A drawing salve is defined as an ointment or poultice that literally draws out infection, poison and even splinters, debris and other small items that may fester below the skin's surface, causing pain and inflammation. A natural remedy based in many culture's folk medicine and lore, a drawing salve can be made using a variety of inexpensive, available ingredients for effective treatment for anything from boils to ingrown hangnails and relieving pain and inflammation from spider poison and poison ivy or oak.
Simple Salve
Step 1
Mix ingredients for a drawing salve in a glass or metal bowl. Combine 1 tbsp. of honey with 1 tsp. of turmeric powder.
Step 2
Add 1/2 tsp. of ginger powder and a pinch of sea salt.
Step 3
Blend the ingredients well.
Infused Salve
Step 1
Fill a small canning jar with an herb or herbs of your choice. You can use lavender, camphor, calendula, rosemary or peppermint. Pour olive oil into the jar so that the herbs are covered. Place the jar near the pilot light of your stove or in the sunshine for about two weeks, changing the location to keep the infusion warm.
Step 2
Take about 2 oz. of beeswax and place in the top of a double-boiler on the stove. Melt it, but don't let it boil.
Step 3
Add small amounts of the infusion containing your herbs into the beeswax and then stir. Add small amounts at a time. Test consistency by taking a dollop and placing it on a piece of glass or a saucer. Then, if necessary, add more beeswax or oil into the mix until it is the consistency that you want.
Using the Salve
Step 1
Spread the salve onto a boil, scrape, blister, splinter or other sore spot. Take the salve out of the jar with clean fingers or a piece of clean cloth, a tongue depressor or clean popsicle stick to spread the salve.
Step 2
Wrap a section of plastic kitchen wrap around the salve to keep it warm.
Step 3
Leave the wrap and the salve on the boil or other injury for a day or two, for best results. In most cases, this is all that is needed to cure many minor skin injuries, insect bites and minor skin infections.
Things You'll Need
- Honey
- Turmeric powder
- Powdered ginger
- Sea salt
- Olive or vegetable oil
- Herbs
- Glass jar
- Beeswax
- Plastic kitchen wrap
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