Okay I am a beekeeper and tend to get stung at least once each time I mess with this ANGRY hive. The last two times that I have been stung, I used the Owie Ointment. It makes the stings quit burning and hurting quite so badly. I am not asking for the recipe, just wanted to THANK YOU hugely.
Sounds like it would be great for fire ant bites. I would love to buy some if they are selling it. I would do anything to find a good treatment for such bites.
I as well love the owie ointment. My husband woke up in teh middle of the night a while back and was itching....I looked at him with half open eyes, and found a spider bite. Off to my soaping hutch I went and grabbed the owie ointment, rubbed it on and by morning, no more red or itching. Definately love having it in my cabinet! :)
I am assuming from the pdf of the recipe book for the swap it was the Herbal First Aid Stick by Cindy (c2bb54) but scouring the forum and the pdf booklet I haven't been able to find a copy of the recipe. I really wanted to try it :(
There are two different recipes, one is the Owie Ointment and the other is the Herbal First Aid stick. Both are wonderful :-) I am more than happy to have both right now.
I made the herbal first aid ointment. It is a recipe I created myself with lots of my own herbs. My family loves it. We use it for everything. It is made from lots of my own herbs along with others that I can't grow here. It takes a bit of time to make, but when I make it, I usually make up 5 or more pounds at a time. Cindy
I see- 2 different recipes- that's what assuming will get you-lol We have the fire ants so bad in this area that you can't hardly step out the door without getting bit during the summer so when I heard how great the Owie Ointment was for bee stings I was determined to try to find either where to get it or how to make it since I figured it would bring some relief from the bites. Honestly I would rather purchase it as I probably don't have the stuff for it yet nor have I ever made the like. Your first aid ointment sounds wonderful Cindy. I can see why you would make so much at once since it is intensive to make. I have never tried anything like it so maybe I will be fortunate enough to be in a future swap with you when you share it again. I am new to MMS forum and soaping so I haven't had anything to share yet to be able to join in a swap yet. I look forward to the next swap being posted as I plan to give it a try- it sounds like great fun.
I do sell it. Or if you would rather, I could give you the recipe privately ( I don't post it for everyone). I have a web site that I'm working on...www.smoothscentsations.com. I don't have everything on it yet though. Still a work in progress. Cindy
Hi Angie- Recipes and info are on your way. I do organic gardening as well. I have to get out there thin out my mullein as it is in it's second year and I have to thin it out so they will have room to spike. Keeping an herb garden is backbreaking work, but oh so satisfying! Cindy
So happy to find this link -- just burned myself with the curling iron, and I am using the Herbal First Aid Stick from the Hostess Gift Swap - it is awesome! It calmed the burn after my ice treatment -- plan to keep using it for several days. I have been looking through the Swap booklet for the recipe, then realized your name and products were on the front under "Other Submissions". Would love to have the reciepe, even though I probably can't grow all the herbs here in HOT HOT Texas. My email address is: smat0904@yahoo.com. Thank you.
Just found this forum and am very anxious to try the Owie Ointment. Can anyone tell me where to get it, or the recipe? My daughter is very susceptible to spider bites and has gone through a lot of pain because of them. I have made some lotions, but don't have a clue how to make something that would relieve pain.
Man alaska lady, the bites I totally hear you with! While in California I had something eating me alive. I met up with my friend who works for a dermatologist and she said they were FLEA bites!! Man, I can 10000000% understand why those poor dogs with them chew on themselves! I had never had them before since they can't even live in Utah (too high of an elevation). I'd also love the recipe if possible.
Update on curling iron burn: I used the Herbal First Aid Stick from the Hostess Gift Swap with a layer of Squalane under it twice a day after the burn. The ugly brown layer peeled off after 4-5 days, and 6-7 days later my skin looks like nothing happened -- this is a first, usually there is a lurking light brown scar for a time. This Herbal First Aid Stick must have made this difference. All I can say is thanks to Cindy for such a fine product and generous sharing in the Hostess Gift Swap.
Andee can you teach us all how to make a similar product on the Blog ??????
To alaskalady - I am headed to my home town of Palmer in the heart of the Mat-Su Vally next week. I can hardly wait to feel the cool temperatures and view the panoramic valley mountains again.
