How to Make a Salve Using Calendula & Comfrey

As delightful as summer can be, it can torture on your skin. Bug bites, rashes, eczema, poison ivy, and scratches all come to mind.  So, now is the time to learn how to make a salve using healing comfrey and calendula before summer arrives. Let’s get busy.

Are you with me?

I am using the wonderful salve recipe using beeswax and cocoa butter created by  Chris of Joybilee Farm and the author the Beeswax Workshop.

Life with Beeswax:

Before I reveal the recipe, Chris’ book really opened my eyes to how many ways you can incorporate beeswax into your daily routine.

She uses it to make her own beeswax candles, lubricants, salves, lip balm and other personal care products.  In addition, she makes her own sandwich and food wraps using beeswax!

But Chris doesn’t stop there.  She definitely has a  love affair with beeswax. If there is a way to use it on household products, she found a way.  She makes her own shoe and boot polish, wood polish, and even ski board gliding wax!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and my eyes are now open to more sustainable ways to take care of my accessories and make healthier skin products for my family.

So on to Chris’ general body salve:

How to Make a Salve:

You know Chris’ recipe is a hit when your adult children ask for a tin of it.  One of my sons has eczema and the other had sores. Both loved the salve.  (And I bet you will too.)

Equipment You Will Need:

• Large Pot
• Infused Herb Oil of your Choice.  (See HERE on how to make infused herb oil.)
• Large Measuring Cup.
• Cocoa Butter  (You can buy it HERE. See notes below.)
• Beeswax  (You can buy it by the pound from a local beekeeper.  See notes below.  Alternatively, you can buy bee pastilles which are little beeswax dots and easier to work with.)
• 4 ounce Container to pour salve into.  (You can use any container.  However, I use two  2 ounce tins with a screwable lid since it makes it easier to take off the lid.  Don’t make the same mistake as me. I bought a product with a snug lid but could never remove it.)
• Essential oils, optional.

Notes:

I bought a pound of beeswax from a local beekeeper.  It was impossible to cut!  We finally used a hot knife a couple of times to slice through it.  If you aren’t making a lot of salves, I would buy the pastilles.  Also, cocoa butter is a hard block too but much easier to slice with a hot knife.

Also, you will need a grater if you using a block form of either the beeswax or cocoa butter.  Bees wax is tiring to grate. (I used this grater and set one half in the bowl and the other half outside the bowl.  Be sure to put a towel down or oil cloth to retrieve the stray butter or beeswax.  Pieces fly sometimes.)

I don’t use essential oils since I don’t want the smell.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of beeswax
• 2 tablespoons of cocoa butter
• 3 tablespoons of calendula infused herb oil  (You can buy calendula from HERE–one ounce by wieght  which is about 2 cups in volume.  Alternatively, if you want a larger amount like four ounces, you can buy it HERE.)
• 3 tablespoons of comfrey infused herb oil  (You can buy comfrey from me HERE or HERE.)
• 20 drops of lavender essential oil, optional  (My friends have recommended Plant Therapy essential oils. )
• 15 drops of tea tree essential oil, optional

Instructions:

1.  Add an inch of water to a large pot.  Make sure your measuring cup can fit inside the pot.  You will be making a double boiler.
2. Add all the above ingredients to the measuring cup and place it inside the large pot.
3. Simmer the pot until all the ingredients melt.  The cocoa butter takes the longest to melt.
4. Once everything melts, turn off the heat, and wait a few minutes for the glass measuring cup to cool a little.
5. Gently lift your measuring cup out of the water.
6. Allow the oil cool slightly, stirring with a spatula to prevent the mixture from setting completely.  (Note, don’t walk away and come back in 30 minutes.  It will gel really quickly in your glass container.)
7.  When the glass container is cool to the touch, add your essential oil.  Stir to incorporate.
8. Then carefully pour your beautiful salve mixture into your container. Cap it and date it.
9.   Keep your salve in a cool place so it doesn’t melt.

That’s it on how to make a salve.  Play with different herbs and use the same basic recipe. I have already tried dandelion and goldenrod for aches and pains.

Enjoy!

Be sure to check out Chris’ book, the Beeswax Workshop!

Join the Conversation:

Do you make your own salves?

 

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