways involved in collagen and elastin breakdown. It’s promising. It is not the same as a controlled human clinical trial proving wrinkle reduction, and you should be sceptical of any source claiming otherwise.

One more nuance worth knowing: “frankincense” isn’t one single oil. It comes from several Boswellia species (carterii, sacra, frereana, and papyrifera among them), and their chemical profiles differ noticeably. (The photoaging study above used Boswellia papyrifera specifically).

Most commercial bottles don’t state the species on the label, which is genuinely frustrating if you’re trying to match a specific study to what you’re buying!!

This is exactly the kind of nuance a lot of wellness content skips over, mostly because whoever wrote it doesn’t have the formulation background, the scientific training, or frankly the patience to read the actual studies rather than someone else’s summary of them.

What you’ll need

This is a facial oil blend, not a heavy balm, so a little goes a long way.

Ingredients:

• Regular castor oil or Jamaican black castor oil, 2 tablespoons
• Frankincense essential oil, 6 to 8 drops
• A lighter carrier oil to balance the thickness of castor oil, such as jojoba oil, 1 tablespoon
• Vitamin E oil, a few drops, to help slow oxidation
• A dark glass dropper bottle for storage

Why blend in a second carrier oil? Castor oil is notably thick and tacky on its own. Diluting it with something lighter like jojoba, which closely resembles the skin’s natural sebum, makes the finished oil sit more comfortably on mature skin without feeling heavy or greasy.

How to make the blend

1. Sanitise your glass dropper bottle and let it dry completely. Any leftover moisture increases the risk of the oil spoiling early.
2. Measure the castor oil and jojoba oil into the bottle using a small funnel if needed.
3. Add the vitamin E oil. This isn’t just a nice extra. Vitamin E is a genuine antioxidant that helps protect the more delicate plant compounds in your blend from breaking down through oxidation.
4. Add the frankincense essential oil drop by drop, keeping to 6 to 8 drops for a roughly 1% dilution across a one and a half tablespoon blend, which is the generally recommended upper limit for facial use.
5. Cap the bottle tightly and shake gently to combine everything.
6. Label the bottle with the date you made it, since carrier oils and essential oil blends don’t last forever.

Do not skip the dilution step. Undiluted frankincense oil applied directly to skin carries a real risk of irritation, and neither the National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy nor any credible aromatherapy source recommends applying essential oils neat to the face.

Quick dilution cheat sheet, for reference beyond this recipe:

Area of use	Recommended dilution
Face	1% or less
Body, leave-on products	2%
Bath or rinse-off products	Up to 3%
Children or very sensitive skin	0.5% to 1%

How to use it

Apply the blend to clean, slightly damp skin, ideally in the evening. Facial oils sit at the very end of your routine, after any water-based serums, since oil forms a barrier that can block thinner products from absorbing if applied first. If you want a refresher on where oils fit into a full routine, my guide to the correct order of skincare products walks through the logic step by step.

Warm two or three drops between your palms, then press gently into the skin rather than rubbing. Focus on areas that tend to show ageing first, such as around the eyes (avoiding the eyes themselves), the nasolabial folds, and the neck.

Something worth knowing about your own face: skin thickness genuinely varies by region. The skin around your eyes is roughly a third the thickness of the skin on the rest of your face, which is exactly why the same blend that feels fine on your cheeks can sting or irritate near the eye area. Keep this blend well clear of the eyes themselves.

Give it a minute or two to absorb before applying anything on top, such as a night cream.

Patch testing and safety considerations

I’d be doing you a disservice if I didn’t spend real time on this section, because both ingredients carry genuine considerations worth knowing before you put them on your face.

• Always patch test first. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends applying a new product to a small area, such as the inside of your forearm, twice daily for seven to ten days before using it more widely. This matters even more with essential oils, since sensitisation can build up with repeated exposure rather than showing up immediately.
• Keep the dilution low. A 1% dilution (roughly 6 drops of essential oil per ounce of carrier oil) is the standard upper limit recommended for facial use by aromatherapy safety bodies.
• Watch for photosensitivity. Frankincense isn’t classed among the strongly phototoxic oils the way bergamot or cold-pressed lemon are, but any new facial oil is worth introducing at night initially, particularly if you’ll be in strong sun the next day.
• Be cautious if pregnant, breastfeeding, or on blood-thinning medication. Speak with your doctor before introducing new essential oils, as a general precaution rather than a specific red flag for frankincense.
• Avoid broken or actively irritated skin. Both castor oil and frankincense can sting on compromised skin barriers.

