This time of year tends to trigger all sorts of stress, for families, parents, kids and our community. The be-bopping of bouncing from Holiday gatherings, traveling to far away places, and purchasing of gifts. Learning to balance out all of the external stressors with herbs has shifted my life to being well rounded during Holiday times and has allowed me to better enjoy those special moments with my loved ones.
This is my favorite Stress Relief Salve formula. I make it to share with everyone. Making a salve only requires a few simple ingredients and is very quick to make. I always make a big batch of infused herbal oil and that way I have extra on hand to make in a hurry if I need to. Herbal infused oil can be stored in a dark place for several months to keep fresh. Help everyone you love stay stress free this holiday!
Gather ingredients
Beeswax (1-2 Bars)
Olive Oil (oil of choice) (approx. 30oz always better to have more on hand)
Lavender Flowers-.25oz
Skullcap-.25oz
Lemon Balm-.25oz
Passionflower-.25oz
Valerian-.25oz
Containers (enough to hold 30oz)
Lavender Essential Oil
Chamomile Essential OIl
To Infuse the herbs with your oil base:
Place herb blend (Lavender, Skullcap, Lemon Balm, Passionflower, Valerian) into oven safe glass container.
Put base oil blend on top of bulk herbs. Make sure that you cover everything with about an inch of oil on top of herbs.
Let sit in oven on lowest setting (around 200 or 225 degrees), uncover and let infusion happen for about 2 hours. Keep an eye on it so that it doesn’t burn. If your oven seems to hot then crack the door.
After 2 hours, remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature. Take cheesecloth and strain all the herbs from the oil. Don’t leave any herbs in the oil or it will spoil your batch.
Blending your infused oil to make salve:
Take your oil infusion and put in top pan of a double boiler.
Add your wax (I typically use beeswax or soy wax) or butters such as cocoa butter.
Melt all together. One of my favorite tricks for getting the appropriate consistency is the spoon trick. Take your melted blend and put a small amount on a spoon. Place in the fridge for about 5 min. Pull it out and see how the salve feels. If it’s to hard then add a little more oil, if it’s to soft add a little more wax.
Line up all your containers for the completed salves. Drop 10 drops of Lavender essential oil and 5 drops of Chamomile Essential Oil in each 2oz container. (depending on the size of your container you will want to add or subtract more essential oil)
Take base oil and wax blend and pour into your containers. Let sit over night. Don’t move them for 24 hours if possible to let them completely harden.
Label and use away!
To learn how to make Salves and Infused Herbal Oils join us in the Spring for our product making series.
To set up an herbal consultation with me email: info@theherbshoppepharmacy.com
