Magic Healing Salve DIY
I was introduced to healing salve on a backpacking trip a few years ago. We used it for everything from burns to blisters, bug bites to chapstick and everything in between. Healing Salve is a wonderful natural alternative to many topical products that only have claims and chemicals. My family is not as interested in natural body products as I am and they would roll their eyes and say I was “making something again.” They since have become believers and have given it the name Magic Healing Salve because it really works for just about anything!! Although It takes a little while to make because you let it steep in the crockpot, it is hands off and easy to make!
Herbs
While I would love to say that I foraged and grew my own herbs for this salve but… I didn’t. It is on my bucket list unfortunately, it just doesn’t fit in this season of my life. If you have the desire to grow and forage your own herbs with the proper research and education PLEASE DO, I am cheering for you!!
The Bulk Herb Store Green Salve Mix
After doing a lot of research about the herbs I wanted to put in my healing salve I found the Green Salve Mix from The Bulk Herb store which was already had the herbs I wanted to be mixed together plus a few extras! These Herbs in the Green Salve Mix include:
Organic Rosemary Leaf – containing rosmaricine which acts as a mild analgesic with antioxidants which together make it useful for treating inflammation.
Organic Yarrow Flower – antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and astringent properties. It is highly regarded for healing wounds, bruises, and sprains.
Organic Comfrey Leaf – Commonly used as a skin treatment to stimulate cell growth and repair; also acts as an anti-inflammatory and antifungal. (not recommended for internal use. AKA don’t eat it it will upset your stomach)
Organic Calendula Flowers – a noted antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. It can help keep infections at bay and is powerful for healing wounds by promoting cell repair.
Organic Plantain Leaf – draws toxicity out of the body. It is great for bites and stings and often used as a poultice for splinters as well. It is also an excellent wound healer with styptic and hemostatic properties meaning that it can help stop bleeding.
Organic Echinacea Root and Organic Echinacea Herb – research confirms that echinacea raises the body’s natural resistance to infection by stimulating and aiding immune function.it also has antifungal and antibacterial properties with very few side effects that make it safe for young children and the elderly.
Carrier Oils
A carrier oil is essential to making any medicinal oil with herbs. While steeping with your herbs the carrier oil binds with the essential oils of the herb you are heating “carrying it” and only leaving the plant matter behind.
Coconut Oil – its antibacterial properties combined with its natural ability to moisturize makes it ideal for preventing infection as well as treating dry skin, soothing sunburns and preventing peeling. I chose Coconut Oil as my carrier oil because of these properties and its availability to easily buy it in bulk and use it for other things around the house.
Vitamin E oil – I put a little vitamin E oil in my salve because it helps to heal scar tissue and neutralize free radicals which damage cells. My grandmother used to use Vitamin E for everything so it is dear to my hear as well.
If there is another herb you love for its healing skin properties feel free to add it in also!
The above information on the medicinal properties of the ingredients in my salve are excerpts from these books that I highly recommend:
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The Ingredients
Infused Oil
*Carrier Oil (I used coconut oil)
Salve
**Essential Oils (Optional)
Extras you will need
Small Jars or Tins
*There are many options for carrier oils and they all have their own benefits. A few of these options are Olive Oil, Jojoba Oil, Grapeseed Oil, Argan Oil, Sunflower Oil or Sweet Almond Oil.
**I love essential oils! They have many amazing medicinal uses but unfortunately, I have noticed an influx of material promoting them as part of MLMs. This makes it difficult to find accurate information about their true benefits so do your research! I recommend Mountain Rose Herbs because they have lots of organic and ethically sourced options. I am not affiliated with them and they are not an MLM, that is just my honest opinion.
STEP 1
Fill your crockpot with water and set in on low.
STEP 2
place your carrier oil in a mason jar and place it in the hot water. If you have a liquid carrier oil you can immediately proceed to step 3. If you have a carrier oil that is closer to a solid at room temperature you will need to wait till it has melted to add your herbs.
STEP 3
Mix in your oils! Just dump them right into your oil, inside the mason jar!
STEP 4
Be patient and STEEP! Step your herbs for 8 hours to 3 days! This is up to you and can vary depending on your heat source. I always say the longer you let the herbs steep the more essential oils will be “carried” into your oil and the greater the medicinal properties in your final salve. Your herbs will start to turn brown and your oil will start to smell like herb oil!
STEP 5
Drain your oil with a cheesecloth. I like to put a cheesecloth around the lid of my herb oil and tip it over on top of a fresh mason jar. This allows your newly infused oil to be separated from the spent herbs. After you drain the majority of the oil you can squeeze the herbs inside the cheesecloth to get all the last drops!
STEP 6
Mix in the Beeswax. You need approximately 2 oz of beeswax for every 8 to 9 ounces of infused oil. This is what turns your oil into a salve. If you like a really hard salve use more beeswax.
STEP 7
Mix in you Vitamin E Oil, you can add a drop for every ounce of oil.
STEP 8
Pour into your containers and let it sit overnight to cool and harden. Depending on how much I make at once, I often fill up about ten or twelve containers to give to family and friends and leave the other half in a mason jar for later.
Congratulations you made Healing Salve!!
Please let me know if you make my magic healing salve, a lot of people have never heard of healing salve before and I am on a mission to share its healing magical goodness to all!
One Comment
Debrah McCabe
Great post! I first heard of the idea of using herbs in oil for healing when a First Nations lady told a friend about using calendula in olive oil as a topical pain medicine! And now your wonderful timely post! Love the idea of doing this myself!