Black Drawing Salve For Boils

This charcoal drawing salve is helpful for splinters, boils, and insect bites.

Simply dab some on the offending spot, then cover with a bandaid all day or overnight. Repeat as needed.

charcoal and clay drawing salve in autumn leaves

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Several years ago, I mentioned on this site that I was taking online classes through the Herbal Academy. Their courses are informative and enjoyable, and highly recommended if you're interested in diving deeper into herbalism!

Visit their website or click on the banner below for more information on their offerings.

For one of my homework assignments, I had to choose a recipe from their herbal flipbook to make. There were sooo many great ideas to choose from, but I finally settled on this black drawing salve.

I actually took great liberties with their original recipe, but that's okay – they encourage experimentation! (If only all homework could be so fun as the kind in this class!)

Since we heat our house solely with a wood stove, we're always getting tiny, bothersome splinters in our hands.

In the years since I first made this recipe, this salve has become an essential mainstay in our home. Besides splinters, the salve can also be used for things like boils and insect or spider bites.

It's especially popular as a men's gift; my husband is always handing some out to different guys he knows or has worked with. It's good stuff!

bowls of plantain leaves, violet leaves, and dandelion flowers

Drawing Salve Recipe

I buy everything I need for this recipe from Mountain Rose Herbs, except for the charcoal. You can buy capsules from your local health food store and break them open for this project, or you can find charcoal powder at Amazon and various online shops.

6 tablespoons infused olive oil*
2 tablespoons castor oil
2 teaspoons beeswax
3 teaspoons activated charcoal
3 teaspoons clay (kaolin, French green, or bentonite)
essential oils: 30 drops lavender, 15 drops tea tree

*The olive oil should first be infused with an herb such as calendula, plantain, dandelion, and/or violets.

You can buy ready-made calendula oil at Mountain Rose Herbs or you can infuse your own oils, following the directions in my calendula oil and salve article.

Tip: I recycled a tin can for melting purposes, since items made with charcoal can be difficult to wash out.

However, you'll want to be sure to store the finished charcoal salve in a glass container since glass is non-reactive. (The theory goes that the clay and charcoal could absorb unhealthy metals from a tin if it stays in contact for an extended time.)

Combine oils and beeswax in a heat proof container.
Set the container down in a saucepan containing a few inches of water, forming a make-shift double boiler.
Heat over a medium-low burner, until beeswax has melted.
Remove from heat and stir in essential oils, charcoal and clay.
You may need to add a little extra clay if you'd like a thicker consistency.
Immediately pour into glass containers.

This recipe fills one 4-ounce jelly jar, or two 2-ounce glass jars. Store the finished salve in a cool, dark place. We keep it around a year or so, or until it's all used up.

Apply a small amount to the area of your skin with a splinter, boil, or insect bite. Cover with a band-aid and leave on for up to twelve hours before washing off with soap and water. Repeat as needed.

This salve will stain your skin for a short while. Keep it away from any clothes or furniture that you don't want stained.

Printable Labels

These are the labels I use for gift giving. Print on sticker paper (like this kind) or, in a pinch, use plain copy paper and carefully affix to a regular canning lid with a thin layer of glue.

Sheet of Four Labels

Sheet of Six Labels

This post – Drawing Salve Recipe {with charcoal & clay} – was originally published December, 2013 and updated February, 2021.

Jan Berry is a writer, herbalist, soapmaker, and bestselling author of The Big Book of Homemade Products, Simple & Natural Soapmaking, and Easy Homemade Melt & Pour Soaps. She lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains with her family and a menagerie of animals, where she enjoys brainstorming creative things to make with the flowers and weeds that grow around her.