Balms, Butters and Salves: A Student Experience
Rivka Sari
Enjoy this student paper written by Rivka Sari for her Balms, Butters and Salves course completion featuring three beautiful recipes we really wanted to share!
Vegan Herbal Salve
Made with soothing Chamomile herbal oil, and Lavender herbal oil. I infused these oils at my home in Israel last summer, using rich and luxurious butters to create a completely vegan salve that helps to hydrate and soften dry or rough skin. I wanted to use some new ingredients that I have never used before. Some of those were organic Carnauba Wax, Kokum Butter and Mango Butter.
Ingredients
1 1/2 tbsp. each of two herbal oils (Chamomile and Lavender)
2 tbsp. organic Mango Butter
1 tbsp. + 1 tsp. organic Carnauba Wax
1 tbsp. Kokum Butter
1/4 tsp. Vitamin E Oil
3 drops organic Lavender Essential Oil (Lavandula angustifolia)
3 drops organic Tea Tree Essential Oil (Melaleuca alternifolia)
6 drops organic Roman Chamomile Essential Oil (Chamaemelum nobile)
My Process
In a double boiler, I melt down Carnauba Wax and about half of the total herbal oils. Slowly add the remaining herbal oil and butters (except Vitamin E and essential oils), stirring often to prevent scalding.
Prepare salve jars while ingredients are melting. I also like to pre-measure my essential oils into a small beaker so that all I have to do is pour them into my melted ingredients after removing from the heat in step three (3).
Once ingredients are fully melted, I remove from the heat and add in the vitamin E oil and my essential oil synergy, stirring well.
Immediately pour mixture into sterile jars, being careful not to bump the jars until the liquid begins to harden.
I leave the jars at room temperature and do not disturb until firm, to avoid creating cracks in the surface of my product. There is nothing so inviting as receiving a jar of smooth looking salve. It’s so satisfying to be the first person to dive into it with your fingers!
My Experiences
What I discovered is that Carnauba Wax takes a very long time to melt. I did some quick research and found it to have a melting point of about 180° F (82° C), which means it can definitely take a while to melt. I also realized because of the melting point temperature, I had to be patient, as heating too quickly could scald my precious herbal oils. My conclusion was that if the melting process was slow then salves made with Carnauba wax would be slow-setting. I found it is best to let salve sit for three days to harden before using it.
Overall this was a fun process, and I will be definitely be offering more of these kinds of salves in my practice.
Melissa Leaf Herbal Lip Balm
I like a softer lip balm, so I use less beeswax. Conversely if someone likes like a firmer lip balm, I would use more beeswax. But as I discovered, there is a balance in making lip balm soft enough to apply but hard enough to avoid a mess.
I personally prefer glass jars instead of plastic balm containers.
Ingredients
4 tbsp. Lemon Balm-infused Herbal Oil (Melissa officinalis)
1 tbsp. Sunflower Oil
1/2 tbsp. Tamanu (An amazing oil that heals a multitude of skin conditions.)
1/2 tbsp. Castor Bean Oil (Helps the lip balm go on smoothly, adds a bit of gloss.)
2 tbsp. Beeswax (Or half as much candelilla wax for vegans.)
1 tbsp. Shea Butter (or Mango Butter)
6 drops Tea Tree Essential Oil (Melaleuca alternifolia) antiseptic and restorative
6 drops of Peppermint Essential Oil (Mentha x.piperita)- cooling and analgesic
4 drops of Lemon Essential Oil (Citrus limon) – antiseptic and restorative
My Process
In a double boiler, I combined all oils, Shea Butter and Beeswax. In times before I had a double boiler, I added oils to a heat-proof container, set it down into a saucepan containing a few inches of water, and watched it carefully while heating over medium-low heat until everything was melted.
Remove from heat and stir in the essential oils and vitamin E, then pour into ½ oz glass jars.
Once my lip balms were set, I capped each one and stored away from direct heat or sunlight.
My Experiences
Making this balm was so much fun! I especially liked trying the new combination of Sunflower oil and Tamanu oil. It made a wonderful balm and my clients love it.
Floral Natural Deodorant
The herbal oil I used in this recipe was one I had made by infusing flowers from my garden in Israel which I had dried in December, 2108. I infused dried rose petal, dried jasmine flowers, dried gardenia flowers, fresh Lavender (wilted 24 hours), and fresh calendula flowers (wilted 24 hours)in Fractionated (liquid) Coconut Oil for 6 weeks.
I let the mixture cool to room temperature, then strained and stored in the fridge for later use. Here’s an article on how to make herbal oils.
Ingredients
1/3 cup Virgin Coconut Oil
2 tbsp. + 1 tsp. Shea Butter
1/4 cup Cornstarch (Arrowroot Powder for sensitive skin)
1/4 cup Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Infused Herbal Oil
Process
Slowly melt shea butter. As it becomes liquid, add Virgin Coconut Oil and warm until melted.
Add the ¼ tsp. of herbal infused oil.
Mix dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.
Gently mix dry ingredients into oils.
Pour into jars and let come to room temperature before placing into the fridge to complete solidification.
I ended up with a very fragrant paste. The paste should be poured into a jar before it solidifies. Coconut Oil is solid below 76 ° F., so the end product should be solid but soft when scooping and applying. Store somewhere cool. Refrigeration is not necessary.
Experience:
I had never made a deodorant before, but I wanted to experiment and make a completely natural herbal-infused deodorant without essential oils. Let’s just say this recipe will make it into my next book. I now have a whole line of deodorants!
