Friday, May 11, 2012

Herbal Hearth - Homemade Healing Balm/Moisturizer

Calendula, Tea Tree, & Lavender Coconut Oil Healing Balm

A while back I made a post titled Healing Acne With Simplicity. I talked about my experiments with NOT washing my face and how much it has helped me. I still am not using soap on my face and am still touting its benefits. Today I'd like to expand on this a bit and talk about my homemade facial moisturizer. I have found this simple concoction to be helpful not only as a wonderful facial moisturizer but also as a balm/ointment for wounds & acne. 

I first started using this moisturizer as a simple oil infusion. I took raw organic extra virgin coconut oil, mixed it with dried calendula flower petals from my garden and set it in a sunny spot for about 4 weeks. Every day the sun would heat up the coconut oil (which melts at aprox 76 degrees) and melt it, helping the petals to infuse in to the oil. In the evenings the oil would re-solidify. After 4 weeks, while the oil was melted, I strained out the petals using cheese clothing and poured the oil in to an old moisturizer container. I used this every morning & every night for a while. 

It's important to note, when using coconut oil as a moisturizer it works best if you apply it while your skin is still wet. It helps lock in the moisture. 

Recently I have been having some stress break outs and felt like I needed a little extra help in the moisturizer department so I amped up my recipe a bit by adding some Tea Tree & Lavender oil. I am so in love with this new mixture. It smells amazing and works great no only as a daily moisturizer but also as a minor wound ointment. 

Coconut, tea tree, & lavender oils are all naturally antibacterial, and the calendula is anti-inflammatory and aids in healing. 

Give it a shot and let me know what you think or if you have an alterations to the recipe you prefer. 



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