This healing hand balm recipe is one I came up with for someone who cooked us a wonderful meal after showing us around in his beautiful garden. Sometimes I like to improvise a little, and not be extremely conscious of the numbers. No precision scales were involved here. The beeswax was just cut into fine pieces, melted, and then measured out in spoons while liquid, just like the rest of the ingredients. This balm turned out great. It is rather solid – even at tropical temperatures, so if you like somewhere cold you may want to cut down on the beeswax a little to a lot.
Healing Gardeners Balm – Ingredients
- Beeswax 2 spoons
- Kokum butter 2.5 spoons
- Avocado oil 4 spoons
- Olive oil 4 spoons
- Tea tree EO 16 drops
Healing Gardeners Balm – Steps
The creation process can be a bit chaotic for me, and sometimes I change my recipes mid-course, but there are some clear steps to follow to make this easy as pie.
1. Start with three containers, positioned in a large pan with water brought to a simmer. Pyrex measuring cups or just one Pyrex cup and some Mason/Bell jars will do fine. Coffee mugs can work too, if that’s all you have on hand.
2. Melt the beeswax in one of the vessels. Melt some Kokum butter in another one. In the third, measure out four parts of avocado oil and olive oil. If you use cold pressed oils, you may want to take this cup out of the double boiler and place it back just before the beeswax has completely molten.
3. Measure out your beeswax, and add it to the oils.
4. Do the same for the Kokum butter. If the oils are not as hot as the beeswax, this may take a little waiting and stirring. I usually try to time it just right and add the beeswax when the oil is just about hot enough, and then take everything out of the double boiler. Sometimes the beeswax will create solid little lumps again in the oil, and you just have to keep stirring and waiting until those melt. Yes, this means heating the oil more than you would perhaps want to, but I haven’t found a better way yet.
5. Turn off the heat, and keep stirring your mixture. The best time to pour it into its jar is when it starts developing trace. The essential oil(s) can be added just before that. ‘Trace’ is when the concoction gets a little ticker, like sauces do too.
6. Pour into dedicated jar, and let cool down.
7. If you’re unsure about degree of softness you want, you could also just let it solidify in a Mason or Bell jar. That way, if it’s too hard or too soft, you could remelt it and add more oil or beeswax. Obviously, this isn’t too great for cold pressed oils again, but hey – you gotta do something, sometimes… 😉
Where to find the ingredients for this homemade hand balm?
Amazon
Another good online venue with many homemade skin care ingredients is From Nature With Love. I’ve added the links to their organic wax, oils and butters. On the website, you’ll also be able to find non-organic versions of most ingredients. Again, for your convienence all the links to ingredients used in this healing gardeners balm recipe:
- Organic Beeswax
- Kokum butter is not available at ‘from nature with love’, but they have many other very interesting vegetable butters such as cupuacu, murumuru and mango.
- Olive Oil
- Avocado Oil
- Tea Tree Oil
Of course, you could just as easily make this recipe with other essential oils, for healing properties, their delicious fragrances, or both.
What if you’re too busy (or just not in the mood) to blend/stir/pour?
Here are a few suggestions for similar ready-made hand balms.
- Badger the Beaver has been thinking of you! Check Badger’s Balm for Hardworking Hands.
- Nubian Heritage’s Shea Butter Lotion, infused with Lemongrass and Tea Tree.
(on Amazon)
- Just Natural’s Shea Body Butters, such as this one, with orange blossom, lemongrass and lavender. (by Just Natural Skin Care)
Have you tried making the healing gardeners hand balm, or given it your own twist?
I’d love to hear about your homemade skin care adventures.
