family medicine chest: salve making

last month, i wrote about oil making. in essence, it is part 1 of making salves. once you have an oil made, you can place it back into the double boiler and follow these steps to make a salve:

for every cup of oil, add about 1/4 cup of grated beeswax. i have a grater that is just for beeswax because it gets pretty gummed up. being lazy, i use a knife heated up on the gas burner to slice off shards instead.

add the wax to the hot oil and let it melt. once it’s melted, i test the ‘strength’ of the salve. this can be done in several ways. many people recommend putting a teaspoon of the salve in the fridge for a minute or so. i find that just drizzling it in a salve container to be effective. i let it set then rub my finger over it to see how hard it is. once it is at the consistency i like, i quit adding beeswax.

now it’s time to add any ‘goodies’ to the salve. turn off the burner and start with vitamin e oil to preserve the salve and to keep it from going rancid. i buy a jar of the capsules, 1000 IU and squeeze out about 1 per every 4-5 oz of oil.

then, add any essential oils you might want in it to scent it or to add to the healing properties. lavender is good for general healing. tea tree and rosemary are good for fungal salves. wintergreen, eucalyptus, thyme, rosemary and peppermint (sparingly) are good for respiratory (think vick’s vapo rub) and muscle rub salves.

now you’re ready to pour it into tins or jars. pimento jars make good salve jars as do garlic jars. anything with a wide mouth is sufficient. or, if you prefer more fancy, you can buys tins from specialty bottle.

let the salve set up. once it’s set, put the lids on and label the salve so you know what you’ve made and what’s in it. once you have 3-4 salves floating around, they all start looking similar.

for starters, here are some easy to make salves:

Cale-Comfrey Salve Ingredients: (this is a great all purpose salve)

1p. Calendula Flowers
1p. Comfrey Leaves
1p. Comfrey Roots

infuse the above with olive oil, strain and follow salve recipe.

Plantain Salve Ingredients: (great to help stop bleeding and stop itching from insect bites and stings)

Plantain Leaves
chickweed

infuse the above with olive oil, strain and follow salve recipe.

Burn Salve Ingredients:

1p. St. John’s Wort
1p. Calendula Flowers
1p. Comfrey root

infuse the above with olive oil, strain and follow salve recipe. add 1/8 part Aloe Vera Powder, stir and pour into salve containers.

Vapor Balm:

1 p. Lobelia
1 p. Mullein Leaves
1p. Hops

infuse the above with olive oil, strain and follow salve recipe. add essential oils: 2p. wintergreen, 1p. camphor, 1/4 p. clove and 1/2 p. menthol. (generally, 1p = 1 dropper of oil or 30 drops).

Antiseptic Healing Salve: (good for fungal problems)

2 p. Black Walnut Leaves
1 p. Echinacea Root1 p. Eucalyptus Leaves
1/2 p. Calendula
1/4 p. Golden Seal Root or Chaparral

infuse the above with olive oil, strain and follow salve recipe. add: 1p. Wintergreen Essential Oil

this is my favorite lip balm recipe. it makes a lot of balm so you’ll be set to gift it to all your friends and family. i can put it on and drink and it stays put:

1 oz almond oil or jojoba oil
1 oz shea butter or mango butter
1 oz beeswax
¼ teaspoon honey
1/8 tsp vitamin E
add any flavoring – mint, cherry, chocolate, grape

mix first 5 ingredients in a double boiler until melted. Add flavoring (essential oil or flavoring available from grocery store). Pour into lip balm pots or tubes.