What is an oil macerate?

What is an oil macerate?

An oil macerate is made by macerating the leaves, flowers, roots, seeds, or twigs of aromatic and medicinal plants in a vegetable oil. What is an oil macerate? It is a technique for extracting some of the active ingredients of a plant by infusing them in an oil, which then becomes the carrier for the plant's active properties, its fragrance, and its flavor.

What is an oil macerate? Method and process of manufacture

This type of preparation enhances the properties of the oils while adding the active ingredients of the macerated plants. Macerated oils can be used in cooking, cosmetics, and skincare, depending on the oils and plants chosen.

Oil macerates are a perfect option for the skin of babies (massage, bath oils, balm) and pregnant women, as they are safe, and can replace essential oils whose use requires greater precautions.

Which vegetable oils should I choose?

The most commonly used vegetable oils as a base are sunflower, sesame, olive, macadamia or grapeseed, because they present little risk of oxidation, are neutral and are well absorbed by the skin, without leaving a greasy film.

Two manufacturing methods

An oil macerate can be made cold or hot.

• Hot maceration involves gently heating plant-infused oil to accelerate the release of active ingredients. While shorter than maceration lasting several weeks, it carries the risk of slightly altering the plant's active compounds if the heat is too intense.

• Cold solar maceration preserves the beneficial properties of the plants and produces macerations of the highest quality. It lasts a minimum of 3 to 4 weeks.

What should be macerated?

You can macerate plants, seeds, flowers, coffee, roots, tea leaves, herbs, citrus peels.

To properly extract the properties of the seeds, branches and roots, it is important to grind them or reduce them to powder before infusing them in the oil.

Some plants and their properties

• Arnica: Bruises, blows, bumps, hematomas, edema, heavy legs.

• Bellis (Daisy flowers): Skin tonic, repairing, firming, shaping, restructuring and nourishing.

• Calendula: Powerful anti-inflammatory, healing and antiseptic, soothing (chapped skin, small wounds, razor burn, psoriasis, eczema, sunburn, itching, hives, insect bites).

• Chamomile: facial inflammation, rosacea.

• Carrot: Promotes tanning and helps the skin maintain a beautiful, even tan. Softening, regenerating, and soothing.

• Comfrey: Healing and antiseptic.

• Bay leaf: treats acne and oily skin. Relieves rheumatism.

• Mauve: mature skin, dry and sensitive skin, rosacea.

• Rosemary: oily skin, combination skin, slimming, draining.

• Green tea: reduces fat production and storage. Powerful antioxidant.

• Red vine: Treatment for heavy legs. Improves blood circulation.

DIY

Choose organic and dried plants to reduce the risk of fermentation and bacterial growth, and therefore the spoilage of your macerate. If you enjoy foraging for fresh wild plants, clean and dry them beforehand.

Approximately 10 grams of dried plants are needed to produce 100 grams of oil.

1 – Place the chosen flowers, leaves, stems, roots in a previously sterilized jar, without packing them down and label the jar: name of the oil + plant + date of manufacture.

2 – Fill your jar with organic vegetable oil (or several), until the plants are generously covered.

3 – Let it macerate for 4 to 6 weeks.

4 – Stir your macerate from time to time. If you notice in the first few days that the plants have absorbed the oil, add more.

5 – Filter and pour into a clean container.

At Ernest Ernest's

From our synergy of vegetable oils , we have selected organic Calendula oil macerate for the formulation of our Toning and Regenerating Body Oil .

Latin name: Calendula officinalis

Calendula macerate, obtained by macerating calendula flowers (Calendula officinalis) in a mild vegetable oil such as sunflower or olive oil, is a true ally for the skin.