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Oil macerates

Calendula (marigold) oil macerate

The marigold, an orange and solar flower, passes its softness to the oil. Three weeks of patience, and you have a traditional balm for sensitive skin and small wounds.

The flowers of pot marigold (Calendula officinalis) hold flavonoids, carotenoids, triterpene saponins and polysaccharides. The topical use of calendula to soothe minor skin inflammations and aid the healing of minor wounds is recognised as a traditional use by the EMA (Calendulae flos monograph); ESCOP lists the same indications. Maceration in a vegetable oil extracts these fat-soluble compounds. Calendula macerate is one of the essential bases of homemade natural cosmetics.

Ingredients

Equipment

  • •1 clear glass jar (light helps the extraction)
  • •1 muslin or clean cloth
  • •1 tinted glass bottle for storage

Steps

  1. 1

    Dry the flowers (if fresh)

    If using fresh flowers, spread them on a clean cloth in the shade for 24 to 48 h so they lose their surface water. This matters: residual water in an oil encourages mould.

    24 to 48 h

  2. 2

    Fill the jar

    Pack the flowers into the jar without crushing them, up to 3/4 of the height. Pour the oil slowly to cover them completely, removing air bubbles with a wooden stick. Leave 1 cm of space at the top.

    5 min

  3. 3

    Expose to the sun

    Solar method: place the jar on a sunny windowsill. Shake each day. The sun's gentle warmth activates the maceration. The oil will take on a golden to orange hue.

    3 to 4 weeks

  4. 4

    Strain

    Strain through a muslin, gently pressing the flowers (without crushing too much, to avoid passing plant water). Let it settle for 24 h, then decant into a tinted bottle, leaving the deposit at the bottom.

    30 min + 24 h

Storage

1 year, cool and away from light. If the oil goes rancid (acrid smell), it must be thrown away.

How to use it

EXTERNAL USE ONLY. Applied directly on dry skin, minor irritations, chapping, itching. A few drops massaged onto the area, 1 to 3 times a day. An ideal base for making a balm with beeswax (10 g of wax per 100 ml of macerate).

Health properties

  • Wound-healing: traditionally supports skin repair (triterpenes of calendula)
  • Flower (Calendulae flos) listed in the European Pharmacopoeia
  • Traditionally used to soothe minor skin irritation and itching (a traditional use recognised by the EMA for minor skin inflammations)
  • Traditionally softens very dry skin

These preparations belong to cooking and herbal tradition: they nourish and support, do not “cure” anything and replace no treatment. Ask a doctor or pharmacist before prolonged use, if under treatment, pregnant or breastfeeding, or for a child. Follow the stated storage precautions strictly.

Precautions

External use only, never ingested (calendula at high doses is uterotonic). Not advised during pregnancy, even externally on mucous membranes. In children under 6, the EMA does not recommend skin use, for lack of adequate data: ask a paediatrician for advice. In case of eczema, seek medical advice before use. Possible allergy to the Asteraceae (daisy family), do a test in the crook of the elbow 24 h before first use. Do not apply on infected wounds without medical advice.

Sources & tradition

  • · ESCOP Monographs (European Scientific Cooperative on Phytotherapy), Calendulae flos
  • · EMA/HMPC, European Union herbal monograph on Calendula officinalis L., flos (revision 1, 2018), traditional use
  • · European Pharmacopoeia
  • · Anne McIntyre, Herbal Treatment of Children

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