Last week we learned how to infuse our own herbal oils. Today, we are going to learn how to make our own healing salve using what we made.
What is a Salve?
A salve is a versatile ointment applied to the surface of the body. It can be used to help heal small wounds, moisturize the skin, soothe aches and joints and can even be used as a lip balm. Salves are different from lotions because they don’t contain water. Instead they are made with oils and beeswax, which makes a waterproof barrier over the skin.This helps force the goodness of the oils into the places you are trying to heal.
What Does a Salve Do?
The salve we are making today contains calendula, lavender, and coconut oil, which all work together to make a healing product. Calendula flowers are an anti-inflammatory and antiseptic, which helps soothe sore muscles and treat scrapes and bruises. Lavender is also anti-inflammatory and helps with woulds, but is best known for it’s calming properties. Finally, coconut oil is moisturizing for dry or chapped skin.
How to Make It
Once you have your homemade infused oil, you are ready to start making your salve.
You will need:
- A Double Boiler
- Beeswax (1oz)(use a cheese grater to shave it so it melts easier)
- Infused coconut oil (1cup) (we made lavender and calendula oils and used half of each.)
- Containers for your finished product. (old tins work well. We ordered small 2oz glass jars online)
- (optional- 15-30 drops essential oils of your choice)
Pouring into our containers
To make the salve, simply melt your oils and beeswax together in the double boiler at the lowest heat you can manage. You don’t want a rolling boil, just enough steam to melt everything together. Once everything is incorporated well, pour the mixture into your containers and allow to cool until completely solid. Now you are ready to use it to heal and moisturize!
This is just a simple recipe that can be tweaked for different results. You can use different oils and different amounts of beeswax to get a thinner of thicker salve. You can also infuse your own oils with different herbs, or use essential oils to get different results. Just make sure you know the properties of the oils you are using and how they fit into your final product.
Happy crafting!