Lotionbar With Plantain - That Fabulous Weed
“Oils are great. Herbs are amazing.
Oils and herbs together are simply splendid.”
I've had some skin issues lately — not a big deal, just a small, red blister on my right boob, but a persistent and itchy little bugger. I suspect my new laundry detergent might have something to do with it. First, I tried to treat it with a mix of coconut oil and baking powder, but that didn't help much. Then I remembered plantain, this common backyard herb also considered a weed,
is actually one of the best healing herbs on the planet.
Nature Is Looking After You
Plantain, with the latin name Plantago Major, is a little persistent herb that seems to grow where you go ready to be at service if anything should bite, bug or hurt you.
Plantain grows and spreads in areas close to people and animals. It’s seeds stick to shoes and to animals and that’s how it spreads. That’s one reason why it’s common to find lots of plantain along roadsides and a weed that you probably walk over every day on your front lawn.
This low-growing, ground-hugging plants display short, thick stems and rosettes of dark, shiny, oval, or egg-shaped leaves - a bit similar to spinach. A leafless stalk rising above the plant sports spiky clusters of tiny green flowers in late summer.
Health And Skin Benefits Of Plantain
Plantain leaves are antiseptic, analgesic, and can draw out toxins and therefore fantastic to treat irritation of the skin, minor cuts, sores, poison ivy, bee, wasp, and insect stings, bites, and inflammation.
Plantain also contains allantoin, a compound that promotes the growth of healthy tissue and has soothing, anti-irritating, and healing properties. Allantoin softens the horny substance (keratin) that holds the top layer of skin cells together. This helps the dead skin cells fall off, helps the skin keep in more water, and leaves the skin feeling smoother and softer. So whether you're dealing with eczema, acne, or a sunburn, this herb can help you.
Plantain is also a highly nutritious wild edible that is high in calcium and vitamins A, C, and K. The young, tender leaves can be eaten raw, and the older, stringier leaves can be boiled in stews.
I made an oil infusion with that plus rose petals and calendula. And that killed it. It calmed my skin, the itching stopped, and the blister vanished in just one day. Plus, my skin looks healthy and juicy.
Tip. Next time a bug bites you. Take a couple of plantain leaves and chew them to make a "paste." Place the crushed leaves on the area that stings, and the unbearable stinging pain will be reduced to a slight tickling more or less immediately.
Plantain Leaf active constituents: 2-3% Iridoid glycosides (aucubin, catalpol); 2-6.5% mucilage; flavonoids (apigenin, luteolin); 6.5% tannins; oleanilic acid; plant acids; 1% silicic acid; minerals (zinc, potassium, iron); phenylethanoid (acteoside); chlorogenic acid; vitamins (A, C and K).
How To Use Lotion Bars
So I made my favorite lotion bars again. This time with lots of dried plantain leaves in the mix off course. I let it infuse in my yogurt maker because its easy, but you can use your oven or leave in the pot on the stove on low heat also. See tips below.
If you’ve never used a lotion bar before, it is basically solid lotion. It’s applied by rubbing the bar back and forth onto the skin. The warmth of the skin causes the bar to melt slightly, leaving a nice coating on the skin.
About The Ingredients
Calendula
Calendula helps to restore your skin from daily exposure to the weather elements and helps to regenerate when there has been damages such sun exposure, scar, irritation, redness.
With antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, Calendula promotes fast healing and regeneration of the skin. That’s the reason it’s used to cure many skin problems.
Calendula with its therapeutic properties profoundly hydrates the skin, nurture the skin tissues, heals damaged skin, and assists in bringing back skin integrity, glow, texture and grain.
Rose Petals
This iconic flower does beauty wonders on the skin. Rose petals contain natural oils and sugars that will lock moisture into dry skin cells and promote glowing skin.
It has extraordinary anti-inflammatory and antioxidant qualities.
Roses are rich in vitamin C, which is a powerful anti-oxidant for sun protection. Vitamin C will bolster the skin’s UV defense and steer away free radicals from skin cells and effective in providing instant relief to severe sun burned skin.
