Skin Care Series ~ Lavender & Chamomile Salve

Do you remember the hard lotion bars that I recently whipped up and put in the teacher gifts I made for Christmas?  Well, my family LOVES them.  My husband, who doesn't like any type of lotion uses the hard lotion on a daily basis and even puts it on his face.  Y'all, that is truly amazing.  Take my word for it.  Anyhoo,  I'm just about out of the hard lotion bar and don't have some key ingredients to make any more. We're getting ready to go out of state for Christmas and I don't want to be without some good, nourishing moisturizer.  So, I browsed through some recipes on the internet, tweaked them and came up with this healing salve which utilizes lavender and chamomile.


LAVENDER & CHAMOMILE SALVE


1/4 c. lavender buds
3 chamomile tea bags
1/4 c. grapeseed oil
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1 Tbsp. jojoba oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. beeswax
8 drops lavender essential oil
3 drops chamomile essential oil


Here's How...


Put lavender buds and contents of chamomile tea bags into a small saucepan.

Add oils and gently warm them.  Once the oils are warm, turn off heat and allow to infuse for 20 minutes.

In the meantime, begin melting beeswax in a double boiler.  I don't technically have a double boiler, so here's what I do.  I place a folded wash cloth in the bottom of a large sauce pan filled with a little bit of water.  I then place my glass or ceramic bowl on the wash cloth. It has worked remarkably well for me.

Once your oils have infused with the herbs for a sufficient amount of time, pour the mixture through a piece of cheese cloth to separate the herbs from the oil.  Make sure to squeeze every last drop of that precious oil out. :0)

After the beeswax is melted, pour your herb infused oil into the beeswax and stir.  The beeswax will harden slightly when you do this.  Just give it another minute or so to remelt.

After all the oils and wax are together in a liquid state, remove from the double boiler and stir in the essential oils.  Pour into containers.  After a little trial and error (AKA spilling some) I realized that the best way to do this was to use a deep-sided tablespoon to put the liquid into the jars.  

Let cool completely before adding a lid or moving them.  This makes 4 ounces.  I used two 2 ounce containers, which is a pretty nice size for this.

Here is the finished salve.  It has a really nice, light fragrance.  I put a tub in my purse and one by the kitchen sink.  I really like it.  It's soothing and not greasy at all.  It isn't quite as hardy as the hard lotion bars, but seems to be great for applying after washing my hands or dishes.  It would also be good to put on scrapes, burns or bites as the lavender and chamomile are wonderful for those things.  Not to mention that the oils themselves are very healing.  All in all, I'm very pleased with how this salve turned out and will definitely be making it again when this batch runs out.


NOTE:
If you aren't completely happy with the consistency of your salve once it sets up, all you have to do is remelt it and add 1/2 Tbsp. more beeswax to make it firmer or a bit more oil to make it softer.  I like it using 1 1/2 Tbsp. of beeswax, personally.


Here's why the ingredients are so good...


These facts are taken from Natural Remedies for Life.com.


grapeseed oil ~ Rich in vitamin E, C, D and Beta-carotene. Also contains all kinds of skin healthy essential fatty acids. These help repair damaged skin, wrinkles around the eyes, stretch marks, varicose veins and spider veins by penetrating the skin with their moisturizing properties. Also ideal for moisturizing oily skin. Keeps skin supple and healthy.


coconut oil ~ Super moisturizing oil, a solid at room temperature but melts easily on the skin. Its consistency makes it very easy to mix and very useful in facial masks. Protects skin from the elements by forming a thin film which is not absorbed. Also useful as an after sun oil. Good cleansing properties and very mild. 


jojoba oil ~ An extraordinary balancing oil, helps to regulate under-active and overactive oil glands. Natural humectants, that attracts and keeps moisture under your skin; absorbs quickly into the skin to moisturize. Very mild.


lavender ~ Soothes and calmes your skin, has antiviral, anti-fungal, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties. Can relieve muscle tension, speeds healing and reduces scarring. Also works as anti depressant, stimulates circulation, is a mild sedative and reduces nervous tension.


chamomile ~ There are Roman and German chamomile. They are rejuvenating and relaxing and have soothing effect on burns and irritations. Are also slightly sedative.


lavender essential oil ~ Has sedative and antiseptic properties. Relieves and heals skin irritations like, acne, abscess, eczema, dermatitis, psoriasis. Also very effective against burns, sunburns, wounds and insect bites. Calming; antidepressant, promotes clarity, enhances intuition, soothing, balancing. Helps normalize all skin conditions. Good for headaches and sinuses and is an effective insect repellent. Suitable for oily & combo skin.


chamomile essential oil ~ Can be used as a softening agent for rough or irritated skin. Has anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties. Good against: allergies, acne, burns, cuts, dermatitis, eczema, inflammations, insect bites, rashes, sensitive skin & wounds. Also have a calming effect on the mind and nervous system, are slightly sedative and have emollient properties. German chamomile has higher anti-inflammatory properties. Chamomile oil has very low toxicity so it is good for children.


beeswax ~ Beeswax locks in moisture, fosters cells and protects skin from damaging environmental factors. Honeygirlorganic.com reports beeswax effectively "softens your skin and creates a long-lasting protective coating against the elements. It also is a naturally nourishing moisturizer as well as being anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anti-allergenic and a germicidal antioxidant." According to Botanical.com, "Even after processing, beeswax still remains a biologically active product, retaining some anti-bacterial properties and also contains some vitamin A, which is necessary for normal cell development." The Mayo Clinic recommends lip balm made from beeswax for chapped lip care and prevention.

Since beeswax does not clog pores, Dermaxime.com states, "When it is properly used, (beeswax) will not promote the formation of acne or pimples."

Read more: Skin Benefits of Beeswax | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_5705546_skin-benefits-beeswax.html#ixzz1h7L3w7xn


These are but some of the benefits of the ingredients in this salve.  They are so wonderful that I could do an entire blog post on each one.  But, this is a very good overview.


UPDATE: My family has been using this salve for about 3 weeks now and have been very impressed with not only it's moisturizing ability, but it's skin healing ability as well.  I took it to MI with us over Christmas because my son's hands tend to break out when we're away from home. This salve got his hands back to normal more quickly than anything we've ever used.


Have you ever made your own salve?  Do you rely on commercial lotions to get you through those dry winter months?


I'm linking this post to Frugal Days - Sustainable Ways, Homestead Barn Hop, Healthy 2day Wednesdays, Simple Lives Thursday, Living Well Blog Hop, Wildcrafting Wednesdays and Your Green Resource.