Making Your Balms

 

This is an education as to making your balms as in Lip balm, Healing Balms, Callouse Balm.

You will need the following items for this spell:

Nothing

Casting Instructions for ‘Making Your Own Balms’

Basics

The basics of building a Balm would be to extract the beneficial properties of herbs in oil, then add beeswax to harden the oil. You could also add other ingredients like essential oils, or even flavorings in the event of making lip balms. In some recipes the process of infusing oils is skipped entirely and essential oils are used in their with various carrier oils.

For each recipe below that does use herbs you’ll infuse your oil first. To learn more about infusing oils please visit How to Infuse Oils. I like to leave my herbs to infuse on their own for at least one full moon cycle. Others might wish to use heat for a more rapid infusion.

Based on the freshness and the type of herbs you are using you may wish to strain the oil and add more herbs once or twice. This is entirely up to you. I find that by using very fresh herbs in generous quantities that I do not need to do this. I also use essential oils in my balms frequently, but so you may want to do the strain and add method if you choose to leave the essential oils out of the balm you are making.

As soon as your oil is ready you will melt your solid oils and any wax you’re using in a pan over very low heat. Next add your infused oil and check for hardness as explained in the tips below. Cool slightly and add essential oils if you are using them. Pour into containers and label and you are all set.

Tips for Making Balms

If you would like to earn your Balm using freshly collected plants, you may wish to clean them first. Do this by shaking them to remove dirt then spread out the herbs to allow them to air dry for many hours (until wilted) to decrease the moisture content. Any herb that contains a lot of moisture could cause your Balm to spoil or even mould. For this reason I, myself, prefer to use dried herbs in my oil to avoid contamination and excess moisture which may cause such spoilage.

As soon as you put in your wax you will want to test to see if your Balm is the right consistancy. To perform a simple test I dip a spoon into the mixture and put it in the freezer for a minute or two. You may also try is dipping the spoon into ice water for a few minutes. If your Balm is too soft, add more beeswax and if it’s too hard add a little more carrier oil.

You may wish to pour your Balm into sterilized containers and label them accordingly. You may sterilize simply by washing in very hot water from the dishwasher with a detergent containing bleach or by using bleach from the rinse water if washing by hand. Air dry to prevent re-contaminating your containers and again causing premature spoilage.

Do not include any essential oils as soon as your base oil is very very hot-it may very well destroy them in the process.

Be sure pans are non-metal such as glass or porcelin If you must use metal utensils or pans be sure they are not made of aluminum and they’re not coated using a non surface.

To include vitamin E, then poke a hole in the capsule with a pin and squeeze out the contents. Discard the capsule.

Be careful when using some essential oils as well as carrier oils. They can cause allergic reactions. For instance those who are allergic to nuts should be careful and avoid using coconut oil or another oil derived from nuts including walnut and peanut oils. Be sure when purchasing or giving gifts of balms to tag them with all ingredients to avoid someone having a life threatening reaction.

You should really heat your oils and waxes over hot water in a double boiler.

Be very sure your containers are made for pouring hot liquids into. Many are not and there is nothing worse than spending a month making a beautiful oil and receiving your balm made and having your containers crack and spill it all over the counter top!

Proportions for beeswax are approximate. If you need a harder or softer balm add or subtract from your recipe accordingly.

You might also soften balm a little by adding borax and water. The borax acts as an emulsifier and will permit the oil and water to mix rather than independent. I use 1 teaspoon of borax in 1 cup of water. Do not add the entire cup of water to your recipe! Add a few drops or a quarter teaspoon at a time at the most and then test your consistency. Keep doing this until it reaches the desired degree. It will cause your balm to harden quickly so do this last.

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The information below are provided for informational purposes independently and any use of these things is done solely at the discretion and risk of the individual using them. No promises or guarantees are made as to their effectiveness or safety. If you choose to use any oil here on the skin it would be wise to apply a tiny amount to the inside of your elbow and wait 24 hours to check for reactions. If you are on any pharmaceutical drugs or have a serious medical condition, are pregnant or nursing, consult your medical care provider before using anything that you do not ordinarily use, including herbs and over the counter medications.
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