• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

• Plan to spend some time cleaning up; this petroleum jelly stuff is resilient. (I suggest using paper towels initially, then soap and hot water.)

TO PREPARE AN AROMATIC

MEDICATED VEHICLE

1. Purchase a jar of unmedicated petroleum jelly. This is readily available in drug stores in 1.75 oz. (49 Gm), 3.75 oz. (106 Gm), 13 oz. (368 Gm) and 15 oz. (425 Gm) sizes.

2. Melt the petroleum jelly over a very low heat. Do not overheat it.

3. Just as the jelly turns liquid, move it away from the flame.

4. Add the drops of volatile oils to the liquid and stir them in quickly. For starters, I suggest using 8–12 drops of each single essential oil (or 30–50 drops total) per 30 Gm of jelly (adjust this + or − as you see fit). Use up to 4 different essential oils per 30 Gm.

5. Immediately pour the warm salve into a glass container(s).

6. Cap immediately so volatile oils do not escape salve as it cools.

ETHYL-OIL SALVE

This procedure renders a most superior salve from the dried resinous, golden-orange flowers of the Calendula officinalis in particular, and/or from any other dried plant which has primarily alcohol-soluble properties that are not particularly oil-soluble (i.e., Arnica, Goldenseal, Gumweed, Chaparral).

1. Weigh out dried powdered herb (let’s say 120 Gm).

2. Measure an equal amount by volume of 190-proof ethyl alcohol (that will be 120 ml).

3. Mix the herb with the alcohol and stir the mixture until all of the herb is moist.

4. Place this in a tightly sealed container and let it macerate for 24 hours.

5. Measure out 6 parts by volume of vegetable oil (that will be 720 ml).

6. Pour the oil into a blender and add the moist herb.

7. Blend this at a medium speed until the blender basket feels warm.

8. Strain by pouring into a muslin cloth-lined strainer and press.

9. Pour the liquid into a double boiler and heat over a low flame for a few hours until all the alcohol has evaporated (do not burn the oil). Check to see if any alcohol is still present by carefully placing a lighted match to the surface of the oil.

10. Bottle the oil in tightly capped containers and store in a cool place for future use, or add sufficient beeswax to transform it into a salve as outlined in steps 4 through 10 on this page.

HERBS ON THE “35 HERBS AND A FUNGUS” LIST

THAT ARE WELL PREPARED AS SALVES

Burdock root

Calendula

Cayenne

Comfrey leaf and/or root

Elder flower

Ginger

Goldenseal leaf and rhizome

Marshmallow root

Mullein leaf

Nettle leaf

Plantain

St. John’s Wort

Yarrow

* The volume of herb will vary greatly depending on its density; 1 ounce of powdered root or seed will usually present considerably less volume than 1 ounce of powdered leaf or flowers. It is important that the final proportion of herb to oil is such that it renders the herb quite wet with oil. It is also recommended that you powder the herb to a moderately coarse powder whenever possible to expose more surface area to the oil menstruum.

Lotions are water preparations containing insoluble materials used for external application that requires no friction. They are less intense than liniments, and because they are wetter, they are more sensual in their effect on the skin than salves. Lotions also require less rubbing in their application than salves, and they tend to leave a smaller amount of residue on the skin. The term lotion has derived from the Latin verb lavare, meaning to wash.

Medicinal lotions usually contain antiseptic or germicidal substances used to treat skin maladies, or they contain substances cooling and soothing to irritated skin, and healing to broken or bruised skin. Some lotions are a blend of liquid solutions, while others are either emulsions (a dispersion of droplets of a liquid in a second liquid with which it is insoluble) or suspensions (for our purposes, a finely divided solid dispersed in a liquid—the solid settles out more or less rapidly). The emulsions and suspensions frequently contain insoluble bodies that should be in a condition to diffuse easily when the liquid is shaken.

Cosmetic