Calendula Infused Oil: Kami McBride Method, Sept 2023

LaurieLovesLearning
LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
edited September 2023 in Herbal Medicine-Making

This is a fast & easy way to make a pretty much no fail, high potency oil. Get your blender out!


Comments

  • JodieDownUnder
    JodieDownUnder Posts: 1,483 admin

    @LaurieLovesLearning I saw this from Kami a couple of years ago & now that’s how I do all my infused oils. It definitely works, the difference in the colour of the oils is quite pronounced. It will be one of the methods I’m going to teach in my herbal workshop next week.

  • heirlooms777
    heirlooms777 Posts: 208 ✭✭✭

    Thank you, @LaurieLovesLearning , this is really informative. I will start making these right away. We have some amazing talks on making infusions with vinegars and/or honeys, and oils is just one more step. I like her idea of using the dried herbs for calendula flowers in oil, would you suggest fresh herbs for making vinegars, honeys, etc, for helping absorb calcium, and things like that?

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @heirlooms777 I've used dried roots in a vinegar, but I've only done one type of herbal vinegar. Other than that, I can't really give any answer to that part of your question.

    I've only used dried herbs in the past for honeys. Fresh material contains too much water and the honey will turn rancid. You never want to add water to honey for this reason. The flavors also intensify if you are using dried, so that would tell me that it will also be more potent.

    I know @Torey has made honey with onion & such...these are with fresh material. If you do any with fresh material, make sure it is refrigerated afterward and use it up in good time.

    You would have to do your own research on each type of herb you wish to use and which type of menstrum (carrier) would bring out the qualities you are desiring.

    @Torey I think you might have a general post on this somewhere (vinegars extract vitamins & minerals, honeys extract ___, alcohol extracts ____). I'm just not sure how to find that post. I think this could be helpful to many here.

  • water2world
    water2world Posts: 1,177 ✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning Thanks for posting this. I took her tea class a long time ago and I think I would really enjoy this one!

  • Linda Bittle
    Linda Bittle Posts: 1,518 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I did the tea class, too, and her kitchen spices one a long time ago.

  • water2world
    water2world Posts: 1,177 ✭✭✭✭

    @Linda Bittle We must be on a similar path--I also took the kitchen spices one!

  • heirlooms777
    heirlooms777 Posts: 208 ✭✭✭

    @Torey the great, what are your thoughts?

  • heirlooms777
    heirlooms777 Posts: 208 ✭✭✭

    Okay….. it’s time to start doing this! Who is game with me?

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin

    @heirlooms777 Kami McBride is a well respected herbalist, if you are thinking of taking her course. I have a lot of her recipes.

    As to the question about which is the best way to extract the different components. Vinegar is the best option for minerals although the long steeping time of nourishing herbal infusions will extract all of the water soluble ones. Vinegar will also extract antioxidants and other components. Alcohol is required to dissolve the alkaloids (such as the berberine in barberry or Oregon grape root). High proof alcohol, honey and oil are often used to extract resins and volatile oils. Some volatile oils are extracted by steam distillation to obtain essential oils but there are others that will easily release those oils in water (peppermint).

    Combination extracts are often used. When you are using anything less than 100% alcohol you are using a watered down version hence the reason that some recipes for tinctures will specify higher or lower percentage of alcohol based on the amount of alcohol soluble components vs. water soluble components. Willow bark is one (surprisingly enough) that you can tincture in a 25% alcohol because more of its components are water soluble. An oxymel is a honey-vinegar preparation. Even a salad dressing can be thought of as a combination extract, such as a raspberry vinegar with all the minerals and antioxidants combined with a herbal infused oil and a touch of onion or garlic infused honey.

  • jowitt.europe
    jowitt.europe Posts: 1,465 admin

    @LaurieLovesLearning thank you for sharing. I like this combination of using alcohol and oil to extract the most from the plant. And the other positive thing is that one has it in a few days. I always make calendula oil, but, so far, I did not use alcohol.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @jowitt.europe I did this for a diaper salve. It worked very well. I also liked the speed with which it was completed.

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin

    This is a link to a discussion with all of the menstruums listed, which properties or constituents that they extract and how to combine different extracts.


  • heirlooms777
    heirlooms777 Posts: 208 ✭✭✭
    edited May 2023

    @Torey Okay, this is too amazing, you are going to have to stop flooring me with all this information; I absolutely love this. Do you teach classes? Or could we start a Skype something for newbies like me? I’ve only healed with food before, herbs take it up to a whole new level! What do you think, @torey, @Marjory Wildcraft , @LaurieLovesLearning , I’m thinking whatever you like, but maybe a little weekly group online, like an online call? —Christina

  • heirlooms777
    heirlooms777 Posts: 208 ✭✭✭

    Joke of the day, Dr Patrick Jones’s herb making classes:

    ”But I don't want to hear any of people that have taken this course telling me when the apocalypse comes that everything would have been okay if you just had your dandelion tincture. Just yank the little rascals out of the dirt.”

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    This class is available for a limited time. New link in my first post above.

  • SuperC
    SuperC Posts: 952 ✭✭✭✭

    I’m making my first menstruum of Fire Cider. Why? Because it’s good for sinus congestion and respiratory. It helps prevent infections. It supports the bloodstream to respiratory system. It’s antimicrobial, and supports the immune system.

    The vinegar pulls out the microbial constituents and their vitamins.