Healing Salve for Gardeners

If your hands are dry and chapped from gardening, housework or being out in the elements, try this soothing homemade healing salve made with natural ingredients. It’s scented with sweet orange and lavender essential oils, with a touch of vanilla. You can also download free printable labels for your gardeners hand salve.

I wouldn’t call myself a gardener, but I do love planting flowers and vegetables in our garden in the springtime.

After I dig in the dirt, my  hands need a little extra TLC and moisturizing. This homemade gardeners healing hand salve is great for dry, chapped hands and rough cuticles.

It smells amazing, because it’s scented with a blend of sweet orange and lavender essential oils and fragrant vanilla.

I designed labels with a pretty sweet orange blossom design* that you can download and print for free at home. The labels are available in two different sizes, and can find the download links at the end of this post. (These labels are for personal use only; please do not use the labels commercially.)

If you’ve never tried your hand at making homemade, natural bath and beauty products, a healing salve is a great first project. You don’t need many ingredients or much time, and the healing salve sets up fast. (Here’s another hand salve recipe you might enjoy like.)

[clickToTweet tweet=”Learn how to make this healing sweet orange, lavender & vanilla hand salve plus lots more all-natural bath & beauty products. #essentialoils #diybeauty #homemadebeauty” quote=”Learn how to make this healing sweet orange, lavender & vanilla hand salve plus lots more all-natural bath & beauty products.”]

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase based on my referral, I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Healing Salve Ingredients

• 3 ounces olive oil
• 3 ounces jojoba oil
• 2.5 Tablespoons beeswax pastilles
• 1/2 teaspoon Vitamin E oil
• 15 drops vanilla 10X 
• 25 drops lavender essential oil
• 40 drops sweet orange essential oil
• Four 2-ounce round tins
• glass measuring cup
• liquid droppers
• spatula or spoon

How to Make Gardeners Healing Salve

Combine the olive oil and jojoba oil with the beeswax pellets in a medium-sized glass measuring cup or bowl.

Microwave on high, 30-second at a time, until the beeswax has melted. Stir well after each turn in the microwave, as this will help melt the beeswax. It should take no more than a minute or two to melt the pellets. You can also melt the mixture on the stove in a double boiler.

Once the beeswax is melted, add the Vitamin E oil and stir to combine.

Add the essential oils and the vanilla 10X, stirring well to incorporate the fragrance throughout the mixture. The vanilla 10x is thick, so you may find it helpful to run the bottle under warm water first.

While mixture is still liquified, pour into tins, filling to just below the top of the rim. Allow to cool and set completely for several hours, before putting the tops on the containers. The hand salve will remain soft to the touch when it is set.

This recipe makes four 2-ounce tins of healing salve.

Once the healing salve has cooled completely, you can add the caps to the tins. Don’t forget to the decorative labels. Download the free printable labels below.

2-inch Round Sweet Orange Healing Salve Labels

These are designed to be printed on Avery 2-inch round labels. They work well on the 2-ounce tins and also regular mouth mason jar lids.

2.5-inch Round Sweet Orange Healing Salve Labels

I also created a larger 2.5-inch label, in case you want to package your healing salve in larger containers. These are designed to be printed on Avery 2.5-inch round labels.

They can be used on larger tins and wide-mouth mason jar lids.

One thing I should note about this recipe is its use of vanilla 10X.

Vanilla 10X is not an essential oil, though you may see products (erroneously) labeled and sold that way. If you buy a “vanilla essential oil,” what you’re really buying is vanilla-infused oil. And that’s not the same thing as an essential oil. Vanilla 10X, also sometimes called vanilla oleoresin or vanilla 10-Fold, is a concentrated form of vanilla that can be used to add fragrance. It is somewhat pricey, so this recipe uses only a little bit.

I bought my vanilla 10x (and most of my essential oils) from LovingScents Aromatherapy, a local company. If you can’t find vanilla 10X or don’t want to pay a premium for it, you can substitute vanilla jojoba oil for the sunflower oil in this recipe. The vanilla scent in your healing salve won’t be as concentrated. (You can also make your own vanilla-infused jojoba oil.)

[clickToTweet tweet=”Gardeners will love this soothing DIY hand salve made w/ lavender & sweet orange essential oils & vanilla fragrance. #essentialoils #gardening #lavender #sweetorange #vanilla #diybeauty #naturalbeauty” quote=”Gardeners will love this soothing DIY hand salve made w/ lavender & sweet orange essential oils & vanilla fragrance.”]

You might enjoy these other gardening and natural beauty projects:

Citrus Mint Hand Salve

Vintage Camper Painted Rocks

Recycled K-Cup Seed Starters

Homemade Whipped Coconut Oil Lotion

Mini Succulent Garden Party Favors

Find all my natural and homemade bath and beauty projects here.

*Orange background design copyright: m_woodhouse / 123RF Stock Photo