Homemade Salve

A homemade salve is a great and frugal way to nourish and heal dry skin as well as comfort the mind and soul.  Add an essential oil of your choice, and you can have a salve that heals a burn, helps prevent scarring and softens your skin.  Not only that, they also have a luscious smell as well.

I got this recipe from the book Organic Body Care Recipes by Stephanie L. Tourles.  Her recipe calls for orange essential oil, which makes for a delicious smell.  But other essential oils can be used as well.  This homemade salve, also called a balm, may feel oily when you first apply it, but in a few minutes it soaks into your skin leaving a slight, pleasant aroma.

Homemade Salve Recipe

The ingredients in this homemade salve recipe are very basic and all natural.  They include:

  •     7 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil
  •     1 tablespoon cocoa butter (you can find it here)
  •     40 drops essential oil of your choice

Preparing the Salve

melted balm

First, you'll need to melt the oils over low heat. Put them either in a small pan or in a double boiler, like the one shown on the right. Heat the butter and oil until the cocoa butter is just melted.

Then remove from heat, and allow the mixture to cool for 15 minutes.

Then add the essential oil, stir it until it is well blended, and pour the mixture into a container.

This butter will melt easily, so if you keep your house warm, don't be surprised if your mixture remains in a liquid state. It will only become firm if it is kept at a temperature below 76 degrees Fahrenheit. The salve will melt when it comes in contact with your skin.

A Note About Essential Oils

Adding an essential oil to your homemade salve not only makes it smell nice, but it has many other wonderful benefits.  Essential oils have powerful antioxidant and antibacterial properties that protect your skin and promote healing.  Plus, adding essential oils to your salve makes the essential oils even more effective because they help the oils penetrate your skin more quickly, keep the essential oils from evaporating too quickly and keep your skin from drying out.

Different essential oils provide different benefits depending on what you want.  If you want a salve that promotes healing from burns, add lavender oil.  Lavender is excellent for easing the pain of burns and helps tissues regenerate, speeding the healing of burn wounds.

Want to get rid of stretch marks?  Use Frankincense.  It also helps you relax and lifts your spirits.  If you want to soften your skin, rose essential oil has been used for centuries and was recognized in ancient times for its healing properties.  It can help prevent scarring, acne, and wrinkles. 

Tips for Using

This is great to use right after a bath or shower. A little bit goes a long way, so take about a teaspoon full and massage it into your skin. I'm also keeping some right by the kitchen sink. After washing dishes, I love rubbing this into my thirsty hands. You do not need to refrigerate this, but you should use it within a year.

Pain Reliever Salve

The next time you are suffering from aches and pains, try this pain-relieving salve from Hobby Farms. For sore muscles, this salve is just the ticket. It’s great for easing the pain from arthritis, inflammation, or stiff joints.

This salve contains three amazing, pain-easing herbs: lavender, willow bark, and cayenne. Not only does lavender smell good, but it’s also calming. Plus, lavender offers anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. Willow bark (used to make aspirin) is great for reducing inflammation, and cayenne contains capsaicin, a well-known pain reliever.

Here are the ingredients:

Ingredients for Pain-Relieving Salve

Here's what you need:

  • 1 tablespoon lavender flowers
  • 1/2 tablespoon white willow bark
  • 1/2 tablespoon cayenne
  • 3 1/2 ounces herb-infused oil
  • 1/4 ounce (by weight) beeswax
  • Double boiler or similar equipment
  • Jelly jars or reused baby food jars work well.

To create this salve, you will first need to make herb-infused oils. The best and fastest way to make it is to use the sous vide method. (I explain how here). That way, your herbs don’t lose any of their potency, and your oil absorbs most of the herb’s nutrients. It will take approximately eight hours to make your herb-infused oil.

Learn how to make herb-infused oils using the sous vide method.

Once your oil is ready, strain out the herbs using a cheesecloth and place the oil in the top of your double boiler. Then add your beeswax. 

If you don’t have a double boiler, you can also place the oil and wax in a stainless steel bowl and set it over a pot of boiling water. Just make sure the bowl doesn’t get too hot. Set the pot over medium heat and gently stir the oil to make sure beeswax and oil blend well. Once the beeswax is completely melted, remove the pot from the heat and pour the oil into your container. The beeswax will solidify as it cools.

More Make it Yourself Recipes

Return to Home

About the Author

My name is Sue Merriam, and I began the journey of self-reliant living more than three decades ago, which enabled me to stay home with my children. Fifteen years ago, I founded Joyful Homesteading to help others save money and face the future without fear. My goal is to give you practical, honest advice so you can save money and experience the joy of simple living. I hope you join me.

Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.