I started growing Calendula in my garden last year, and I’ll be growing it FOREVER now because I love all of its amazing healing and skin benefits. I recently wrote a blog post on the skin benefits of Calendula, which you can read here.
If you haven’t already noticed it as an ingredients in some of your own favorite personal care products, you may start to notice it now… Calendula is a fairly common ingredient in natural products such as baby wash, shampoo, face cleansers/moisturizers, and even some mineral sunscreens.
This blog post covers how I’ve been using it to make my own body oil. I made my first few batches last year, and gave some jars to my mom to use when undergoing radiation for breast cancer to help prevent dermatitis of her skin. It may have helped, because she never got dermatitis.
This body oil is super simple to make and uses only 2 ingredients: dried Calendula officinalis flowers and unrefined coconut oil (or another carrier oil of your choice).
This is a fun and purposeful diy project that also makes a great gift. Enjoy!
How to make Calendula oil for skin
What you’ll need:
- Dried Calendula officinalis flowers. Some people use just the petals, but I use both the petals and flower heads, as some of the potency is in the greenery. Just be sure to use fully dried flowers as to prevent molding.
- Unrefined coconut oil (or other unrefined carrier oil of your choice. Olive oil, avocado oil, almond oil and jojoba oil are all other great options)
- A Mason jar with a lid
- A mesh strainer or cheesecloth to eventually strain out the flower petals and parts once it’s done infusing.
While it’s nice to have and use your own homegrown Calendula flowers for this oil (I definitely recommend growing it), you can also buy dried Calendula flowers. You can find some on Amazon here.
I purchased my first packet of Calendula seeds from High Mowing Organic Seeds, and harvested lots of seeds from some of those matured blooms. It’s super simple to save seeds from these plants, and definitely recommend doing it to have a plethora of Calendula growing the following year. I’ll be doing a post soon on just how simple and foolproof seed-saving Calendula it is, so keep an eye out for that!
If you are using your own Calendula flowers, cut the flower heads from the stem once they’ve bloomed. I’m not going to lie, it kind of pains me to do this. The bees and butterflies love Calendula, so I do hate to cut them when they’re at their peak of beauty. But, I’ve also heard, “the more you take, the more they come,” so that helps. I do also leave many of the flowers to live out their full life cycle to let them get to the seeding stage.
Once you’ve collected your Calendula flowers, let them dry on paper towels or a mesh screen for 2-3 weeks until completely dry. You can also use a food dehydrator to save on time – I have yet to buy a food dehydrator, so I’ve personally never tried this method.
Directions:
Once your flower petals/flower heads are fully dried, it’s time to get on with the oil infusion.
- Place your dried Calendula flowers into a mason jar and cover completely with your carrier oil. There’s really no exact measurements required here. The more flowers you use, the more potency and golden color your oil will have.
- Put the lid on the jar and place in a sunny location or windowsill to allow the sunlight to help with infusion.
- After a couple weeks of infusion, drain the flowers from the oil using a sifter, mesh strainer or cheesecloth.
- Pour the oil back into the jar or other air-tight container – it’s ready for use!
Storage:
Keep your golden Calendula oil stored in a cool and dark place. A medicine cabinet/cupboard or pantry is a perfect place to keep it until you use it.
I use this oil on my face both morning and night, and on my body after showering. It feels very nourishing.
I’ll be experimenting soon with Calendula balm and lotion, adding in things like shea butter and beeswax. I’ll be sure to include my findings with those here on the blog 💚
Important to note:
Don’t use Calendula if you’re allergic to the Asteraceae family of plants (such as ragweed, chamomile, and Echinacea). Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should also avoid using Calendula, as it may potentially cause miscarriage by inducing menstruation.
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