One of the easiest ways to get the most out of any herb is to soak it in alcohol, let it extract (hello, vanilla!) and then use the alcohol as you wish. If you stop there you can make herbal mints or if you let the alcohol evaporate off, you can make a fantastic salve. I cannot overstate the “fantastic” part of this – the salve is very easy to make, and also very inexpensive. Which, is super fortunate because everyone in my family now requires this salve on a regular basis, and from what I’ve heard from our gardening community, all of their relatives and friends are too. PDF version of all of this for easy printing is here.
Ingredients for CBD Salve
CBD Concentrated Extract; the Goop!
- 50g CBD flower (no need to decarboxylate)
- 2 cups of Alcohol, the highest proof you can get (food grade; 120 proof or higher is great)
Components of the Salve
- The goop from above
- 2/3c (150g) Shea Butter (Sky Organics)
- 2/3c (150g) Coconut Oil (Kirkland Organic)
- Essential Oil (If using, choose ONE: Tea Tree, Lavender, Rosemary)
- 32 oz WIDE mouth Mason Jar or similar container.
- 2 cup microwavable measuring cup (2-cup Pyrex)
Supplies
- Glass mason jar or similar with tight fighting lid (ok I use Saran Wrap sometimes…)
- Strainer (like one you use for pasta, whatever you have on hand really)
- Glass jar or similar for final storage, able to hold 2 cups.
1-2-3 Directions
- Combine the CBD flower and Alcohol in the mason jar. Walk away!
- Put flower in jar. Cover with the alcohol, put on the lid, and store in a dark cool place out of the way for 2-3 days or whenever you get back to it.
- Strain the CBD ‘tincture’. Walk away!
- Strain as if straining tea using your method of choice into the microwavable measuring cup. Be sure to toss the extracted flower out into the garbage if you have kids/pets that might get into it. As before, place in a safe location away from fire, pets, children, nosy neighbors etc. DO NOT COVER. As the alcohol evaporates a thick, green, oil high in CBD is left in the container. I call this ‘goop’. This evaporation takes about 2 weeks depending on the temperature and humidity in your home.
- When you get around to it, mix up your salve. Enjoy!
- You should now have about 2-3 tablespoons of ‘goop’; a dark green/brown oil in the bottom of your microwavable measuring cup. To this cup, add the Shea Butter and the Coconut Oil. Microwave in 30-sec intervals until the solids are dissolved, stirring in between. When everything has mixed together, if you like, add essential oil or other skin-beneficial oils like rosehip oil, vitamin E or jojoba.
Alcohol You Say, Tell Me More
You are putting this on your body, so go with food grade, but think cheap and high proof (120 proof or higher if you can get it). Think Everclear, Bacardi 151, anything clear and flavorless and inexpensive. In-store, in LA, I was able to purchase 1.75L of 120 proof for $40 at a BevMo.
Why this Salve Works – and Why Store Brand Salves Stink
- Your DIY salve is more concentrated and less expensive; like 19x less expensive than CBD salve from the store! I work out all the math on our page where you can buy the flower for this recipe. It blew my mind. I think that it is downright magical that you can make a 1 oz jar of fab salve for just $2.92. Our recipe is also more concentrated; this salve has about 500mg/1 oz, which is actually a clinically relevant concentration to be slathering all over your body. Many stores are selling salve with much lower concentrations.
- Simple ingredients. I was checking out some very pricey fancy salves, and some cheap ones, and they often contain lots of well, crap. Things my dermatologist says can be irritating and that I should avoid (looking at you, menthol and camphor). You can always add what you like to homemade salve. You can learn more about CBD salve and the importance of ingredients here at Green Bee Life.
Some Additional Notes
- You can also mix the goop into whatever base lotion or oil you love. Some of our gardeners tell me they mix int into CerVe, Cetaphil, or even straight up olive oil. As long as the goop goes into about 300g of whatever lotion/oil you like, and it mixes it, you are good to go.
- Need some inspiration? Check out one of our gardeners IG posts on how they made and loved this salve.
- A 1L glass mason jar easily fits 50g of flower, which you can smash down or grind so it will be covered by 2 cups of alcohol. This is how I roll.
- Salve should be poured into opaque containers with lids for storage. Just like any fancy beauty cream.
- Salve can be kept at room temperature; in warm climates it may be quite fluid though, so keep this in mind when traveling.