Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Herbal infused Oils.

In keeping with the theme lately I thought I'd share a few of the things I decided to make into infused oil.  I have been using the warm water infusion method on my stove top because the weather has been a bit cooler and not too much sun lately. 


I am really lucky because my dad has a huge patch of comfrey at the back of his yard and when I went there to harvest some I found a whole treasure trove of plants I will  be getting a little later in the season.  I also picked a bit of his peppermint while I was there and found a few really nice mullein plants as well.  I love his yard.



So in my little pan I have some comfrey, mullein, peppermint, and plantain that I wildcrafted. I have some cayenne pepper from my pantry and I purchased a small bag of dried calendula flowers and dried  thyme from the local health store to get me started.  I have them all in a good quality extra virgin olive oil.  

I have had them going for a few days now and they will be ready this week.  This method calls for heating the oils slightly for at least eight hours a day for four days. I can't wait to strain off all the plants and bottle my special oils in preparation for a variety of salves and balms for healing, moisturizing and even one for pain. 

I started the dandelions and violet flowers in oil before any of  the others and they are already done.  I  am using the violet oil with a few drops of lavender essential oil for a nice massage oil.  It is very soothing on my tired legs and feet at the end of the day and helps me to relax and get a better night sleep. And the dandelion salve I made last week is doing a wonderful job of healing my cracked knuckles and dry elbows.  I've never had them look this good.
 
Here is a good instructible for infusing herbs for medicinal oils.

Have a great day everyone.

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