Massage a dab of Peppermint Pine Headache Salve on your temples, shoulders, or neck when you first start to feel a headache coming on. Close your eyes, breathe deeply, and feel your headache melt away.
I’m usually quite stubborn about my headaches and refuse pain relievers. Perhaps it comes from years of consecutive pregnancies and nursing babies, but I’d rather deal with it or sleep it off than medicate. It’s a personal preference and thankfully my headaches are mostly tension headaches or the result of needing a chiropractic adjustment so they’re not a big deal like my husband’s migraines.
Because I prefer homemade medicine (especially when it’s simple) I was very happy to take a few moments one warm, sunny, March afternoon and stroll around the property harvesting some fresh green mint and a handful of pine needles to make Peppermint Pine Headache Salve. Salves truly are one of the simplest ways to make homemade medicine. A few minutes later, my headache salve was cooling in the tin.
I found the recipe for this headache salve in one of the most beautiful natural health and beauty books I’ve seen in my life. It is deeply instructional, detailing common herbs, flowers, and weeds growing in your garden or lawn and in what ways they are beneficial. It spells out how to infuse those plants in oil, the benefits and appropriate applications of sundry oils and butters, along with additional ingredients as well, including natural preservatives.
And then the magic starts happening.
All of the ingredients melt and swirl and blend together in harmonious loveliness and turn out a product that is beneficial for your skin, soul, home, or even pets. The following are the chapters and a small sampling of the recipes you’ll find within its pages.
•Nontoxic Herbal Skin Care
Honey, Rose & Oat Face Cleaner
Violet Infused Aloe
Thyme & Raw Honey Mask
Cool Mint Body Wash
•Naturally Soothing Salves & Balms
Dandelion Cuticle Balm
Sunflower Salve
•Exotic Body Butters & Lotion Bars
Calendula Whipped Coconut Oil
Cocoa Rose Lotion Bars
Dandelion Body Butter
•Easy, All-Natural Creams & Lotions
Aloe Mine After-Sun Lotion
Elderflower Eye Cream
Honey & Calendula Cream
•Garden-Fresh Bath Soaks & Salts
Fizzy Rose Lemonade Soak
Sore Muscle Bath Bags
•Beautiful Bath Melts & Scrubs
Peony & Orange Sugar Scrub
Whipped Spearmint Scrub Butter
Floral Salt Foot Scrub Bars
•DIY Lip Care
Basil & Lime Lip Balm
Daisy Vanilla Lip Balm
Chamomile Lip Scrub
•Lucious Hair Care
Hollyhock Split End Cream
Nettle, Coconut, & Honey Hairy Mask
Rosemary Beard Oil
•Simple Homemade Soaps
Chamomile “Almost Castile” Soap
Thyme & Witch Hazel Clear Skin Facial Toner
Coconut Laundry Soap & Stain Stick
•Herbal Home Remedies
Catnip & Basil Insect Repellant Spray
Lemongrass Cream Deodorant
Lavender Dandelion Pain Relief Oil
•Nontoxic Solutions for the Home
Thyme Counter Cleaner
Lemon Balm Furniture Polish
Orange Pine Floor Cleaner
•All-Natural Pet Care
Peppermint & Parsley Fresh-Breath Dog Treats
Herbal Dry Shampoo or Flea Repelling Powder
Those are just the tip of the iceberg! There are 101 recipes in this book!! Which leads me to the name, because I’m sure that by now you are wondering where you can get these decadent recipes to use on yourself and for your family and in your home…
The book is 101 Easy Homemade Products for Your Skin, Health, & Home.
And the author is none other than Jan Berry of The Nerdy Farm Wife fame. No doubt you’re now realizing these are tried-and-true recipes from a trusted friend you’ve been reading for years.
Now go. Get your hands on a copy (HERE) and get creating beauty in your own kitchen!
As I mentioned earlier, the first recipe I whipped up was the Peppermint Pine Headache Salve. I expect it to be a wonderful addition to our herbal apothecary and the first of many, many recipes I’ll be making from this book. It is a wonderful addition to my herbal library and I’m sure you’ll feel the same way!
Peppermint Pine Headache Salve
Peppermint Pine Headache Salve
Massage a dab of Peppermint Pine Headache Salve on your temples when you start to feel a headache. Breathe deeply and feel your headache melt away.
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons dried mint leaves, crumbled
- 2 Tablespoons dried pine needles, chopped
- ⅔ cup sunflower or olive oil
- 1 Tablespoons tamanu oil
- ½ oz. beeswax
- ½ t. – ¾ teaspoons peppermint essential oil
Instructions
- Infuse the mint leaves and pine needles into the sunflower or olive oil. Once it has sufficiently infused, strain the oil. You can store this infused oil for up to 9-12 months before making the salve.
- When you’re ready to make the salve, combine ½ cup of the infused oil with the tamanu and beeswax in a canning jar or other heatproof container. Set the container down into a small saucepan containing 1-2″ of water, then place the pan over a medium-low burner until the beeswax has melted.
- Remove from heat and stir in the peppermint oil. Carefully pour the hot mixture into tins or jars.
- Depending on your preference, you may want a softer or firmer salve. If so, just remelt the product and add a pinch more beeswax for a firmer consistency or a little more oil for a softer salve.
- If you pain persists, is chronic or gets worse, check with your health care provider for further advice.
- Shelf life of the salve is around 6-9 months, if stored in a cool location, out of direct sunlight.
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Recipe reprinted with permission of Jan Berry. I received 101 Easy Homemade Products for Your Skin, Health, & Home at no cost in exchange for my honest review.
Before you go, make sure to also check out my herbal Burn Salve recipe!
Thanks for the post! I am going to try this so I won't have to take aspirin so much!
Would you happen to make this and sell it in your etsy shop? I would love to try it.
You're welcome! I hope it works for you 🙂
I haven't yet, but I could. Check back in a couple days- I'll try to get the listing up this weekend 🙂 Thanks for the suggestion!
Any idea what is stronger to use regarding the pine needles. Would it be the new tender tips or the older pine needles? Thank you for your recipe. I'm so excited to try it because I have most of the ingredience at the moment.
What type of pine needles do you use and where do you get them from? Thank you
I just use needles from the White Pine in my backyard, but you could use any fragrant needle. Just crush a couple and take a whiff. If all else fails, I added a link above to a bag of dry needles you can buy off Amazon. Hope that helps!
Reading through your blog it’s refreshing to see such interesting herbal skincare recipes that haven’t been overdone. Well done and thank you for sharing.
Thank you!! Glad you’re finding the recipes useful!
Do you do the pine and peppermint oil infusion with heat or in a dark space?
I’m seeing more and more herbalists lean towards heat infusions instead of solar infusions to get more consistent results. In the end it’s up to you. In my experience, the best mint & pine infusion was a solar infusion (it sat in a warm sunny window for a couple months) and the oil smelled amazing when it was done!