Sex and love
A short guide to massage oils
4 August 2026 · 5 min read · The editors
Oil warms the skin and slows the hands. You still need to know which one, and where it has no business.
Oil, not just any bottle
Cooking oil and a neat essential oil are not massage oils. The first greases the sheets and can irritate mucous membranes. The second, undiluted, burns the skin. Use an oil made for the body, or a neutral base such as sweet almond, with at most a few drops of essential already diluted.
Test a drop on the forearm the day before. Redness, itch: change oil. Very reactive skins do better with fractionated coconut oil or a massage milk.
Where oil stops
Oil breaks down latex. With a condom, stay on a water-based lube or, depending on the condom, silicone. Do not “finish” an oil massage with protected penetration without wiping your hands.
On mucous membranes, little or none. Massage oil is for the back, thighs, shoulders, feet. For vagina or anus, a dedicated lube is safer.
The gesture, more than the scent
Oil in the palms first, to warm it, then long pressure along the muscles. Name the areas, ask for the pressure, stop if the other person tenses. Ten slow minutes beat a choreography.
A towel under the body, a room that is not too cold, and phones elsewhere. Scent stays quiet: in an intimate moment, a very fragrant oil covers the smell of skin, which is part of the pleasure.
These texts are general pointers. They do not replace medical advice, or a sexologist, when something worries you or hurts.