Homestead First Aid : DIY Calendula Ointment (All natural and petroleum free)

Hello Lovelies! I'm back! Since I am on a tear getting stuff ready to go on a vacation, where we will be camping, I am making ointments for my travel kit. Earlier tonight as you saw I made Antiseptic Ointment.. This post is about Calendula Ointment which is great for Skin irritations, Rashes, and as a basic skin lotion type ointment..  For this you WILL need to have Calendula infused oil.. to do that.. you will need a few weeks..  I Use a jar, fill it with Calendula, Then with Olive oil..Put in a nice dark place and flip it a few times a day for 2 weeks minimum.. mine has been infusing for about 2 months.. yes I am a procrastinator.  A Pint Jar gave me 10 ounces..
I used 2 in the Antiseptic ointment the rest went into this ointment..

well lovelies LET'S GET STARTED!!!

EQUIPMENT:

Microwave or double boiler etc.. I microwave mine takes a minute and a half.. and its ready to go.

A Container to mix and melt the oils in that is heat proof/ microwave proof.. I used a Mason jar.

Containers to pour your ointment into, I used some that I got 10 for a Dollar from the Dollar tree..

Paper Towels since this MIGHT get messy.. it always does when I do it.

Something to use to strain your Calendula infused oil, since I make bath teas, I used a huge Tea bag.. you can use stockings, a fine mesh strainer etc..

Something to stir with..  I think thats everything..



INGREDIENTS :

8 ounces Calendula infused Olive oil

2 ounces Beeswax  I use Pellets for easy measuring, but you can grate your own or whatever.

40-50 drops of Lavender Essential oil

and Optional 1/4 Tsp of Vitamin E

WHAT TO DO :

First.. Strain out your Oil.

 once you are done you can move on to the rest..

Measure out 8 ounces of oil into a container of your choice..

Add 2 ounces of Beeswax grated or pellets to the oil

Bring oil over to microwave or other heating station.. the next few steps will show how *I* did it in the Microwave
Heat for 30 seconds.. and stir.

Notice still sunk and not melting much when stirred.. be sure to stir.. you really really want to stir..

Pop back in for another 30 seconds..

melting a bit.. but still not enough.. do not forget to stir well in between.. okay one more time.. Back in the microwave.. 30 seconds

THIS is what you want.. see how all of the wax has moved to the top? that's what you want.. now carefully transfer it back to your work station.. and start stirring..

Stir

 Keep stirring.. there are still pieces of unmelted wax..

Ahh there you go! All melted  Now Keep stirring till it cools down a little bit because you don't want it too hot or your essential oil will evaporate and then whats the point?

Okay Add your 40-50 drops of Essential oil and Stir some more..

don't worry total it takes about 5 minutes from Start to finish after you strain your oil.

Now .. pour your mixture in to your containers..

you will notice its a bit darker than the Antiseptic ointment.. because of the Calendula in the oil at this stage..

Alright! All packaged! dont forget to mark your container so you dont get confused.. cause its not that different in color..

Spot the difference.. which is which?

All finished! See how easy it was to create Calendula and Antiseptic ointment?  easy Peasy! And best part.. Petroleum free! No gasoline byproducts!  And you know exactly what you are putting in to it, because you need to remember.. whatever goes ON your skin.. will go IN your skin.. your skin WILL absorb it..

And don't worry neither are greasy!

that is all for now my lovelies! I hope you are all fantastic and I would LOVE to hear what you think, and if you make it let me see!

Homestead First aid : DIY Antiseptic ointment (Petroleum free and natural)

Hello Lovelies, Taz here! I know its been awhile since I have posted, lots has been going on, our entire household has had a horrible stomach virus and its been kicking our butts, but I have still been working on getting ready to go on a vacation! YAY.  I might make a post about what I am packing for emergency supplies on that trip.. and we are going camping so.. some of it is for that.. But now for what this post is about.. ANTISEPTIC OINTMENT!

I will have a Homestead First Aid DIY section, and I will be posting alternatives to store brand stuff that is usually Petroleum based.. I HATE PETROLEUM JELLY! IT IS HORRIBLE HORRIBLE HORRIBLE For your skin! It is Horrible for YOU. Would you put gasoline on your lips? no? then don't put petroleum Jelly on your lips.. or anywhere else.. I will post a Petroleum free salve type skin thing soon.. but this one is for well you saw.


EQUIPMENT YOU WILL NEED :

A Container to put your oils and wax into, I used a Mason jar, a measuring cup will work, anything that will hold the oils and is microwave safe, or oven safe..

A Scale that you can tare or Null out. . I have one I got at walmart years ago for 10 dollars, I think everyone should keep a scale on hand for MANY reasons.

A Microwave, or stove top I used the Microwave for convenience.

Containers to put your ointment in!  I used little ones I got 10 for a dollar because saving money is good.

Paper Towels or a rag because this gets messy 

and something to stir with.

Now on to the next thing 

INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED 

1 1/2 ounce Beeswax (I use Pellets typically but you can grate your own) 

2 Ounces Sweet Almond Oil 

Two Ounces Calendula Infused Olive oil

4 Ounces Olive oil 

1/4 Tsp Vitamin E  (DON'T USE CAPSULES.. that's not actually vitamin E usually. )

1/2 Tsp Tea Tree essential  oil

20 Drops Lavender essential oil

10 Drops Lemon Essential oil

Alright.. do you have everything Gathered? good.  The next parts are SOOOO SOO EASY

Add your grated or pellet beeswax to your container.

