Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Make Your Own Lavender Infused Medicinal Oil


"An age-old remedy for calming and soothing the nerves, improving mood and relaxing muscles, beautifully scented lavender and its essential oil are commonly used for inducing a restful sleep, relieving depression and anxiety and for other disorders relating to a nervous or tense state..."

If you have lots of lavender, something useful, easy and fun to make is a medicinal oil. You can rub it into tense shoulders to relax those taxed nerves. You can massage it onto tired feet to sooth the "soul" after a long day. It makes a lovely moisturizing body oil after a warm bath. In fact, this lavender infused oil can also be used as a base for making handmade lotions, lotion bars, creams, balms and salves.



Not only is the scent intoxicating, lavender is also very calming, stress-relieving, mood enhancing, is antibacterial, anti-fungal, an antiseptic, disinfectant, antispasmodic, pain reliever, burn healer and more. The Almighty packed a lot of healing power into lavender making it my all time favorite plant, herb and flower! 


To prepare your medicinal oil, simply gather your lavender flowers (fresh or dried, make some or buy some). If using fresh flowers, fresh-wilt them first as shared below and place them in a clean jar. Cover flowers by at least 1-2 inches with olive oil (or coconut oil would be divine) and screw lid on firmly. These oils were chosen for their longer shelf life and medicinal properties. Let the mixture steep in a sunny spot for 2 - 3 weeks. This is called a solar infusion.

"When I make oils from fresh herbs, before adding the herbs to the oil, I usually freshwilt them: I place them on a basket or screen in a single layer, in a warm area out of direct sunlight, and let them wilt for several hours. They’re ready when they look limp. Fresh wilting allows some of the moisture to evaporate, so there’s less chance of spoilage."


When the time is up, strain the solids through a fine cheesecloth or a piece of thin cotton/muslin to remove all particles. Pour the finished product into a clean, dry jar or bottle (we just reused the brown glass bottle the olive oil came in) and label with the date. Store oil in a cool, dark area (like your pantry) for up to 12 months (or until oil seems "off").

Note: If you notice condensation on the inside of your lid, wipe with a clean and dry cloth immediately (your herbs may have had too much moisture in them when preparing this).


To make this infusion double strength, add another batch of lavender flowers to your finished oil and repeat the process one more time. Or, you can simply add 10 drops of lavender essential oil to every cup of your infused oil to give it a stronger potency (and a longer shelf life).


You may also be interested in What to Make and Do with All Your Lovely Lavender. For other herbal inspired projects, check out Rosemary Gladstar's Medicinal Herbs: A Beginner's Guide which has been a wonderful resource for our family.


Our lavender label is shared above if you would like to use it. Simply right click on the image and save. You may also like to print a copy of this recipe to place in your herbal. You will find it HERE!


26 comments:

  1. This looks divine...I love lavender, it is so pretty and smells heavenly too! I would love to give this a try as soon as our bushes get a bit more established :). Thank you so much for sharing! Blessings, Kelly

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Once your plants get established, you will have an abundance (ours only took one year) and will have so much fun making stuff! :) Have a wonderful week ~ JES

      Delete
  2. Oh, it sounds just heavenly. I had never heard of 'freshwilting,' but it makes so much sense.
    Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi there! I had done fresh plantain before and it molded so I think that the fresh-wilting might have prevented it... Have a wonderful week~~

      Delete
  3. What fun to make your own lavender infused oil. Thank you for the instructions.
    I had six two year old plants, but the temperatures this past winter killed them dead. That was such a loss as I love my herbs and use them often, but I'll replace them soon. Rosemary Gladstar has such good methods. I'm currently looking for some horseradish so I can brew her Fire Cider for cold season.
    Herbs are such fun! Have a great Wednesday!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was fun!

      Fire cider is also on my to-do list! Thanks for stopping by :)

      Delete
  4. I love herb oils and salves.... I need to be using my herbs better this year - thank you for the inspiration to get to work on it. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Joy since your rack of kitchen drying herbs inspired me! :)

      Delete
  5. Thanks, loved this and I did PIN it!! Looking forward to trying it! Blessings to you and yours today...
    Roxy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Do you have a lavender plant? Thanks for sharing!

      Delete
  6. Lavender does calm me...I have a room spray that I have been known to use as a mood booster. I will spray it on myself when I need to calm down a bit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, it is a wonderful plant with many benefits... Thanks you for sharing! :)

      Delete
  7. Hi JES,

    Thank you for the wonderful information. Is there a way to print the labels without having to print the instructions?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello there Sue! Yes, you can. I put the label by itself in the post so you can just save the image by right clicking on it. Then, you can paste it into Microsoft word to make it to the size you want and then print. Hope this helps!

      Delete
  8. Sounds wonderful.. I love lavendar. Why is it I can grow almost any flower other than lavendar? I had to large pots...it is dead.. It just dries up...I cannot figure out what I am doing wrong.. I am researching lavendars for Ky...I would love to plant several small rows to dry..oil and maybe soaps..Thanks for sharing how to make the scented oil.. Blessings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How funny! Lavender is one of the only flowers I can grow! Perhaps I just have the right kind for our habitat... Your day will come Patty :)

      Delete
  9. Hello Jes, I found you through my daughter, Stephanie, over at the enchanting rose. You have a lovely place here. I look forward to visiting you often and learning more about essential oils. I have come to use and enjoy essential oils more in the last couple of years.
    Have a beautiful rest of your week-end.
    Joy! Debbie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Debbie, nice to have you visit here :) Stephanie is a sweetheart! I look forward to your visits and hope to share more about our love for essential oils. They are wonderful!

      Delete
  10. Great post!
    This is my featured post on the HomeAcre Hop Today!
    Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Lavender is one of my favorite oils to use...so versatile! Thank you so much for sharing this at Coffee & Conversation this week.
    Blessings,

    ~Candy

    ReplyDelete
  12. There's nothing quite light the scent of Lavender. I've pinned! Thanks so much for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
    Blessings,
    Cindy

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a wonderful and clear post! I have a bunch of dried lavender that is just taking up shelf space. Now I know what to do with it!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks for adding yet another favorite to From The Farm! Hope to see you again this week!

    ReplyDelete