I have had much going on and have not had any time to post on here for some time. I appreciate all of the comments about my first aid balm. If it is ok with the Sage, I will post it on here when I can. Cindy
I can't remember which recipe I used for this swap, so I have included a couple of them...here is #1: Olive Oil Infused with: Comfrey Plantain Cranesbill Chickweed Marshmallow Mullein Balm of Gilead Buds Propolis Ointment: 100 g First Aid Oil (50%) 60 g Lanolin (30%) 20 g Emu or Other healing Oil such as Hemp, Shea, etc. (10%) 20 g Beeswax (10%) Lavender EO Tea Tree EO Here is recipe #2: 1 Part St. John’s Wort Leaf & Flower 2 Parts Calendula 1 Part Comfrey Leaf 1 Part Comfrey Root 1 Part Plantain ½ Part Oregon Grape Root Vitamin E 50 oz Olive Oil 3-6 oz Beeswax Tea Tree EO This is recipe #3 (one of my favorites that I make the most):
¼ C. St. John’s Wort ½ C. Calendula Flowers ¼ C. Comfrey Leaf ¼ C. Comfrey Root ¼ C. Plantain 1/8 C. Oregon Grape Root 1/8 C. Chickweed ¼ C Mullein ¼ C Marshmallow ¼ C Arnica ¼ C Propolis 100% 1 C Emu Oil 50 oz. Olive Oil to cover herbs 0.5 oz Vitamin E 2 oz. Tea Tree EO 0.5 oz. Sea Buckthorn EO 1 oz. Lavender EO 16 oz Beeswax
I make so many different ointments/balms, that it is difficult to remember which ones I sent in, but the last one is by far the one that I get the most requests out of. When I make my balms/salves, I use a crock pot with an adjustable thermostat that I control so that the temperature of the oil never goes over 90 degrees. I am very careful to monitor my temperatures, as the high temps can really destroy the healing properties of the herbs. I also never use fresh herbs because of the high water content in the, but I will at the very least wilt my herbs for 2-3 days if I pick them fresh, otherwise, I will use dried ones. Most of my herbs I either grow or wildcraft myself. Those that I can't grow myself, I try to purchase at places that can assure me of high quality and the actual herb that they are selling (trust me, this is a huge problem in the herb market with several herbs). Some of these recipes are quite time consuming the way that I do them, because I will usually make a 2-3x potency batch, but I feel it is worth it when I see the results. Enjoy the recipes, and so sorry they are so late. Cindy
wow, those are some complex blends. Don't know when i will ever have time to attempt any of these, but thank-you so much for sharing. i have a whole new list of herbs to research. do you grow/harvest your own arnica? would love to infuse my own. if you purchase the dried form would you share where you get it? My email is susanlafrance@hotmail.com. thanks.
If anyone is allergic to the bee venom, you would have to use Propolis at your own judgement. I have known people to use it that have bee sting allergies and they do fine, but I would never recommend someone do that unless they are comfortable with it. I have never been stung by a bee myself, but I take bee pollen daily, usually 1-2 tablespoons full, so I don't that is an issue with me. I would tend to err on the side of caution with known hypersensitivities. Cindy
Thanks Cindy for your response as it was something I was thinking about since one family member is allergic to bees. The blends are very interesting and I'm going to enjoy researching the herbs etc as Susan has said. You have been very generous to share with all of us.
Thank you so much Cindy :) You know Mountain Rose herbs is supposed to have great quality stuff. Here is another site you might want to check out. http://www.frontiercoop.com/ I have been thinking of ordering some bulk herbs like calendula from them by the lb but the funds for it just haven't been there yet as I am still working to get the more basic things for soapmaking and such.
Mountain Rose Herbs has excellent quality herbs and I order from them as well. They have great customer service and a nice selection of products. Frontier Coop is a bit pricey for my taste, so I don't order from them. The more that you order at Mountain Rose, the greater your discount also.
I don't think that all of the herbs are necessary to produce a good balm. I make several balms, but I put those herbs in that have the constituents that I am after in the final product. Having access to so many, I probably over did it a it (ya think?), but I still like the final product. I think everyone should research their own recipes to see what they want to add, as I believe working with herbs is a more personal art and a recipe per se is just a guideline, but not a hard and fast rule. I'm happy to help. Cindy
Thanks for sharing your recipe and your method of infusing the herbs. I just have a few questions:
How long do you infuse your herbs at 90 degrees (I am guessing celcius?)?
Do you infused all herbs mix together for one recipe or do you infused each herb separately and combined the amount you need afterward? Based on how you wrote your recipe it seems that they are all together, but some people seem to have different opinion on what is most effective. I was just wondering what you thought based on your experience.
Hi Julie- I infuse the herbs for at least 36 hours at 90 degrees (farenheit, not celcius). It depends upon what I am putting in the recipe whether I infuse them alone or together. For an example, I infuse Propolis all by itself without anything else added to it. Also, the more tender parts I also infuse alone, but roots, barks, and such I infuse together. Cindy
Cindy, I just returned home to Texas from vacation in Alaska - so pleased to see you posted your recipe. My husband can't believe how the curling iron burn on my face healed so quickly after using this First Aid balm. I thought I was doomed from social activity for weeks, as I looked like an abuse case!! Like others posting above, I now have a reason to start researching new herbs and have a well documented excuse for ordering from Mountain Rose. Thanks you so much for the generous gift in the Hostess Gift Swap and for submitting your recipe. Susan
Cindy, What brand of crock pot do you use? I am researching, but don't find one with a temp dial that goes as low as 90 degrees. Also, do you infuse with the crock pot cover on or off? Susan
There isn't a crock pot that goes that low. I bought me a dimmer lamp switch that I can adjust the power with to get it to the temp that I want it. i also infuse with the lid on. Cindy
Hi! I'm so excited to hear that my owie ointment helped! It was my first swap, it was so fun to do. I have always wanted to do a business. Im an Herbalist and I have so much fun creating, I sell at local farmers markets and to my clients but haven't really ventured out much more than that, but would love too! Looking forward to many more swaps. I will have some more owie ointment available around Christmas time if anyone is interested. FYI: I infused the oil with Herbs of Plantain, Comfrey and a bit of Cayenne. Jamie Sagers
FYI: Mullein flowers help with pain- they are great to infuse in the oil also. Regarding the owie ointment, I'm sure I have a few more herbs in there geared to bites and stings but Comfrey and Plantain were my main herbs. =) Have a good one!
My plantain anti-itch balm worked great this summer for bug and spider bites and tick bites. My hubby swore by it. Here is the link to the recipe. Also, plantain is in most backyards!