Make Natural Sting Salve with Essential Oils

3 min to read
Andrea Butje
06/03/2021

Opopanax essential oil has a lot in common with its friends, Frankincense and Myrrh.

These essential oils are all distilled from resins, and they're all good at caring for skin and soothing inflammation. Perfect for things like Aromatherapy bug bite itch sticks, or natural sting salve with essential oils.

I wrote about these three friends in my book, The Heart of Aromatherapy. I imagined that if they were people, they would love history and archeology . . . that's because they all have a history of being used in skincare and perfumes in places like Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece.

So of course they would like to go on tours of archeological sites! And of course they would be sure to take care of their skin as they hiked around in the hot sun. They'd take along plenty of water, natural bug spray, bruise oil, and their very own natural sting salve with essential oils.

It's a way they can use historical therapeutic ingredients in a modern setting.

Here's their recipe for natural sting salve. It's excellent for calming pain, reducing inflammation, and helping the hurt area to heal. The three "resin" oils (Opopanax, Frankincense, and Myrrh) are joined by Lavender—always a welcome presence when we're soothing skin irritation!

Resin Heaven Natural Sting Salve with Essential Oils

  • 1 oz (28 g) Beeswax (Cera flava)

  • 3 oz (90 ml) Jojoba Wax (Simmondsia chinensis)

  • 14 drops Opopanax (Commiphora guidotti)

  • 21 drops Frankincense (Boswellia carterii)

  • 17 drops Myrrh (Commiphora myrrha)

  • 20 drops Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)

Directions

  1. Set up the "Stovetop Melting Method" by placing a Pyrex measuring cup in a soup pot that's ¼ full of simmering water.

  2. Melt the beeswax in the Pyrex.

  3. Add the jojoba and melt. If you like, you can stir with a glass stirring rod or the handle of a stainless steel spoon.

  4. Remove the melted salve from the heat and add the essential oils, stirring gently.

  5. Pour your blend into two 2 oz (60 ml) salve tins.

If you get stung or bitten by a bug, gently apply this natural sting salve with essential oils over the area. Use as needed until the pain recedes and the skin is all healed up.

For kids, I suggest the "No More Itch Stick for Bug Bites" from this post on The Aromahead Blog. There are three blends for kids in the post—one for cuts and scrapes, one for bruises, and one for bug bites. (Kids' systems tend to be more responsive, so they usually don't need as much essential oil in their blends.) 

And if you want to read more about Opopanax's adventures in archeology, you can find my book here! It includes 40 fun essential oil profiles, over 100 recipes, and stories from my visits to distillers around the world! 

Resin Heaven Natural Sting Salve with Essential Oils - Recipe - 600 x 600 - V1

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