![\"homemade](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/homemade-tallow-balm-for-dry-skin.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nAfter our infant son began to experience dry skin and eczema patches as well, tallow balm has taken permanent residence in our medicine cabinet. Thankfully, with only two ingredients, making it yourself at home is super easy. <\/p>\n
We\u2019ll walk you through exactly how you can make your own homemade tallow balm and why you might want to!<\/p>\n
Our Story – Why We Use Tallow<\/h2>\n
Ever since I was a young child, I had highly sensitive skin. From cracked skin after spending time in the swimming pool, to lathering Aquaphor on my face in the dry winter months, dry skin has always plagued me. Thankfully, I\u2019ve come a long way. <\/p>\n
After changing to a real, whole food diet<\/a> and incorporating nutrient-dense foods like liver, most of the skin issues that I\u2019ve always had have been completely resolved. <\/p>\n However, occasionally in the winter months when the air is dry, I can still get a bit of dry skin. For these instances, I rely on tallow balm.<\/p>\n I wanted to have something on hand with natural oils\u2014not filled with toxic ingredients\u2014to help when dry skin patches appeared. That\u2019s when I first learned of tallow for skin care. Soon after, I whipped up my first batch of our very own tallow balm and was hooked. <\/p>\n Now, almost all of the natural products used in our skincare routine are tallow-based like our shampoo bars<\/a>, magnesium lotion<\/a>, sunscreen<\/a>, and drawing salve<\/a>.<\/p>\n Tallow balm is a nourishing and natural skin moisturizer with the main ingredient being tallow or rendered beef fat. Because tallow is a solid at room temperature, another liquid oil (we prefer olive oil) is added to the tallow to give tallow balm a texture better suited for easy application on the skin. <\/p>\n While it may sound funny to promote the wonders of a beef tallow moisturizer, tallow for skincare has been used throughout history.<\/p>\n Dating back to medieval times, the Romans and ancient Egyptians have used tallow as a miraculous agent of healing for the skin. Whether used as a soap, balm, or tallow lotion, tallow has long been touted for its ability to moisturize, along with the potential for helping to heal other skin ailments like burns and scrapes.<\/p>\n There are so many benefits to using tallow on the skin. After first trying it, we were so pleased with how it felt and what it did for our skin that we haven\u2019t looked back. <\/p>\n Tallow has been used both internally and externally for hundreds of years and with good reason\u2014its benefits are hard to beat!<\/p>\n This list just begins to scratch the surface of the nourishing benefits that tallow balm has for the skin. But, making it yourself can be intimidating, so let\u2019s dive in!<\/p>\n This all-purpose skin balm has only 2 ingredients.<\/p>\n Rendered Tallow \u2013<\/strong> More on that below.<\/p>\n Extra Virgin Olive Oil \u2013<\/strong> Avocado oil would be a good substitute. You need an oil that\u2019s a liquid at room temperature so coconut oil wouldn\u2019t be a good option.<\/p>\n Tallow is rendered beef fat (AKA suet). The first step is rendering your animal fat down to turn it into liquid tallow.<\/p>\n There are two methods for doing this, the dry and wet methods.<\/p>\n The dry method for rendering tallow is great and very straightforward. You can learn exactly how to render tallow this way in our post Cooking with Lard and How to Render It Yourself<\/a>\u2014the process of rendering lard and tallow is exactly the same. This method is great for rendering tallow to use in cooking but can still leave the tallow with a slightly beefy scent.<\/p>\n To avoid the smell, when we are rendering tallow for use in skin care, we prefer the wet method. The wet method of rendering tallow is slightly more involved but it leaves you with a beautiful, white, odorless tallow. Here\u2019s our full step-by-step guide for wet rendering tallow<\/a>.<\/p>\n After you\u2019ve rendered your tallow down, the hard part is done. From there, transforming your tallow into tallow balm is very easy. All you need is a small sauce pan, heat safe container, and a little bit of olive oil.<\/p>\n There are two different ways to make tallow balm: solid<\/strong> or whipped<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Solid tallow balm is simply made by mixing melted tallow and olive oil. After they are mixed together, pour into an appropriately sized clean jar to store. In its solid form, tallow balm will store well for several months at room temperature. The final product is smooth and easy to apply with a fingertip. Because of the simplicity and longer storage of the solid version, that\u2019s the method that we prefer.<\/p>\n To make the whipped version, you do exactly the same thing as you would in the solid version. However, after your tallow and olive oil are mixed, instead of pouring them into a jar to store, let them solidify in a mixing bowl. Once they have solidified, mix with an immersion blender to create a texture akin to whipped cream. The downside to whipped tallow balm is that it doesn\u2019t store as well. But it does create a more luxurious texture that is very easy to apply.<\/p>\n Yes! If you prefer to add essential oils to your tallow balm, you can definitely do this. After you mix your melted tallow and olive oil together, add your essential oils. For adults, a 1% dilution is recommended and if applying on babies, a .25% dilution is safer.<\/p>\n The first question we get when we start talking about making tallow-based skin care products is how do you find tallow or beef fat (suet)? <\/p>\n Our preference is always to work directly with a local farmer. Whether you are using the tallow in your cooking or skincare, quality makes a difference! Most of the toxins in an animal are stored in fat tissue so finding a clean, high-quality source of beef tallow is important!<\/p>\n Our preference is to use grass-fed tallow from cows on farms that follow regenerative practices. This helps to ensure that the tallow you are getting is not only going to be the best for you and your family but also best for the health of the animal and the planet. <\/p>\n Thankfully, farms with regenerative practices are growing so hopefully you know of one in your local area. If not, websites like localharvest.org<\/a> provide a directory of farmers to help you get connected with someone in your area.<\/p>\n If a local farm isn\u2019t an option, you should also be able to find tallow at a local butcher. However, in our experience, it can be more difficult to find meat or fat from grass-fed animals from a butcher.<\/p>\n The beauty of tallow balm is that it is the perfect all-purpose moisturizer. It\u2019s excellent for dry and cracked skin and can be applied to any part of the body including faces. Tallow balm is also my go-to lip balm as well as for babies and diaper rash.<\/p>\n Because tallow is a solid at room temperature, tallow balm will store in a small jar with a shelf life of several months in a dark place like a pantry or cupboard. <\/p>\n – \u00bd cup rendered tallow![\"smiling](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/smiling-homestead-family-in-overalls.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nWhat is Tallow Balm?<\/h2>\n
![\"easy](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/easy-homemade-tallow-balm-recipe.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nWhy Use Tallow Balm for Skin?<\/h2>\n
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What Do You Need to Make Tallow Balm?<\/h2>\n
![\"tallow](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/tallow-balm-ingredients.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nHow to Render Tallow to Make Tallow Balm<\/h2>\n
![\"scraping](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/scraping-impurities-from-tallow-disk-1024x576.jpg\")
How to Make Tallow Balm<\/h2>\n
![\"melting](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/melting-tallow-to-make-tallow-balm.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n1. Solid Tallow Balm<\/h4>\n
2. Whipped Tallow Balm<\/h4>\n
Can You Make Scented Tallow Balm?<\/h2>\n
![\"homemade](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/homemade-tallow-balm-in-jars.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nHow to Source Tallow?<\/h2>\n
![\"pasture](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/pasture-raised-cows-from-terra-vitae-farms.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nHow Do I Use Tallow Balm?<\/h2>\n
How to Store Tallow Balm?<\/h2>\n
Tallow Balm Recipe<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"2](\"https:\/\/fromscratchfarmstead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/2-ingredient-tallow-balm-recipe.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nIngredients:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
– 2 tbsp olive oil<\/p>\n