HERB - Bruise Creams

[aleed]

Morna,

Here's a bruise cream I always end up using for everything:

Drea
--------------------------------------------

This ointment is good for bruises, rough and chapped skin, deep muscle aches, armor bites, sunburn, etc. It's not meant to be used on open wounds. It should last at least a year, longer if refrigerated.

Bruise and Sprain ointment
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup avacado oil
10 drops vitamin E oil
10 drops gum benzoin
10 drops peppermint oil (optional)
20 drops camphor oil (optional)
2 ozs cocoa butter
2 ozs beeswax (1/4 cup melted)
1 oz. Dried comfrey root, chopped
1 oz calendula blossoms
1 tbsp cayenne powder

heat olive oil and avacado oil together to 150 degrees in a double boiler.
Mix in calendula blossoms, comfrey root, and cayenne. Keep at 150 degrees for 1.5 hours, stirring occasionally. The blossoms will be crispy.

Strain through a fine cloth.  Discard roots and flowers.  The oil will be a bright golden orange.

Put this oil in a double boiler and heat to around 150.  Add 2 ozs of cocoa butter, 2 ozs shaved beeswax, vitamin E, gum benzoin , camphor and peppermint oil.  Stir thoroughly until melted and blended.  Pour into clean jars.  Let the oil cool completely before capping.

This recipe fills 5 2 oz. Jars.  The texture is firm, but it softens and rubs in quickly and leaves little grease behind.   It is good for skin rashes, rough & chapped skin, bites, bruises & swellings.   Do not use on open wounds.

The active ingredients are the peppermint oil (soothes and cools the muscles,  helping with subdermal sprains & bruises, etc. ), camphor oil (very good for muscular aches and pains), Comfrey (one of the best herbs for sprains & bruises around), cayenne (another warming, muscle-relazing substance) and calendula (an all-round good wound herb).

As for the base, The avacado oil is very good for soothing rough skin; the olive oil is as well. The gum benzoin helps to extend the shelf life of the salve, as does the vitamin E.  Vitamin E also nourishes the skin.
The beeswax hardens the salve and gives it some substance.  The cocoa butter hardens it a bit as well, and is also a wonderful skin softener.

For an ointment designed for deep muscle aches and pains, substitute dried arnica for the calendula blossoms and add more camphor oil & less peppermint oil.  For more surface-type bruising, you can substitute plantain for the calendula if you wish.  If you have very sensitive skin, you may want to eliminate the cayenne.

 If you wish you can also add a few drops of essential oil to scent it:  lavender, patchouli, bergamot, etc.  Without any scents added, this salve naturally smells like after-dinner mints. (Yum!)


On Wed, 4 Aug 1999, NIKI ARMANASCO wrote:

> Greetings to the list,
> 
> Does anyone have any good recipies for bruise creams?  Also does anyone have any recipies for milder versions of sports rubs or creams, the off the shelf ones tend to be far to strong for my skin and I would like to find out if I can make my own.
> 
> As I have recently gotten back into heavy fighting this is a particularly relevant concern.
> 
> Could someone please explain to me what a tincture is?  
> 
> My thanks in advance
> 
> Morna of River Haven
> mka Niki Armanasco, Brisbane, Australia
> 
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