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    Home » DIY Projects

    DIY Hand Salve - Gardener's Bliss for Mother's Day

    April 27, 2014 by Patti Estep 9 Comments

    Jump to How-to Card

    Learn how to create a homemade hand salve. Great for and dry cracked skin, perfect for gardeners, and makes a special Mother's Day gift.

    Hand salve jar of gardeners bliss

    I'm making a nice hand salve for Mother's Day gifts this year. Almost every year, my sisters and sisters-in-law get together, at my oldest sister's mother-in-law's house, to celebrate Mother's Day. We order P.F. Chang's, which one of the guys picks up so no one has to cook, and I always buy or make a small gift for all the moms.

    Gardener's Bliss Homemade Hand Salve

    This year, I thought I'd make a nice hand salve for use after a hard days work in the garden, or really anytime. Originally I wanted to add jewelweed extract. You may remember from your Girl Scout (or Boy Scout) days that jewelweed, Impatiens capensis, aka Touch-Me-Not or Whistle Weed, has the ability to relieve skin irritations from insect bites and even poison ivy.

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    If you notice, many commercial soaps and sprays have jewelweed as the main ingredient. However, since the extract is made with water and alcohol, I had a really hard time incorporating the extract into the salve.

    Update: I have since made a Homemade Jewelweed Salve by infusing oil with the plant in the summer.

    This post contains some affiliate links (that means if you make a purchase after clicking a link, there’s no additional cost to you, but I will earn a very small commission. ) i.e. as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

    Hand salve supplies

    Hand Salve Supplies

    • 5 T. beeswax pellets
    • 1 c. coconut oil
    • 1 c. olive oil
    • lavender & lemon essential oil (5 drops lavender/15 lemon) each
    • 5 vitamin E capsules (acts as a preservative)
    • 2 oz glass jars with lids (makes 8 or 4 - 4 oz jars)
    Salve in double boiler

    How to Make Hand Salve

    • First, place the wax, coconut oil and olive oil in a large glass measuring cup. You could also use a clean large glass jar.
    • Then place the measuring cup in a pot of simmering water.
    • Stir occasionally as the ingredients melt into a nice liquid.
    • While you are waiting, take the time to place the essential oils into your glass jars.
    • Once the wax and coconut oil is melted, dip a spoon into the liquid and then place it in the freezer for a minute, to see what the consistency is like. If you would prefer it to be thicker, add more beeswax. Add more oil if you want it to be thinner.
    • Then, remove the measuring cup from the water and let it sit to cool slightly, just a couple of minutes.
    • Next, add your vitamin E by pricking the capsule with a pin and squeezing the oil into the salve mixture.
    • Stir and pour into the glass jars. This recipe filled exactly eight 2 oz. jars.
    Jars filled with hand salve

    There are many recipes out there for this type of salve, basically combining beeswax and oils in varying amounts, depending on how thick you want the final product. Essential oils for healing properties and scent are almost always included. Still, many people go the extra mile and add a few other goodies.

    Hand Salve Options and Extras

    • Honey - Said to be healing to the skin
    • Carrier Oils - Sweet Almond, Jojoba, Sunflower Oil, and many more. They vary in texture, scent and shelf life
    • Infused Base Oils - Infuse a carrier oil with plants like calendula petals or comfrey
    • Cocoa butter or shea butter
    Stack of Gardener's Bliss hand salve

    Take this recipe and go on from there to experiment and create a unique batch of your own. Keep a couple and share the rest with your favorite people.

    Patti signature

    P.S. If you enjoy making homemade skin care products you may want to try this DIY Foot Scrub or  Dry Body Oil project. You can find these and many more on my DIY Projects Page.

    Click Here to Save to Pinterest!

    DIY hand salve in a jar
    This hand salve is easy to make and you can scent it with your favorite essential oils.
    Print

    DIY Hand Salve - Gardener's Bliss for Mother's Day

     Make this hand salve which makes a great gift for Mother's Day, birthdays, or even just because.
    Prep Time15 minutes mins
    Active Time30 minutes mins
    Total Time45 minutes mins
    Course: Essential Oils
    Yield: 8 Jars
    Author: Patti Estep
    Cost: $20

    Equipment

    • 2 Ounce Glass Jars with Black Dome Twist Lined Lids with Gift Card & Envelope (6 Pack, Clear)
    • Nature Made Vitamin E 180 mg (400 IU) dl-Alpha Softgels, 100 Count for Antioxidant Support
    • NOW Essential Oils, Lavender Oil, Soothing Aromatherapy Scent, Steam Distilled, 100% Pure, Vegan, Child Resistant Cap, 1-Ounce
    • Nature's Way Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Pure & Unrefined, Cold-Pressed, USDA Organic, Non-GMO, 32 Ounce
    • 1-lb Pure White BEESWAX Pellets-100% Pure

    Materials

    • Beeswax Pellets
    • Coconut Oil
    • Essential Oils
    • Vitamin E Capsules
    • Olive Oil
    • Glass Jars with Lids

    Instructions

    • Place the wax, coconut oil and olive oil in a large glass measuring cup.
    • Place the measuring cup in a pot of simmering water.
    • Stir occasionally as the ingredients melt into liquid.
    • Place the essential oils into your glass jars.
    • Once the wax and coconut oil is melted, dip a spoon into the liquid and place it in the freezer for a minute, to test the consistency.
    • Add more beeswax and oil if needed.
    • Remove the measuring cup from the water.
    • Let it sit to cool slightly.
    • Add your vitamin E by pricking the capsule with a pin and squeezing the oil into the salve mixture.
    • Stir and pour into the glass jars.
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    About Patti Estep

    Patti is the creator of Hearth and Vine, a home and garden blog filled with projects to inspire your creative side. She loves crafting, gardening, decorating and entertaining at her home in Pennsylvania. When she is not working on a project at home or searching for treasures at nurseries and thrift stores with her girlfriends, you’ll probably find her with family and friends, at a restaurant, or home party enjoying new and different food adventures.

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    Comments

    1. Mary Ann

      April 27, 2014 at 8:30 am

      Patty.
      I plan on making this salve. It sound so easy abs I'm always looking for something for healing hands as are my daughters. I have a question about the oils. Do you use just one type of oil or a few. You mention lemon and lavender. I have both. Do you combine them?

      Reply
      • [email protected]

        April 27, 2014 at 8:45 am

        You can use any oils you want. I used olive and coconut because I always have olive and coconut seems to be in fashion.;) For future reference you can infuse flowers in other oils like olive or almond oil by letting them steep or gently heating them on the stove and then straining them. Calendula is a good flower for skin and would be an option. Also I think the coconut gives it a thicker consistency but you could just add extra beeswax if you decided not to use coconut oil. The essential oil part is also up to you. I just happen to really like lemon and lavender. I only used 5 drops of the lavender in each jar because I didn't want it to be too feminine in case the girls wanted to share with the guys. Lemon is my favorite scent so I used a lot many 15-20 drops. It just depends on what you like. I put them in the jars while the other ingredients where melting. This way you can experiment with the scent before combining with the salve liquid. Let me know how they turn out. I just realized that this was a big spoiler alert for my moms ;). Oh well, at least it gives others like you a chance to make it in time for Mother's Day.

        Reply

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