Making Herbal Salves

Herbal salves are easy to make by simply thickening herbal infused oils with bees wax. They can be used as is or as a base for other products.  

Green, red, and yellow infused oils.

Once you learn the basic process you can begin to replace many of your over-the-counter products.  Some of my favorite uses for herbal salves include;

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• Soothing insect bites/stings
• Cooling burns
• Sore muscle rub
• Antiseptic ointment for cuts and scrapes
• Wound healing ointment
• Diaper rash
• Lip balm
• A base for homemade deodorant
• An ingredient in lotion

The first step in making an herbal salve is to infuse an herb or herbs in oil. Check out my Herbal Oil Infusions post for detailed instructions.

Oil that has been infused with herbal goodness is combined with bees wax to make a salve.  Salves are less messy to apply than oils and are portable.

Assemble your Supplies

Scale

Pan for boiling water

Glass measuring cup

Chop stick (for stirring)

Rubber scrapper

Metal tins or small glass jars

Labels

Ingredients

Infused herbal oil

bees wax - pellets or pastilles melt the easiest

Process

• Add a few inches of water to a pan. 

Glass measuring cup with herbal infused oils.

• Put 1 cup of infused oil in a glass measure cup with a pour spout and set in the water. 

• Add 1 ounce bees wax to glass cup.

Bees wax pastilles on a scale.

• Gently heat the pan until the wax begins to melt.

Oil and bees wax heating and blending together.

• Use a wooden chop stick to stir the oil

• Once the wax is all melted, test the consistency by placing a drop of oil on a plate.  It will cool quickly.  Rub it between your fingers.  If it is too thick add a bit more oil, if it is too thin add more wax.  Continue testing until it is right for you.  I find the 1 C oil to 1 ounce wax ratio works perfectly for me.

Just a tiny drop is needed to check the consistency.

• When you have achieved the desired consistency remove the measuring cup from the heat.  

• If you want to use vitamin E, A or grapefruit seed oil as a preservative, now is the time to add it in. 

• Then immediately pour the liquid into small tins or glass jars.  Use the rubber scraper to get every last drop (and make the cup easier to clean)

• Let the tins and jars sit undisturbed until the salve has cooled.

Salve cools fast so get it into the container quickly.

• Label the containers with a name, herbs used, and the date.  If you do not plan to use the salve right away place the tin or jar in your refrigerator to prolong its shelf life.  Most salves will be good for several years.

Salve solidifying as it cools.

Salve ready to share with a friend.

Tips

• Water in the salve will promote spoilage.  Be careful that the boiling water does not splash into the oil/wax mixture

• Some people add a few drops of Vitamin A, E or grapefruit seed oil as a preservative.

• You can experiment by combining different herbal oils to create salves with combined healing power.  For example a diaper rash salve might contain, comfrey, St. John's Wort, and calendula.

Please note: The objective of this blog is to raise awareness of alternative ways to achieve wellness and to empower you to take an active role in your health decisions.  To accomplish this, you will need to explore these subjects in greater depth and then determine what makes sense for your life.  My hope is that this information will inspire you to start your own search into ways to make your life happier, healthier and more fulfilling.