Make It Yourself Monday- Rash Balm

My Grandson will be one in just another 3 more short months! My how the time has flown! In his honor, today's make it yourself recipe is a baby balm. Healing and soothing, this recipe is great for preventing as well as healing diaper rash and prickly heat rash. And rubbing a balm into baby skin also helps to calm and reduce stress, so that's a bonus too! 




To make, you will need to brew an infusion of the following dried herbs;

3 Tbsp.  lavender buds 
1 Tbsp.  calendula petals 
1 Tbsp. chamomile flowers heads 
1 Tbsp.  rose petals *Make sure that these are from plants that are not chemically treated or colored. Roses that are sold in florists shops or stores are usually treated for bugs and/or colored. So if you do not know for sure, do NOT use the petals. You certainly don't want to introduce a poison to your balm! Also, you do not have to use any rose petals if you do not want to include them, but they do add some nice properties to the balm.




Take the dried herbs and place in a pot. Begin the process by slightly mashing them, then add 1 cup of your favorite carrier oil. My favorites are olive oil, hemp seed oil, grapeseed oil, camelina, or sweet almond oil. If you can't decide, mix a few! Then simmer over a low heat for about four hours. You can also use a crock-pot set on low too. Another way is to use powdered herbs. If you do this, you will only need to simmer for two hours. 
Once made, strain the oil from the solids and toss out the plant material. The easiest way to strain is by pouring through cheesecloth, but if you don't have any available you can also use a wire strainer with a coffee filter inside of the strainer. Just be very careful to not allow the filter to break, and you will have to squeeze some of the oil out of it, in order to make sure that you get all the oil you need, as it loves to hold onto some. *If you use the powdered herbs, you will be better off using the coffee filter. 


In a glass bowl, blend; 
2 Tbsp. vitamin E oil
1 1/2 tsp. of emu oil OR jojoba oil 
then add in the herbal infused oil and stir well.


Next, melt 8 Tbsp. of beeswax in a double boiler. Once it is completely melted, slowly add it to the bowl of oil, whisking as you go. I prefer using a stick blender at this point, but you can keep whisking or use an egg beater. At this point add 4 drops of lavender or Roman chamomile essential oil. You can add 2 drops of each if you'd prefer, and that is a great blend! Whatever you do though, do NOT add more EO than 3 drops when making this for a baby! Blend until the mixture is smooth and creamy, then put into dark jars and seal. This will stay good for about 3 months without refrigeration, but to extend its shelf life, store it in the fridge. In fact, I like mine refrigerated because the cool feels soothing. How do I know? Well this balm is great for adults too, especially for healing minor burns, cuts, scrapes, and abrasions.