One thing worth knowing: undiluted castor oil has been rated as mildly to moderately irritating to skin in some safety assessments, which is another reason not to skip the jojoba dilution step above.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Using too much essential oil, thinking more means better results. It doesn’t, and it significantly raises your irritation risk.
• Skipping the carrier oil dilution for the frankincense, applying it neat “just this once.”
• Storing the finished blend somewhere warm or sunny, which speeds up oxidation and shortens shelf life considerably.
• Expecting overnight results. Any genuine change to collagen turnover happens over weeks, not days.
• Using this blend as your only moisturising step if your skin is very dry. It works best layered with, not instead of, your usual hydrating products.

How often to use it and how to store it

Two to three evenings a week is a sensible starting point, particularly while your skin gets used to the frankincense. You can build up to nightly use if your skin tolerates it well with no irritation.

Store the finished blend in a cool, dark spot, away from direct sunlight and bathroom humidity if possible. Made this way, the blend should keep well for around three months. If it starts to smell noticeably different or “off,” that’s oxidation setting in, and it’s time to make a fresh batch.

A small but genuinely useful detail: because castor oil is more oxidation-resistant than many other carrier oils (thanks to that hydroxyl group mentioned earlier), this particular blend often outlasts facial oils made with more delicate oils like rosehip, which tend to turn rancid noticeably faster.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use this blend if I have oily or acne-prone skin?

Castor oil’s thick, occlusive nature can feel heavy on oilier skin types, and it may not suit acne-prone skin well. If that sounds like you, a lighter facial oil blend might serve you better; my piece on hydrating skincare ideas covers gentler alternatives.

Is Jamaican black castor oil better than regular castor oil for this?

Jamaican black castor oil is roasted before pressing, giving it a darker colour and smokier scent, and it’s traditionally favoured for hair. For a facial anti-ageing blend, regular castor oil is usually the more practical choice, since it’s lighter in colour and scent.

A quick warning on Jamaican Black Castor Oil: The ash that gives it that dark color also makes it highly alkaline. Your face’s natural protective barrier (the acid mantle) needs to stay mildly acidic to stay healthy. Using an alkaline oil can actually damage your barrier—stick to regular, cold-pressed castor oil for your face!

Can I substitute a different essential oil for frankincense?

Yes. Geranium and rose otto are both traditionally used for mature skin and blend well with castor oil, though the research behind frankincense specifically is currently more developed than for most alternatives.

Will this replace my retinol or vitamin C serum?

No. This blend supports hydration and skin barrier comfort. It isn’t a substitute for ingredients with stronger, more established evidence for collagen stimulation and pigmentation, such as retinoids or vitamin C.

How do I know if I’m reacting to the frankincense rather than something else in my routine?

This is exactly why patch testing a new blend on its own, without introducing any other new products at the same time, matters so much. It isolates the variable.

A grounded way to add a genuinely interesting ingredient to your routine

Castor oil and frankincense make a sensible pairing for mature or dehydrated skin, provided you respect proper dilution and give your skin time to adjust. The research behind both ingredients is more substantial than most trending skincare pairings, but it’s still emerging, particularly for frankincense, so treat this as a supportive addition to your routine rather than a dramatic anti-ageing solution. If you’re building out a fuller natural skincare approach around it, my guide to natural skin treatments is a useful next stop.

References

• Vieira C, Evangelista S, Cirillo R, et al. Effect of ricinoleic acid in acute and subchronic experimental models of inflammation. Mediators of Inflammation
• Frankincense essential oil and UVB-induced photodamage study, PMC
• American Academy of Dermatology: How to test skin care products
• National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy: Aromatherapy safety guidelines

Love, Patri xx