Roses have therapeutic benefits that relax the body and reduce stress.
Cocoa Butter
Cocoa butter is high in fatty acids, which is why it’s often touted for its ability to hydrate and nourish the skin and improve elasticity.
Cocoa butter can replenish skin’s moisture and create a barrier to protect the skin from moisture loss. It’s absorbed well without leaving skin greasy and helps skin maintain its elasticity and tone.
Cocoa butter is also rich in natural plant compounds called phytochemicals. These substances may improve blood flow to the skin and slow skin aging by protecting against damage from the sun’s harmful UV rays.
Olive Oil
There are five very important ingredients in olive oil, which together and separately strengthens the skin's resistance to damage and aging.
1. Squalane, well known as ‘Nature's Facelift is a botanical lipid that mirrors human lipids in molecular structure and weight, making it a great choice for regenerative skin care and anti-aging products.
2. Carotenoids. Olive oil is rich in carotenoids, which are found in all green parts of plants, where they are able to convert excess light energy into heat. Without carotenoids plants would be killed by sunlight. Research has shown that the human body develops a resistance to the harmful rays of the sun because of the carotenoids.
3. Vitamin E is considered an antioxidant superstar in its own right. It protects cell membranes from oxidative damage and prevent collagen from being destroyed.
4. Polyphenols. Studies have shown that polyphenols applied to skin protects against UV radiation and improves skin cell renewal.
5. Oleocanthal. Olive oil soothes irritated and inflamed skin through oleocanthal - this chemical inhibits the enzyme cyclooxygenase, which causes inflammation in the skin and body.
Lotion Bars With Healing Herbs Recipe
Although lotion bars are generally very quick to make, infusing the butter and oil with herbs adds some extra time. So you will need to plan.
Serves: about 6 lotions bars.
Props:
Silicon molds (I use cupcake moulds)
Wooden spoon for mixing
INGREDIENTS
½ cup beeswax pastilles
½ cup unrefined cocoa butter
½ cup extra virgin coconut oil
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp dried calendula flowers
2 Tbsp dried rose petals
2 Tbsp driend plantain leaves
30-40 drops skin-safe essential oils (such as peppermint, tea tree), optional.
DIRECTIONS
Place calendula, roses, plantain, cocoa butter, and coconut oil in the saucepan.
Warm over medium heat until oil and butter have melted.
Keep the temperature around 167 °F / 75°C for 1-2 hours (4-8 if you have the time). You can turn the heat off when you’ve reached the temperature and turn it on again in cycles of 15-20 minutes. Important! You must stay close by when the heat is on, because oil heats up very fast and can get extremely hot. If you’d rather not stay close by, use the oven method or even better use your yogurt maker if you have one. See below.
Strain out the herbs through a nut milk bag or jelly strainer. Squeeze out as much oil as possible.
Pour oil into a clean saucepan.
Add beeswax.
Warm over medium heat until the beeswax is completely melted.
Allow to cool briefly and add olive oil and essential oils if using
Pour into molds.
Leave to cool and harden, this takes about halft an hour or more, depending on the temperature of your home. To speed up the hardening process, place into the fridge.
TIP 1
If using silicone molds, place on a cookie sheet before adding the melted oils, this will make the mold easier to transport if you plan to put it in the freezer.
TIP 2
The oven method:
If you’d rather not stay close by while your herbs infuse.
Place herbs, coconut oil, and butter in a glass loaf pan.
Heat oven to 250 °F / 121°C
Once it gets to temperature, turn the oven off.
Leave herbs and oil/butter mixture in the warm oven for 3-4 hours.
If cocoa butter hardens before you are able to strain the herbs, simply rewarm until melted, then strain as directed below.
Tip 3
The Yogurt Maker Method:
I prefer this method because you can infuse overnight making the blend stronger.
Pour the oil and herb mix into your yogurt maker’s class containers, put the lid on, turn it on and leave to infuse overnight or at least 3-4 hours.
