I have a little red pot that I only use for brewing. The lovely cooking utensil is hand carved by an Etsy Witchy friend from near Salem. I love sitting with the herbs as they simmer -- mugwort, lemongrass, cinquefoil, rue, Dittany of Crete, poplar buds (balm of Gilead), clary sage, and wormwood (plus benzoin powder and vitamin E oil as preservatives).
The sweet, sticky poplar buds open up in the heat of the salve's base oil as they simmer.
A pound of base salve yields about six 2-oz. tins of flying ointment -- or one of the large jars. Isn't it a lovely olive green? One of the names for flying ointment in the Middle Ages was "green salve." You can see why.
2 comments:
I really liked this! It was a great quick look at a Witch's work when she brews ;) I do a TON of cooking, but now after seeing this, it really makes me want to start making salves! (I'm a huge sucker for anything like skin cream, and salves would just be incredible.)
I really recommend it! VERY satisfying to do something so practical and really so time-honored. The process hasn't changed much, when you think about it. =)
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