Add your Sweet almond oil, your Calendula infused olive oil, and your Olive oil..

Stir..

Put in microwave.. Microwave in 30 second burst.. and stir very well in between (or alternatively place in a container in a double boiler.. or create a double boiler.. but really microwave is much easier)  For me it took 3 30 second burst.. wax melted quite well into the oil..

 bring it over to where all your stuff is..

wipe off the edge of your container..

stir and stir.. and stir some more till its still hot to touch but not burn your skin off hot.

Add your essential oils..

Stir some more.. (lots of stirring isn't there)

Open your containers.. and carefully pour to your desired level of fullness.

Let cool.. and VOALA  you have Antiseptic ointment.

It will set up to a nice thick ointment that looks like this

Happy creating.. I created 2 years worth of ointment in about 10 minutes total.. that includes gathering equipment, mixing, pouring, and cleaning

Thank you for joining me.. I will be posting a post about calendula ointment next!

Info on finding great things at great prices

First of all please do not think I am insulting your intelligence, That is so SO not the point of this, however some people often overlook things, or don't think of things.

I was looking at my local Buy and sell KSL, and I wanted to cry quite honestly.. someone was giving away FOR FREE 7 Chicks. Her son had won them for something to do with Ag class, but they did not have the set up for them.  So.. some lucky person got 7 free chicks! 

I Have been looking at Equipment and stuff to get into raising, and breeding Chickens, Rabbits and goats, and Honestly.. that stuff is QUITE expensive.. So I have been looking at second hand stuff, which at this point is Pointless for me except to annoy the snot out of my husband, who thinks we have enough crap so I am not allowed to stock up on stuff like that..

But if you are in a Situation where you are saving up for land, or a house of your own, where you can keep Rabbits or a few chickens, or if you already LIVE in a place like that.. CHECK YOUR BUY AND SELLS! DAILY! you will not be sorry.. yes some days they have squat, but some days they have amazing deals.. one of the things I wish I had a place for was 185 Gallon Water storage tank for 85 dollars!  That is an amazing deal, 50 gallon food grade Barrels 2 of them for 50 dollars, which is totally doable,  Someone was selling a chicken coop for 50 bucks, and there are days where you will find something that might need a bit of work.. okay.. so do the work if it is an easy fix.. I have also found that people are often willing to make a deal, or even trade.. which is awesome. 

Buying Second Hand can save you THOUSANDS of dollars on equipment, some people just want to get rid of stuff they no longer use because they upgraded or downgraded.. and they are willing to make a deal just to get rid of it..

If you want FREE 5 gallon Buckets, TALK TO YOUR LOCAL RESTAURANTS.  Most of them use Food grade 5 gallon buckets and will give them away to you because its cheaper than the price they pay to recycle them. 

If you want to make Biofuel, talk to those same places to see if you can have their dirty oil, again.. its easier and cheaper for them to give it to you than it is to recycle it or dispose of it! 

BUY in bulk! whenever you see a REALLY great deal.. buy in bulk, you can Can, dehydrate, or freeze A LOT of stuff. 

So yes.. some of this is probably stuff you already knew, but some stuff people don't think about.
I hope this has helped you and I hope you have a great day! 

Welcome to Two Broke Homesteaders!

Welcome to Two Broke Homesteaders! This is our very first blog. What we plan on posting here are how two people states away help each other come up with new and creative ideas on Homesteading and prepping on a Budget. We Chose the name Two Broke Homesteaders because not only are neither of us financially solvent, but we are both disabled. My name is Jennifer, but I prefer to go by Taz, I have a teenage Daughter and a Husband in the Military, Living on a Military base severely limits my abilities on homesteading, but I am a creative soul and do what I can to be as self reliant as I can possibly be.  I Make my own soap, I make my own laundry detergent, I make bath and beauty products, I love to craft, I dehydrate food, and store it for long term storage, while I cant Garden or raise goats and chickens and other food animals like I want, it is something I am saving for and making plans for after my husband gets out of the military.   The other Blogger you will see is Lilith Raine from Little Minion Farm, you will often see me refer to her a Kitt. We have known each other for *mumble wumble* years, and she is one of my very best friends.  Lilith has 6 kids ranging currently from 5 to 17 years old, she lives on 15 Acres of land and is a Gardening goddess.  Homesteading is something we both are very passionate about and can talk for hours about it.. What you will find different about our blog compared to TONS of other blogs like this is that we will be talking about how we get around the problems of our Disabilities while Homesteading, I have PTSD, Anxiety, and I have broken my back twice and while I can walk, it is for short distances and I can not do a lot of stuff like normal able bodied people can, Lilith is legally Blind and has found ways around that as well. Lilith in the past has Raised a Turkey, and Chickens, and even Pigs, and will be getting back into that as soon as possible, unfortunately she had a MAJOR set back to her Homesteading back in August when she lost everything due to a fire.. so she is starting over and we get to join her on her Journey.   So I hope you will enjoy it here and feel free To Join in, comment, and ask any questions you would like.